Growing up as the son of a preacher in the tiny black community of Val Verde, north of Santa Clarita, Shelby Jacobs encountered a lot of social barriers like so many black people during that period. Despite the above challenges, he stood out in many ways during his days in high school as an athlete and senior class president. He subsequently earned a scholarship to the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) to study mechanical engineering after taking an aptitude test that showed a high proficiency for math and science.