Before her busy life as an Extension educator at UMass Amherst, Garofalo worked in restaurants, travelled extensively, and joined security forces in the U.S. Air Force after the events of September 11th, 2001. With no clear life path and her wheels spinning, ultimately her path led back to Massachusetts where a Greenfield Community College horticultural class made everything click. Her “aha” moment was when she realized she was supposed to be playing with plants and dirt. Garofalo proceeded to earn her associate’s degree in Sustainable Food and Farming and a bachelor’s degree in Plant, Soil, and Insect Sciences at the Stockbridge School of Agriculture. She was awarded a master’s degree in plant pathology while investigating apple scab with Dr. Dan Cooley at the UMass Amherst Cold Spring Orchard. During her tenure at UMass, she also helped farmers manage pest problems and taught her students Integrated Pest Management techniques.
After more than three years of service in Extension, Garofalo now works as a Marketing and Program Manager at Red Tomato, Inc.
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