Marissa graduated with a degree in Wildlife Science from the College of Environmental Science and Forestry in 2014. After graduating she worked six years for the Cary Institute on several disease ecology research projects as an Assistant Research Specialist. These projects focused on ticks and tick-borne illnesses. She has also worked for Millbrook Private School for the last ten years as a part-time zookeeper and later as the full-time Animal Husbandry Supervisor. She worked with kindergarten through undergraduates, giving presentations, teaching classes, and assisting with research projects. She enjoys helping rehabilitate animals and conducting conservation work.