Laurie Mason attended Stanford University and graduated in 2001 with a degree in biology. At stanford she was a member of the varsity rowing team and served as captain both her junior and senior years. During college, Laurie volunteered regularly with a tutoring program for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds and served as co-director of the program her senior year.

After Stanford, Laurie began her teaching career in earnest and spent six years teaching in the San Francisco Bay Area. She spent most of her time teaching at the Castilleja School in Palo Alto where she won teacher of the year in 2007 in recognition by faculty, students and staff for the originality of her course work as well as her dedication to her students. In 2007 Laurie also won the W. J. Clinton Fellowship for Service, which sent her to work at the Indian education NGO Bodh Shiksha Samiti for a period of ten months. In India Laurie wrote a comprehensive science laboratory curriculum for grades nine and ten for the NGO. After her time in India, Laurie moved to the East Coast to be near her family and looks forward to more adventures working abroad.