Prior to joining Hofstra, he founded the Chemistry Department at Bard High School Early College Queens, a satellite campus of Bard College that grants A.A. degrees to New York City public school students, and worked in the Chemical Sciences Division of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). He holds a B.S. and M.E. in Environmental Engineering from Manhattan College, an Advanced Certificate in Adolescent Education from Bard College, and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering and Chemistry from Johns Hopkins University.