Alisa Klaus came to Santa Cruz in 1988 to teach history. She taught 19th and 20th century UC history and women's history at UCSC for five years before returning to school to study geology. After completing an MS in Geology at San Jose State University, she worked as a geologist in environmental consulting, where her work consisted mostly of assessment and clean up of contaminated soil and groundwater. In 2004, she returned to UCSC as an environmental planner with Physical Planning and Construction, where she is responsible for preparing environmental impact reports and related environmental compliance for all UCSC projects.