Growing up on a farm in the Midwest, I had a natural interest in animals and nature. While venturing into architecture and home construction, I also enlisted in the Army National Guard as Infantry, earning an Honorable Discharge and some money to head to college. The first of 5 farm kids to attend university, I began college with no real direction, but quickly chose a major in Biology, with an interest in the origin of life. This led to studies in space exploration and astrobiology while finishing up a B.S. at Purdue University. After pharmaceutical positions with Bayer and Pfizer, I started graduate studies in microbiology and genetics at the University of Hawaii (to later include "minors" in marine biology, SCUBA, and surfing). Leaving the Islands to pursue Doctoral work at Arizona State led to research in geomicrobiology and further interests in astrobiology. Teaching Biology at the community colleges, I have also acted as a science curriculum developer/editor for middle/high school students, with a focus on integrating Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards.I have over 20 years of teaching experience, mainly at the college level, but also through doing STEM outreach for K-12 students. I am comfortable acting as a subject matter expert for science consulting and freelance work. As a PADI Master SCUBA Diver Trainer and business owner, I also enjoy teaching new students how to SCUBA dive, sharing a passion for the marine environment and science in general. To help in those activities, I also hold a USCG Master's Captain license and learned to sail in San Diego harbor. As a father of 3, I enjoy spending time with my family and sharing adventures. With a strong interest in STEM outreach in the classroom for K-12 students, I also founded the non-profit SEAS Alliance.