Sally Holl was born in Houston, Texas to Cheryl Elam and David Holl, Sr.

Sally earned a Bachelor of Arts in Geology and Musicology from Oberlin College in 1998. After working for two years in industrial supply chain management, she worked on NASA-funded climate and soil moisture research to earn her Master of Science in Geological Sciences in 2004 from the University of Texas at Austin. In 2002 Ms. Holl relocated to the University of California, Irvine, at the invitation of her graduate advisor, Dr. James Famiglietti. She worked as a Programmer/Analyst in the Department of Earth System Science while completing her Masters thesis.

Since attending a Girl Scout-sponsored "Wider Opportunity" program at the University of Colorado Mountain Research Station (INSTAAR) when she was 13 years old, she knew she wanted to be an Earth Scientist. The female role models at INSTAAR inspired and encouraged her to pursue her love of geology. She also owes much to her geology professors at Oberlin College as well as her mentors at the U.S. Geological Survey in Reston, Virginia and Denver, Colorado, where she worked for several summers while a college student.

Sally hopes to inspire the next generation of Earth Scientists in the same way as her mentors inspired her. She enjoys making "ivory tower" research accessible to teachers and students through crafting creative and innovative earth science curriculum and connecting professional scientists with classrooms.

Ms. Holl's hobbies include performing and teaching classical flute. She began playing flute at the age of ten in Houston, Texas where she was born. She is also a student and scholar of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian percussion and has performed in these genres professionally as well as studied in Cuba with members of Grupo Afrocuba de Matanzas. She strongly believes in the interdependent and inseparable nature of art and science and encourages her students to pursue interests beyond the classroom.

In 2007 Ms. Holl joined the USGS Texas Water Science Center in Austin, Texas as Geographer.