At Kearney she gained her first experience conducting and extending applied research working with her mentors, UC ANR Cooperative Extension specialists Charlie Summers, Jim Stapleton and Jeff Mitchell.
Roche presented the research at the State FFA Conference 2000 and was named the California State FFA Agriscience Student of the Year. Roche continued to excel in her education and research. In 2012, she received the Shapiro Family Award for Excellence in Science for the quality of her doctorate dissertation and outstanding academic and research record at UC Davis.
Roche has a bachelor's degree in agricultural management and rangeland resources, a master's in horticulture and agronomy and a doctorate degree in ecology. Her current projects include “California Ranch Stewardship Project: Adaptive Management for Profit and Rangeland Health,” “On-Ranch Impacts, Management and Planning Horizons Following Severe Drought” and “Wildfire and Grazing Management and Planning.”