I grew up in a small town just outside of Flint, MI. I learned the value of a strong community while spending time at the local sports field playing, coaching, and officiating. My college career began in the computer science dept but I eventually found my calling studying how people used computers rather than programming them. I graduated from Michigan State University with a BA in Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media with a specialization in Digital Media, Arts, and Technology (yes, it is a very long name for the program). After MSU, I worked several jobs in the Detroit area before moving to Chicago to continue my education in Communication. I fell in love with communication research while studying at the University of Illinois at Chicago. After earning my master's degree at UIC, I moved to Austin, TX to begin a doctoral program at the University of Texas. While attending UT, I had the opportunity to travel to Asia and Europe to conduct field research. I graduated with my Ph.D. in May 2020. I had the opportunity to do a post-doc at Texas Tech studying human interaction with robots and AI. Afterwards, I came back to Austin to work at TikTok before getting the chance to help shape Google's Gemini. 

Outside of work I love playing kickball, and cooking, and making things. I also enjoy traveling with my wife, Elizabeth.