Ari is a mental performance professional with over 15 years of experience. He began his career as a college basketball coach, spending seven seasons on the coaching staffs at St. Michael's College, Bryant University, and the University of Vermont. In 2013, he transitioned to mind health and performance coaching, working with individual student-athletes, teams, and coaches at the prep school and college level.

Ari is a recognized leader in the field, having created and built two embedded programs in college athletic departments. Most recently, he led the development and implementation of the first mental health and performance program in the Johns Hopkins University athletics department. Prior to his time in Baltimore, he played a pivotal role in the creation of the sport psychology and counseling program in the athletic department at the University of Vermont.

He earned a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology from St. Michael's College. Ari is a licensed counselor in Maryland & Vermont and is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® (CMPC) administered by the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP).