Dubai, UAE -- Chicagoland -- West Michigan -- East Central Indiana

I was born in the oasis city of Al Ain, UAE, which is 80 miles of desert from the much larger city of Dubai. The Longjohn family has deep roots in Al Ain that date back to the 1960s, when my grandparents helped establish a missionary hospital. I spent the first four years of my life in Dubai before my family returned to the States and settled in the Chicago suburbs. 

For my parents, this return to the United States marked a vocational transition point that led them both to a career in university administration. I spent my entire K-12 years around college students and a campus environment. Education is deeply valued in my family, and I always envisioned college in my future. Shaped by the formative communities I encountered through my parents' work, I searched for an institution that offered a similar mission while offering enough distance to forge my own path. This search led me to Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU).

At IWU, I studied Math Education and minored in Economics, and I was heavily involved in music and residence life. I am also a graduate of the John Wesley Honors College (JWHC), a learning community dedicated to the liberal arts that earns its members an additional major in Honors Humanities. It was in the JWHC where I met my  wife, Margot, and where I began developing passions for liberation theology, critical inquiry, and social equity.

Though I originally attended IWU to become a math teacher, my experience in residence life cultivated a stronger calling towards university administration. In my search for a graduate school, I sought an institution that would continue challenging privileged frameworks and offer practical experience outside of Christian higher education. Fortunately, one of the oldest and most well-respected graduate programs in the country was right in IWU's backyard. I quickly applied to Ball State's Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education (SAAHE) program. This program allowed me to directly apply theory to practice through a graduate assistantship in Housing and Residence Life, and it helped me create meaningful, professional connections with other practitioners in the field. 

During my time in the SAAHE program, I was inspired by the scholarship and passion my program director, Dr. Amanda Latz, shared for community colleges and the student experience. I completed a practicum with Ivy Tech Community College, working in conjunction with the Student Life and Academic Advising offices of the Hamilton County campus to bolster student success efforts. I quickly developed a passion of my own for the community college environment, leading me to make two decisive career decisions immediately following my master's graduation: enroll in the Ed.D. in Higher Education program at Ball State, and accept an Academic Advisor position with the Marion campus of Ivy Tech.