Stephen Craig Ronshaugen was born on March 22, 1948, in Minot, North Dakota. Stephen married Bonita on February 10, 1979, and they had two children: Matthew and Kristina.
Ronshaugen obtained a bachelor of arts degree from Minot State University. He also did some graduate work at the North Dakota State University.
Ronshaugen was employed with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) at Las Vegas for nine years as an off-site chemist for the Nevada Test Site. Ronshaugen also worked in numerous positions at the Department of Energy (DOE) for sixteen years.