Decker grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, enjoying bike riding, reading, Imo’s Pizza, and Ted Drewes’ frozen custard.

He graduated from McKendree College (now University) in 1990 with the bachelor’s degree in History and Philosophy. He attended the University of Missouri–St. Louis for study of history, but gained his PhD from St. Louis University in 2004 for Philosophy.

Since 2005, Decker has taught at Eastern Washington University (Cheney, WA) and served as associate dean of his college as well as faculty vice-president and president. His teaching and research areas of interest include: philosophy and popular culture, American philosophy and pragmatism, Continental philosophy, philosophy of the German Romantics, social theory and applied ethics.

In addition to his commitment to public higher education, Decker co-writes and co-produces (with Tony Flinn), the swashbucklingly funny radio comedy sketch show, “Men in Charge,” podcasts of which can be found at www.kpbx.org.