This season, the University of Evansville athletics department will bring you updates on what former Purple Aces are up to these days with our "Where Are They Now" feature.  We continue our feature series now with former cross country standout Andrea Sonnenschein.

If you are a former UE student-athlete, we would love to hear from you to find out what you are up to these days.  Please click here to submit your story.  Also, fans, if there is a former Purple Ace you would like to find out "Where They Are Now," let us know by clicking here.

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When Andrea Sonnenschein ran cross country at the University of Evansville from 2004 through 2007, she could usually be found at the front of the pack for the Purple Aces.  Nowadays, she’s still at the front of the pack, but now it is in a classroom setting, as Sonnenschein is a teacher at the Sonoran Science Academy in Tucson, Arizona.

Sonnenschein came to the University of Evansville in 2004 after a stellar high school career in her native Poy Sippi, Wisconsin, where she won the state’s Division II cross country title at Berlin High School as a senior.  Sonnenschein was one of the top cross country runners in UE history during her days at Evansville, earning four team Most Valuable Runner awards and setting both 5-K and 6-K school records which still stand to this day.  In fact, Sonnenschein owns the top three times on record at UE for both distances, and no one is even within 26 seconds of either record.

After graduating from UE in the spring of 2008, Sonnenschein wasn’t sure exactly where life would take her, but a talk with her mother, Paula, whom she is close to, set her down a path towards Arizona.

“My whole plan initially was that I really wanted to go live in Seattle, Washington,” said Sonnenschein.  “I’m not really sure why, but I have always wanted to live there. 

“But, after graduation, that really wasn’t an option, so I stayed in Evansville and worked at CBS 44 for a year in media sales.  I eventually found that that wasn’t where I really wanted to be, so I talked to my mom, and she told me about the education program in Arizona where I could work towards my teaching degree and still teach at the same time.  After that talk, I decided that that was where I wanted to go.”

And, Andrea wasn’t alone in her trip to Arizona.  Her older sister, Deanna, had already made the move to Arizona 12 years prior, and her mother, Paula, decided to head to Arizona as well.  And, it just so happened that they all were able to work at the Sonoran Science Academy.

“It’s great to be able to work with both of them on a daily basis,” said Andrea, who teaches physical education and art to children in kindergarten through fifth grade.  “Usually, during my down time, I like to go in and observe both my sister and my mother in class to see how they teach.  I can learn so much from both of them, especially my mother because she has been teaching for a long time.  I feel like it is a very good start to my teaching career.”

And, not only is Sonnenschein teaching in the classroom, but she also taught on the course this past fall as the cross country coach at San Miguel High School in Tucson.  In fact, she helped one of San Miguel’s runners place 13th overall in the state of Arizona cross country championships.  But, not only did Sonnenschein teach the runners at San Miguel, but she also learned a few things in her first year as head coach.

“I will say I learned a lot this past year,” said Sonnenschein.  “As a coach, you really have to find the right words to motivate your athletes, and each athlete is different and not everyone is as dedicated as you would want them to be as a head coach.  At times, it was frustrating.

“I definitely have a lot more respect for the job Coach (Don) Walters did when I was a student now, because I know that I was one of those stubborn athletes when I ran at UE.  If it wasn’t for Coach Walters, though, I wouldn’t be where I am today.  He always pushed me to be better, and I can not thank him enough for that.  I was actually in town and got to see him this summer, and it was really good to see him.  We got to talk and it was really nice to catch up.

“I am also very impressed with what he’s doing to help out the program with his work in the Armory.  When I was a student, we didn’t have an area like that to practice and train, but for him to do that is great for the program.”

While Sonnenschein has decided to take a step back from coaching this year to focus on her own training for the Chicago Marathon this fall, she says one day she’ll likely go back to coaching.  But, for now, Sonnenschein happy to be back doing what she loves:  running and being at the head of the pack, both on the trails and in the classroom.