David grew up in rural Illinois before attending the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities for his undergraduate degrees in chemical engineering and chemistry. He spent time on co-op performing aerospace corrosion protection research, which convinced him to attend graduate school. He is currently researching ion exchange membranes for water and energy applications at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor. His research is funded by an NSF-GRFP fellowship and is focused on understanding how to improve membrane development and design. He is currently interested in pursuing an industrial research career after graduating, and would like to continue working broadly in the area of polymer membranes. In his spare time, David collects board games and is the proud co-owner of two adorable cats.