He holds degrees in music and systematic musicology from the University of Washington,where he worked with James C. Carlsen and Barbara Reeder Lundquist, and a Master of Music and Doctor of Philosophy in music education from the University of Michigan, where his mentors were Robert L. Culver, James O. Froseth, Richard J. Colwell, and Anthony Elliott. He teaches courses in string pedagogy and methods, curriculum and assessment, music theory, and the psychology of music, as well as serving as faculty advisor and Master Teacher for the CWU Preparatory Strings program, which received a National String Project Consortium grant through the NAMM Foundation in 2008.