I was born in the Pacific Northwest on a commune (yes, a real commune!) and raised for most of my life in northern New Jersey with a lot of time also spent in Oregon. After graduating from Beloit College in Wisconsin with a degree in political science and Russian, I moved to Washington D.C. and worked on Capitol Hill, at the State Department, and for a non-profit working on collaborative international relationships between state and territorial health policy directors.  I also did  graduate work at George Washington University.  After a couple of years in Washington D.C., I decided that I wanted to make a change and get into the field of education.  I moved back to the Midwest and worked in college admissions and financial aid before becoming a classroom teacher for nearly eight years (and in that time earned my masters for teaching).  I now work in educational ethics for an online graduate school as well as doing charitable work locally through a variety of organizations.  My wife, Valerie and I, have lived in Indiana for 11 years and Muncie for 8.  We have three amazing children, aged 13, 6, and 2.  If I can find spare time, I love to travel and adventure, experience live music, read, play ultimate frisbee, and spend as much time as possible outdoors.