Originally from Colorado, Melissa Stevens attended University of Colorado at Boulder and received her B.Sci. in Environmental Biology. Melissa spent one year of undergraduate school at Murdoch University in Western Australia studying marine biology. She participated in field research of lemon sharks in Bahamas (1997-98), attended Moss Landing Marine Laboratories from 1999-2002 (M.S. Marine Science; master's thesis: 'Age, Growth and Radiometric Validation of the Blackgill rockfish, Sebastes melanostomus"), worked for the Seafood Watch program of the Monterey Bay Aquarium as a Research Analyst from mid-2001 to 2004, traveled extensively in Central and South America in 2005, then returned to Santa Cruz to get back into marine science. Melissa worked at Friends of Moss Landing Marine Lab as Education Programs Manager developing a place-based fisheries education project for local middle and high school youth. She currently works for California Sea Grant Extension Program, participating in a research project to understand changes to Central and Northern California fishing communities and harbor infrastructure over time.