Dr. Joseph Goddard graduated Magna Cum laude from Vanderbilt University in 1976. He received his medical degree with distinction from George Washington University and then finished a Family Practice Residency at the University of Tennessee Memorial Research Center and Hospital in Knoxville. He went on to serve for three years in the National Health Service Corp followed by eight years of private practice in Knoxville. He and his wife, Debra, have a son.