He also serves as the course director for the medical embryology and gross anatomy classes and is the graduate director of the Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program. He received his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina and then did his post-doctoral training at Vanderbilt University before returning to USC. His research includes the mechanisms of cardiovascular development, cardiac birth defects, and cardiovascular tissue engineering. Ultrasound technologies are an essential component of both his research efforts and medical education activities.