He received his PhD in spine biomechanics from the University of Waterloo (2008), and Masters (2003) and Bachelors (2000) degrees in Human Kinetics from the University of Windsor. After graduating from Waterloo he worked as a post-doctoral fellow in Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of California San Diego (2008-2010). His research focuses on progressing the understanding of integrated spine and muscle function, injury, adaptation and rehabilitation. Stephen was awarded the 2011 ISSLS Prize for biomechanics research related to the lumbar spine, and named the 2014 David Winter Promising Young Investigator by the Canadian Society for Biomechanics.