Jon holds a Ph.D. in German history from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and an M.A. in German and European Studies from Georgetown University. He completed his undergraduate degree at St. Olaf College. In addition to his academic training, Jon worked in Germany for the Haus der Geschichte museums in Bonn and Leipzig as well as for Markus Meckel, a member of the German Parliament, assisting him with his work on a special parliamentary commission looking into the crimes of the East German dictatorship.