His Ph.D. in communications and M.S.W. (clinical/contextual with a specialization in multigenerational social work) are from the University of Washington (Seattle). He also has a M.A. in communication and B.A. in English from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and a certificate of completion in Japanese Studies from the Center for Japanese Studies at Nanzan University in Nagoya, Japan. He was an assistant professor at the University of Washington and worked for a period as the technology studies manager at The Freedom Forum Media Studies Center (formerly known as the Gannett Center for Media Studies) when it was located at Columbia University in New York City. He has done extensive freelance writing and worked in public relations for several years in the health care field. Teaching: