A native of Detroit, he holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology as well as a second master’s degree (neuroscience) and a Ph.D. in Medicine. Jobs and journeys in his life have included working as a research fellow, traveling the world with a Christian mission group, teaching middle school in the Bronx and returning to Michigan, first to work for Field Neurosciences Institute on Alzheimer’s research and, ultimately, teaching at SVSU.