Barabino began attending Xavier University of Louisiana while still in high school and continued on to complete her studies at Xavier after her high school graduation in 1974. When a high school teacher told her that girls could not become chemists, she decided to pursue an undergraduate degree in chemistry to prove the teacher wrong. Barabino enjoyed her time at the historically black university, since she was no longer the only black student in her classes and was encouraged academically. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science in chemistry with minors in biology and math in 1978.
