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Rudi Gesch recently joined the Eastern Christian School team as the Director of Marketing and Enrollment Management. We are thrilled that Rudi will be working directly with prospective parents and their children to enroll at EC. As a way to welcome him to our community, we recently conducted the following interview with him.
What are your main responsibilities at Eastern Christian School?
“As Eastern Christian’s Director of Marketing and Enrollment, I direct EC’s Admin team in our marketing efforts. I also oversee all Admissions, Enrollment, and Re-Enrollment processes.”
What attracted you and your family to move to northern New Jersey and to work for Eastern Christian School?
“Even though we’re new to the area, it already feels like home. Coming from the Midwest, we were warned many times about the different/faster ‘East Coast’ lifestyle. We have found this community to be everything we hoped it would be. The EC community is so incredibly welcoming and supportive. It’s easy to feel like you belong here. I’m excited to share that feeling with prospective families as they consider EC.”
Tell us about your family and how they are adjusting to the move.
“Since Stephanie and I had spent the vast majority of our childhood and adult lives in Wisconsin and Chicagoland, it’s a big move for us to be here in north Jersey—probably the biggest step God has called us to yet! We’re excited to be part of His adventure here, and the family is already making many organic connections with friends, co-workers, and churches. These hills/mountain roads are an adjustment for sure—we’re very thankful for a GPS!”
What have been your experiences in Christian education?
“I’ve been blessed to have a first-hand, excellent experience with Christian Education in some capacity since I was five years old! I proudly count Oostburg Christian, Sheboygan County Christian High School, and Trinity Christian College as alma maters. Upon graduation from college, I taught at Timothy Christian Schools for two years. Then, I received my MBA and became Timothy’s Marketing Director—the position I served for the past eight years.”
Why do you think a Christian education is important for families to consider?
“God has hard-wired me analytically. I was always the kid in classroom asking, ‘Why do we have to learn this?’ Only an excellent Christian education can fully answer this question with something other than ‘because I’m your teacher and I said so.’ The entire enterprise of Eastern Christian School is driven to answer that question for every student. This education is training up the next generation of Christian thinkers. The curriculum has been developed and the expert teachers have been hired and trained in a manner that maximizes each student’s learning so that they can maximize an impact for the Kingdom. No matter where God calls our graduates, having an organization like this that shapes their lives for His Kingdom gives everything we do meaning and purpose. Otherwise, for ‘kids’ like me, education is just a ‘so what?’”
What do you love most about Eastern Christian School so far?
“The people! As I mentioned, it’s a very comfortable and welcoming transition. I look forward to meeting many more people and learning even more about this 122 year-old place. My daughter, Sawyer, will start in Kindergarten and my son, Xander, will be in three year-old preschool. This year is a fresh start for everyone in my family- we’re excited to see what God has in store for us.”
How do you think you will make a difference in the lives of students in your role at Eastern Christian School?
“I hope to be able to use my experience in marketing Christian Schools, my passion for sharing the mission of Eastern Christian, my creativity and my ‘fresh eyes’ to help elevate Eastern Christian’s mission to a wider audience. We’ve got this great school and more people need to know about it. This will lead to more students enrolled, and a bigger impact for the Lord.”
What do you want families to gain by interacting with you in admission?
“I love meeting interested students and parents, hearing their story, and working with them to see if God might be nudging them to Eastern Christian. I hope that families will gain a trust, understanding of the school, and ultimately a school ‘home’ for their family here.”