Anthony Daniel Tercero has overcome numerous challenges in his life, including growing up in a family where the pursuit of higher education never seemed like a possibility. After joining the Army at 17, he deployed to the Middle East, where he and his fellow soldiers were barraged daily with mortar and rocket attacks. The week he returned home, Anthony’s house and all his possessions were destroyed in the San Bruno gas pipeline explosion.

While deployed to Korea as an intelligence analyst, he developed a passion for learning and helping others. Following eight years of military service, Anthony enrolled at Sonoma State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in molecular cellular biology and served as an undergraduate and graduate researcher for a National Science Foundation-funded project investigating the genetic and physiological adaptations of Antarctic fish.

Anthony is now working on a Master of Science degree in biology and plans to pursue a doctorate at the University of California, Davis, to one day work as a university tenure-track professor.​