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Education:
Ph.D. in Coastal Engineering, 2004, University of Florida M.S. in Coastal Engineering, 2001, University of Florida B.E. in Civil Engineering, 1999, Stevens Institute of Technology My Story: Growing up in Central Jersey (yes it exists!) I couldn't wait for summer vacations at the Jersey Shore. Most of these vacations were spent in Wildwood Crest and Cape May. As a child, I couldn't tell you why, but I knew that if we were staying in Wildwood Crest, the boogie boarding was better because of the long flat beaches. The beaches in Cape May on the other hand were steeper and depending on the year they might be wide or narrow. Only later would I come to realize that beach nourishment was playing in maintaining Cape May's beaches. I can trace my interest in water and coastal storms in particular back to two childhood experiences. The first wasn't so much coastal in nature, but it gave me a deeper respect for the impact of coastal storms. My childhood home happened to be located directly across the street from the high school football stadium which was backed by the Rahway River. I can distinctly remember the field filling up with water during Hurricanes Gloria and Floyd, to the point where the first few rows of seats disappeared. The same storms wreaked havoc in my community eventually causing the relocation of the town library due to repetitive flooding. I can also vividly remember watching the local news reporting from Sea Bright during what would come to be known as the Perfect Storm. They were actually interviewing a professor from Stevens on the potential impacts of the storm on the coast as waves were crashing over the seawall behind them. I remember being in awe of the ocean's fury and thinking how cool it was that it was someone's job to study it. Ultimately I ended up attending Stevens where I was introduced to the field of coastal engineering, by the professor I had seen on the seawall several years before, Michael Bruno. After graduating with a degree in Civil Engineering, I made the decision to pursue a PhD at the University of Florida under the mentorship of Dr. Robert Dean. The decision to attend the University of Florida and work with Dr. Dean was one of the most important decisions of my life. Dr. Dean was not only a great academic mentor, but an exemplary human being who taught me almost as much about relationships and humility as he did about coastal engineering. In the course of my PhD studies I was fortunate enough to apply for and receive a Fulbright Fellowship which allowed me to spend a year studying at the University of Queensland in Australia under Dr. Peter Nielsen. I'll be forever grateful to Peter for welcoming me into his research group. I have so many fond memories of grueling yet inspiring research meetings followed by a game of footy or a trip to the pub. I was fortunate to be invited home to Stevens after completing my PhD. I started as a research engineer and have worked my way up to Research Associate Professor and head of the Stevens Coastal Engineering Research Group (CERG). At CERG I'm fortunate to study the beaches and work with the communities in that state that I have called home my entire life. Working in New Jersey is everything I thought it would be, inspirational, challenging, and rewarding. Along the way I have been blessed to work with dozens of undergraduate and graduate students, many of whom have gone on to have long productive careers in coastal engineering. Outside of Stevens, I still enjoy vacationing at the Jersey shore with my wife Diana and kids Jasmine and Jayden. I also enjoy playing, watching, and particularly coaching basketball. |
