Dr. Villarreal has over 9 years of experience in ecological and biological research, particularly in vegetation monitoring and change assessment. As part of her doctoral and post-doctoral work, she has gained experience in GIS, remote sensing, wetland mapping, data management, data analysis, and publishing for the scientific community. Dr. Villarreal has performed data collection and analysis in Texas, Alaska, Canada, and Antarctica, and has collaborated with numerous native, private, and government organizations such as the Ukpeaġvik Iñupiat Corporation, NUNA Technologies, the North Slope Borough, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife. Additionally, she has also performed environmental consulting in Ft. Bliss, Texas for the Directorate of Public Works, Environmental Division under the Wastewater Management Program and the Bio-Cell Soil Remediation Facility.

Dr. Villarreal received both her Bachelor of Science (environmental science – biology concentration), and her doctorate (ecology and evolutionary biology) from the University of Texas at El Paso.