Eric was born and raised in the great state of Tennessee. After earning a B.S. in international relations from the United States Naval Academy, he became a Marine Corps infantry officer. He deployed to Afghanistan and Europe and spent his final tour at the Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory where he experimented with unmanned systems and new organizational structures within infantry units. This past summer, he interned in U.S. Senator Christopher Coons’ D.C. office, covering defense, veterans, transportation, and agricultural issues. After WWS, Eric would like to continue serving within the U.S. national security field. He is married to his high school sweetheart, Sloane, who works in defense policy in Washington, D.C.