He received his B.S. in chemistry in 1994 from Frostburg State University and his Ph.D. in analytical chemistry in 1998 at the University of South Carolina, where his graduate research involved the development of novel optical spectroscopic techniques and fiber optic sensors for environmental monitoring. This work was performed under the guidance of his thesis advisor, Dr. S. Michael Angel. Following his Ph.D., he accepted a postdoctoral fellowship in the Life Sciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in January of 1999, under the mentorship of Dr. Tuan Vo-Dinh. At ORNL, he was involved in several different research projects, including the development of fiber optic nanosensors for intracellular monitoring of biomarkers associated with carcinogenesis.