This is my 12th year at WPHS.  I was born and raised in the Midwest.  Growing up outside of Chicago, I learned the value of hard work, discipline, and a strong work ethic at a young age.  Upon graduating high school I moved to Florida to attend college and played college golf.  I majored in Business Management and Marketing at UNF.  I met my wife Stephanie at UNF and we married in 1995, and moved to Ocala.  We have two children.  Ethan who is in 9th grade at the Port and Summer is a 6th grader at Osceola.  My wife is a Guidance counselor at Osceola. 

My introduction to Ceramics was in college at UNF.  It was not until my last semester in college.  It is for this very reason that I believe the electives are extremely important to our children to explore areas that they are interested in at a young age.  Had I a chance to do it again, I would have taken Art electives in high school and certainly in college to pursue an area that I not only had talent in but a desire to create.  I did not have the knowledge that I could make a living as an artist at that time.   When we moved to Atlanta I began taking pottery classes in the evening at the Chastain Art Center.  I started to acquire equipment which allowed me to focus on Ceramics.  I have traveled the country and attended hundreds of Art Shows.  My niche is working on the wheel creating functional pieces.  After traveling as a full time potter for three years I made a decision to return to teaching. Which led me to apply for the teaching position as the Ceramics Instructor at West Port High School. I feel fortunate to be in a position where I love to teach a subject that I love and to be at the best High School in Marion County.

This past year I was the Junior Varsity soccer coach and Assistant to our Varisty program.   Our JV team went undeated, 14-1-2.  Our players dedication to train, learn, and compete was a priviledge to be a part of.  I have also have been extensively involved in coaching my kids in soccer at Big Sun. Other interests include cooking, fishing, the outdoors, and sporting competitions.