Jay was born in Leonardtown, MD on May 4^th 1981 and raised in Alton, IL, a suburb of St. Louis.  After graduation from Marquette Catholic High School in Alton he attended the school of the 2006 NCAA National Champions in Men’s Basketball (Winona State University).  At WSU he conducted research under Prof. Tom Nalli on Visible Light Initiated Cationic Polymerizations and graduated in 2003 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Chemistry.  During the summer of 2002 he participated in a NSF-REU under Prof. Silas Blackstock at The University of Alabama on Donor-Acceptor Organic Co-Crystals.

Jay came to the University of Illinois in the Fall of 2003 to pursue graduate studies in organic chemistry and joined the Moore research group.  Currently he is working on using Plasmonic Crystals for Sensor Applications.  Jay is also a former member of DCGSAC (Department of Chemistry Graduate Student Advisory Committee) and the founder/coach of the Speed Marvels softball team.  In his free time he also enjoys rugby, St. Louis sports teams (especially the Cardinals), music, and watching movies.