Phil initially became involved in Ethnomathematics as a participant in 2013 while he was a 9th grade algebra I teacher at Waiʻanae High School. He previously taught 8th grade math, geometry, biology, and traditional Hawaiian arts at Hālau Kū Māna in Makiki and is currently a teacher at Roosevelt High School. Through the Ethnomathematics Program, he believes an education grounded in Hawaiian values, cultural practices, and cultural identity is a key component in public education in Hawaiʻi. He also believes that ancestral knowledge can teach us so many lessons to help us in modern society. The people that inspire him are his mentors who guide him and lead him in the direction that he is meant to be on. His research areas of interest are: Hawaiian culture-based education, ethnomathematics, place-based education, and qualitative research methods.