Daniel is a Sacramento native who has been teaching in Oakland for his entire career. After graduating high school, he attended Sacramento City College and then transferred to UC Berkeley, majoring in Sociocultural Anthropology. Daniel wrote his Senior Honors Thesis on practices of postural yoga in contemporary America. He also held jobs as a writing tutor, GRE tutor, literacy instructor at Lindamood Bell, and maintenance manager at his coop.

After graduating, Daniel worked as a substitute teacher for several years in Oakland and Berkeley before enrolling in the teaching credential program at Mills College. After earning his single subject teaching credential in social studies, Daniel began working at MetWest High School, an internship based high school in OUSD. Daniel worked there for four years, serving on the faculty council and instructional lead team. He also was a fellow with Agency by Design and the Bay Area Writing Project.

Daniel now teaches Senior English at Latitude, supporting students with college applications, college writing, independent reading, and internship searching. In his free time, he likes to walk his dog, play board games, and paint miniatures.