Jada Johnson grew up in Cloquet, Minn., which she calls “a smaller town, but bigger than most.” Even though she says there isn’t a lot to do around Cloquet, Johnson, Ojibwe, stays busy with extracurricular activities. As an added bonus, the organizations Johnson is a part of often allow her to travel beyond her home-town. “I’ve always been involved in things like science fairs and Upward Bound that take me places,” she says.

Growing up near the ocean mostly in Vallejo, Calif., Amber Finley was fascinated by aquatic life. That love for the sea quickly transformed into a passion for STEM. As early as junior high, math and science became Finley’s focus at school — and her curiosity about biology was strongly encouraged by the adults around her.

“I had many teachers who supported my interest in math and science,” she says. “And my parents always wanted me to do well and supported my academic endeavors.”

The heart of Jeff Gregg’s work is vigilance. As a hazardous waste coordinator at the U.S. Coast Guard Base in Honolulu, he spends his days protecting water. Or as Gregg puts it, “We keep the black stuff out of the blue stuff.”

For as long as he can remember, the “blue stuff” has been a passion. “There was always something about the water, especially the ocean,” he says. “As a young boy, I discovered Jacques Cousteau and would watch the episodes over and over. I wanted to be Jacques Cousteau.”

Logan Pallin, First Nation, grew up just outside the northern Minnesota community of Cloquet. Relatively rural, Cloquet has only about 10,000 residents, and Pallin spent much of his childhood exploring the surrounding forests and lakes.

Like many graduate students, he was drawn to science early on when he became involved in science fairs. “I just loved working on a project, figuring it out, and then having the opportunity to share it with the scientific community,” he says.

These days Trentin Russell, 17, watches the Cloquet Senior High School wrestling team from the sidelines, but he’s not uninvolved. Even though a shoulder injury keeps him from participating with his teammates, Russell does as much as he can — even if that means operating the scoreboard.