Copland Rudolph selected as next leader of Asheville City Schools Foundation

Press release from Asheville City Schools Foundation:

(Asheville, NC) –  The Board of Directors of the Asheville City Schools Foundation is proud to announce that Copland Arnold Rudolph has been hired to lead the organization as Executive Director. Ms. Rudolph succeeds Kate Pett, who served the organization as Executive Director from 2008-2019. Ms. Rudolph moves into this leadership position after serving as the Foundation’s Development Director since 2017.  An executive search committee comprised of board members, staff, and a representative from Asheville City Schools, advised by Walker-Wilson Consulting and Ambrose Consulting, conducted an extensive local search, with over 80 applicants for the position.

Ms. Rudolph has deep and extensive roots in Asheville.  A 1985 graduate of Asheville High School, Ms. Rudolph lived and worked in Arizona, Colorado, and Michigan before returning home in 2013 with her family.  Her children are 5th generation Asheville City School students. Her son, Bow, is AHS Class of 2017 and a sophomore at UNC Asheville. Her daughter, Annie, is AHS Class of 2020. Rudolph also connects to our community as a wellness coach at the YMCA of WNC, as chair of the UNC Asheville National Parents Council, and as a board member for Light A Path.  Her commitment to social justice was recently honored when she was awarded Swannanoa Correctional Facility’s Volunteer of the Year for her work as a program coordinator and wellness coach through Light a Path.

ACSF board member and executive search committee member Rebecca Strimer shared, “Copland’s unwavering commitment to racial equity and her sense of urgency about closing the achievement gap came through vividly in all her communications with the committee.”  As Executive Director, Ms. Rudolph will lead the foundation’s efforts to close the opportunity gap through impactful grants to educators, innovative artist classroom residencies, quality after-school programming in our middle schools, scholarships to graduating high school seniors, and advocacy for excellence with equity in our schools. ACS school board chair, Shaunda Sanford, is excited to continue working with Rudolph in this new role, “We have a strong relationship which will continue to strengthen as we work together to create racial equity in our schools and close the opportunity gap.”

“As an Asheville native, I recognize that the moral imperative facing our city must begin with honesty about our past. As James Baldwin said, ‘Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.’ I look forward to working together as a community to create a youth development plan with a clear target date to end the opportunity gap. I want to live in an Asheville that is not only the number one place to vacation or retire, but is the number one place to grow up for all of our children- not just the privileged few. Asheville City Schools Foundation is a committed partner in this journey.” – Copland Arnold Rudolph

The ACSF mission is to implement bold strategies, fund big ideas, and engage the community to increase excellence with equity for all children in our schools. To learn how to support our Asheville City Schools children, contact the foundation at acsf@acsf.org or visit their website at www.acsf.org.