She graduated from Huntsville High School in 1971,[3] received a Bachelor of Science degree in applied biology from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1975 and another in mechanical engineering from Auburn University in 1977.

[4] After graduating from Auburn University in 1977, Davis joined Texaco in Bellaire, Texas, working as a petroleum engineer in tertiary oil recovery.

Davis did her graduate research at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, studying the long-term strength of pressure vessels due to the viscoelastic characteristics of filament-wound composites.

[2] Her first assignment was in the Astronaut Office Mission Development Branch, where she provided technical support for Space Shuttle payloads.

Launched on September 12, 1992,[7] this cooperative venture between the United States and Japan conducted 43 experiments in life sciences and materials processing.

During this 12-day mission, Davis deployed and retrieved the CRISTA-SPAS payload, and operated the Japanese Manipulator Flight Demonstration (MFD) robotic arm.

[2] Davis retired from NASA in 2005 and worked for Jacobs Engineering Group as a Vice President and Deputy General Manager.

[2] She currently works for Bastion Technologies, Inc. as the Safety and Mission Assurance Support Contract Program Manager at the Marshall Space Flight Center.