His commitment to serving children with autism began in 1982, when he had the opportunity to volunteer as a buddy for an adult with autism who lived nearby his college. This experience led to an invitation to enter graduate school at UCLA, where he studied clinical psychology and worked as a therapist and researcher in UCLA Young Autism Project. After completing his doctoral and post doctoral work, he served on the psychology faculty at Drake University and Washington State University. He moved to URMC in 2000, where he is currently a behavior specialist in the school consultation program in the Strong Center for Developmental Disabilities.