Jenelle Tabaković, 33

Some of Jenelle Tabaković’s earliest memories are from spending time in the lab in her grandmother’s basement, owned by her mother and uncle and, previously, her grandfather. “I remember drawing mustaches on technicians in LMT magazine,” she recalls with a laugh.

As a teenager, she became genuinely interested in the work itself and got a job working with her uncle at the centralized laboratory for a chain of clinics. She soaked up all she could, often staying after hours so her uncle could teach her more. She was hooked and moved on to other laboratories, wanting to learn every phase of removable fabrication, but soon hit a roadblock: she had made herself so valuable as a waxer, she was denied the opportunity to learn setups.

At the urging of her husband, Jasmin, she joined Aspen Dental in January 2019; he also worked there and assured her she would get the training she desired. Sure enough, after a short time, she was given the opportunity to learn...