About Me
I was born in the city of Newcastle, N.S.W., which is about 100 miles north of Sydney. When I was 2 years old, my parents moved to Perth in Western Australia, where we lived for the next 12 years. I attended primary school and junior high school during these years. We then moved back to Cooranbong, N.S.W. (near Newcastle), where my parents still live. I attended senior high school and college, completing a B. Ed (Sci.) degree in 1979. In 1980, I attended The University of Newcastle, Australia, where I completed an Honors year. In 1981, I taught school in the Cook Islands as a volunteer. After returning to Australia in 1982, I entered graduate school at the University of Newcastle and completed my Ph.D. in Biological Sciences. In 1986, I moved to California to work at Loma Linda University. While there, I met my wife Jackie, who was working on a combined M.D./Ph.D. program. We were married in December, 1987. In 1990, I moved to the University of California, Riverside. In 1992, we moved to Orlando, Florida, where we have been ever since.

Initially, I worked at the Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred. This research station is part of The University of Florida. In 1995 I joined the The University of Central Florida, first as an adjunct, and then as a Visiting Assistant Professor. I taught biology and plant physiology. I was also involved in the University's program to use the Internet for distributed/long-distance learning. My final project was to mount my general biology course on the World Wide Web. I taught this course in the Spring of 2000. In January, 2000 I joined the faculty of Valencia College, where I now teach Fundamentals of Biology I and II.

The single biggest change since moving to Orlando has been the birth of my daughter, Erica in 1996. This single event has caused many changes in our lives. Erica continues to amaze us with her development. I can't think of anything more rewarding than being a father; there is just nothing else like it.

Update: Sometimes, in the course of relationships, the individuals involved grow apart and travel down different life paths. Over the last few years this has happened with Jackie and myself and as a consequence we were divorced in October, 2007. We remain on good terms and share custody of Erica. Life is not predictable-all you can do is live it as you find it.