"Hello, I'm Don. I have a BS in Biomedical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and I have a Master's in Sports Science from the United States Sports Academy that was granted with Highest Honors (4.0). I worked in medical research at Yale University, School of Medicine for 18 years in one of the top facilities in the world. I was the manager of 6 medical imaging cores at Yale, working with researchers from across many disciplines. I was tasked with teaching undergraduate, graduate, and medical students how to use the resources of the facility and how to perform scientific research. I also did the same, albeit at a high level, with post-doctoral fellows in both engineering and medicine. During my time in medical research, I also patented an imaging system for the detection of breast cancer and received funding from the National Institutes of Health to develop the system.

I left medical research in 2013, and now I coach soccer full time. I coach preschool kids during the day and high school and college kids in the evenings. I continue to use the concepts I learned in medical research when I coach to ensure I stay on the cutting edge of coaching.

Oh, and on the side, I have self-published several children's picture books!!

Both of my parents were teachers, and I think I have always followed in their footsteps with a desire to learn new things and then to pass on that knowledge to others. I began tutoring my peers in high school, even held "calculus parties" at my house. I have continued tutoring kids that I coach in both high school and college. As a soccer coach, I think of myself as a teacher and try to have the players understand the when and why, and not just the how. I find that having a real understanding creates a much better player. This is the same for all academic subjects as well, understanding the material is much preferred over memorizing how to do specific problems. This understanding gives the student confidence that they can be successful in the subject.

My time working at Ya" less...