I grew up around Tucson, Arizona and after high school joined the Air Force where I was a medic for 8 years. Wildlife and nature had been my interest from a young age and was my driving factor when I went back to school. I attended Arizona State University where I got my undergrad in Biological Sciences focusing on Conservation Biology and Ecology. I recently began my Master of Science in Biology at New Mexico State focusing on ecology and evolutionary biology. I will be researching copepod interaction with rainbow trout in fisheries.