Dr Rudolph Alleyne, Head of the Sports Academy at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, a man who came from very humble beginnings, has a passion for imparting knowledge and helping others.
Alleyne celebrated 35-years as an educator last Wednesday, May 5, having started his journey in the teaching profession at the Hindsbury Primary School in 1986 and later Erdiston Primary.
“I came from humble beginnings. I grew up in Bush Hall and people would say Bush Hall that is where the bad boys lime and sit down. But I grew up there and always had a passion for education and success. I always had the fire in my gut to be the best that I can be.
“My journey isn’t a personal journey, it is not only about Rudolph Alleyne, I see this journey as the journey of people like myself who came from humble beginnings to achieve at the highest level.
“So, to the boys on the corner, to those people who are at the lower socio-economic end of society and who have to struggle, I saw my journey as their journey. So I remember that every step of the way and it is one of the reasons why wherever possible I try to help and assist anyone particularly my students on their paths and journey,” Alleyne said.
Alleyne can boast of several accomplishments. He completed his associate degree in physical education at the Barbados Community College where he later became a part-time lecturer. Before that Alleyne did a two-year diploma in education at Erdiston College.
In 1999 Alleyne went overseas on a National Development Scholarship to study kinesiology with a focus on human movement at Temple University in Philadelphia. In 2003 Alleyne completed his masters in kinesiology with a specialisation in sports psychology. Four years later in 2007, he achieved once again with his PhD in kinesiology at Temple University.
All the while Alleyne taught at Temple as a teaching assistant while doing his masters and PhD. He also taught for the Black Women In Sports Foundation which is a charity organisation across the United States.
Alleyne also worked as a consultant with the athletics department at Temple as an adviser to the student-athletes. Temple University helped to shape Alleyne into the man he is today as he was also the graduate adviser for the Student Organisation for Caribbean
Fast forward years later and Alleyne’s journey from being a teacher to the head of the Academy of Sport at the University of the West Indies has been fulfilling.
“I always had a passion for sports (which grew while I was a physical education teacher at Erdiston primary school) and part of that passion came through high school. My main sporting event was track and field. But I also participated in football to some extent, field hockey and fooled around a little bit with volleyball.
“After I left high school and got into teaching for the first five years of my teaching career I would have taught at primary school where you teach everything. But then I became certified in many sporting disciplines. I am a certified level two track and field coach, certified level one cricket coach, certified level one soccer coach. I’m a FINA swim judge, I did training in badminton, lawn tennis. So, I am pretty knowledgeable in most of the sporting disciplines.
“I wanted to learn more about sports, the professional side of sports and how you get athletes to that high-performance level. So that is what drove my passion to study sports psychology but to some extent exercise physiology as well,” Alleyne explained.
He added: “At UWI one of the things for me is to advise my students as best as I can to choose a career. A lot of them may be interested in sport science but not sure at the end of it what they want to do. One of the things for me that is always important is to find out what it is that drives them, what is it that gives them fire in the belly, what is it that makes them want to get up in the morning.
“So, that once you follow that passion you would always feel some sense of satisfaction. There are some days when things are not going to be perfect. There are days when things are not going to be good. But if you follow your dreams and you follow your passion and you follow your true love, that will always get you over the hump. For me, that is something extremely important when I interact with students.
“One of the things that drives me too is about knowledge and unless you are sharing that knowledge you are useless. No matter how much you study, no matter how much you know, if you are not sharing that, if you are not imparting that to others it is a waste of time. So, that is something that has guided me over the last 35 years.”
Interestingly, Alleyne had no interest in being a teacher. He always wanted to be a medical doctor but has no regret about the path he has chosen.
In high school, Alleyne’s love for biology ignited his passion for the sciences and he thanked those that helped him along the way.
“I would like to thank those who have supported me over the years and they are too many to call. But they would know who they are, people who have always been there for me through thick and thin,” he expressed. morissalindsay@barbadostoday.bb
The post A life dedicated to sporting excellence appeared first on Barbados Today.