To Thine Own Self Be True: About Coach Rudd

Asia, Coach Rudd, Ruth, and Diana - 2013-2014

Growing up, I resented the idea of becoming a teacher. My mother is a teacher; my sister was always going to become one. My brother became an education major, and I resolutely stuck to the notion that this would not be me. Not now. Not ever. Even as an English major at the University of Missouri, I firmly clung to my belief that I was not going to teach.

And then, in the midst of mild kidney failure due to untreated food poisoning (studying abroad had gotten the best of me), I was coerced into signing up for Teach for America. When I actually did my research, I realized that this was the path. TFA promised teaching that was more than just teaching - it was social justice. I could definitely take teaching with a healthy dose of changing the world.

So who am I?

Well, fast forward a few years and I am a teacher. An alumnus of Teach for America, I have taught in my placement school for three years now. I am a Midwesterner - I grew up in Illinois and grew into myself in Missouri - and, as such, neighborliness and generosity are at the heart of all I do. I am a Las Vegas resident. The city of sin has nearly 300,000 students and a few of them have to put up with me every day. I am a grammar freak who will silently correct you. I am a volleyball coach who loves teaching about sportsmanship and integrity just as much as teaching how to serve and hit and set. I am a writer and a very poor one at that. I am an avid reader and movie-watcher because, perhaps most essentially, I love a great story.