About Me

I started social dancing in 2015 while working on my PhD in Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech. A friend invited me to go to a Salsa night dance, and I was instantly hooked. After that night, I started going to every local dance lesson and event I could find. During the next year I got involved with SalsaTech's (Salsa Dance Club at VT) performance team. Over the next three years I trained, performed and eventually captained the performance team. I also taught lessons on a weekly basis for beginner through advanced levels for the club.

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After beginning with Salsa, I started to explore other styles of dancing, including Country Swing, East Coast Swing, Lindy Hop, and later Ballroom. Then, a couple of my dance friends invited me to a West Coast Swing dance at Sapphire Ballroom in early 2017. I had never seen this dance style before, and did not know that I was about to discover one of my greatest passions. I fell in love with the dance. I immediately started taking private lessons, and soon I was teaching alongside the founder of Blacksburg WCS (the West Coast Swing dance club at VT), and going to nationwide West Coast Swing events to take workshops and compete. 

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In the fall of 2018, I moved to Bismarck, ND and started teaching Mechanical Engineering at the University of Mary. Once in Bismarck,  I searched for social dancing opportunities. While limited, I did come across the Bismarck-Mandan Dance group, as well as the Social Dance Club at UMary. Naturally, I got involved as much as I could.

 

Currently, I continue to teach beginner dance lessons for the Bismarck-Mandan Dance group at their monthly dances. In addition to my Engineering courses at UMary, I also teach a course, 'Introduction to Social Dance,' and offer private lessons to UMary students. While continuing to grow myself, I have greatly enjoyed watching them grow as dancers.

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When I am not dancing, I am working on my courses as a faculty of the Mechanical Engineering Department and spending time with my wife, Kate, when she isn't busy working in her Voice and Piano Studio.