Meet our Administration Team

Randy Rodriguez | Head of School

Randy Rodriguez has served 35 years in public education. He graduated from Northern Arizona University with both his bachelor’s  and master’s degrees in educational leadership. He started his educational career in the border town of Yuma, Arizona. Mr. Rodriguez served one year as a paraprofessional and eight years as a middle school teacher before entering administration at an elementary school of 1,200 students.

In 2004, Mr. Rodriguez was recruited to Michigan and served in a West Michigan school district in administration for 14 years including 5 years as superintendent.

Mr. Rodriguez has served the last 6 years as the Executive Director of Michigan Virtual Charter Academy. 

During his tenure as an instructional leader, Mr. Rodriguez remained focused on continuous improvement by building systemic instructional and intervention programs, as well as ensuring strong character development and behavioral expectations. He worked diligently to build strong relationships with families and community members to promote a positive educational climate for all students.

Mr. Rodriguez is a champion for charter schools and is grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the growing frontier of cyber education.

Mr. Rodriguez and his wife, Janae, celebrated 35 years of marriage this past year. They have four wonderful adult children, and 3 grandchildren. He is grateful for the opportunities that an education brings to young people, and he looks forward to the opportunities MVCA can create for students and families.

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Laura VanDuyn | Principal | High School

Dr. VanDuyn has had the privilege and honor to serve as an educator for over 35 years.  She has enjoyed serving as a teacher, a school principal at all levels, a district assistant director, a district director, a countywide executive director, an administrative consultant, and a superintendent of schools.  Dr. VanDuyn’s background includes experience in both private and public education, elementary and secondary levels, as well as general and special education.  In her preK-12^th grade experiences, Dr. VanDuyn has served in both large and small districts ranging from 3,500 to 24,000 students with a rich diversity of demographics.  Her work with collaborative teams has led to increases in student achievement and system-wide initiatives enhancing services for students, staff, parents, and the communities in which she served.  Dr. VanDuyn has been a presenter at statewide conferences on topics such as school funding/budgeting, as she embraces the importance of both the academic and the operational aspects of the education system.  Additionally, Dr. VanDuyn has served as an accreditation review team member to assist school systems in earning a comprehensive national accreditation.

Dr. VanDuyn has a passion for serving students and families and takes great interest in serving the whole child – knowing there are many factors that contribute to student success.  She took a leading role in collaborating with a major health organization to secure funding to open a school-based health clinic on campus.  That school-based health clinic provided for medical, mental health, and dental services for students and the community.  To further that work, she became a Board of Directors member for a statewide non-profit organization that advocates for legislation and funding to provide for school-based health clinics in districts across the state of Michigan.  Additionally, Dr. VanDuyn was asked to be an active member of an advocacy and training group to align education, health and law enforcement professionals to research ways to eradicate youth suicides.  Her work in that role provided her with the honor of being nominated for the Hometown Hero Award. 

Dr. VanDuyn earned a Doctor of Education degree in Organizations and Leadership at the University of San Francisco; a Post Master’s degree in Educational Leadership at St. Mary’s University; a Master of Science degree in at Minnesota State University; and a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from the University of Nevada.  Dr. VanDuyn conducted qualitative research while a doctoral candidate at the University of San Francisco in San Francisco, California.  In 2007 she published The Relationship Between the Organizational Culture of a School and the Academic Achievement of English Language Learners.  She holds teaching and administrative certifications and has been a teacher and administrator in 4 states, bringing a broad range of experience in state and local education systems.   

Dr. VanDuyn is excited to be able to apply her experience and love for the total educational enterprise to Michigan Virtual Charter Academy.  Her work as superintendent and consultant led her to the world of virtual learning.  She embraced it wholeheartedly as an incredibly important choice in educational opportunities for students and families for a myriad of reasons.  She is elated to have an opportunity to continue to learn, collaborate and work alongside the gifted staff, students and families of Michigan Virtual Charter Academy!

While living out her passion for travel and serving others, Dr. VanDuyn traveled to more than 40 countries around the world to explore other cultures and to do development work.  She now lives out her most important passion and love – as mother and wife.  She and her husband share the joy of being parents to their teenage daughter and son who are both outstanding and kind young people, excellent students and successful athletes.  They spend their time as a family traveling domestically and internationally, attending their kids’ sporting events, being with friends and family, and enjoying the spunk of their 2 dogs, Carl and Otis.

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Nick Hoffman | Principal | Middle School

Nick Hoffman has served in public education for more than 13 years. He received his MEd teaching certification, and leadership certification from Grand Valley State University. He also has a BA in business administration from Alma College.

Mr. Hoffman’s passion for teaching came at an early age as a coach for many different levels of youth sports. A love for coaching ultimately led him to pause his business career and pursue a career in education. Mr. Hoffman has spent time teaching at the elementary level, teaching and coaching at the middle school level, and coaching at the high school level. He has also held leadership positions at all levels of K–12 education.

Mr. Hoffman holds a strong belief that all students can learn and have the potential for greatness. Building trusting relationships, discovering students’ learning styles, and meeting students at their level are keys to providing meaningful and individualized instruction. Holding students to high expectations and empowering them to make the right decisions will ultimately set them up for college and career readiness. Together, we will do great things at MVCA.

Mr. Hoffman and his family reside in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He is supported by his amazing wife and is the proud father of a 15-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old daughter. A strong desire to see them succeed is affirmation of the important role educators play in molding the lives of our youth and drives him to be the best leader he can be every day.

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Tanya Kuipers | Principal | Elementary School 

Tanya Kuipers graduated from Grand Valley State University with both her Bachelor of Arts in English Language Arts and Elementary Education and her Masters in Educational Leadership. She taught second grade for six years in Muskegon before joining Michigan Virtual Charter Academy in March 2012. Mrs. Kuipers taught fourth grade for four years at MVCA before transitioning to a leadership role. Mrs. Kuipers has served as the Elementary Principal since January 2017 and enjoys working with the MVCA staff to better serve the families of MVCA. Mrs. Kuipers resides in Muskegon with her husband and four sons.

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Amela Redzic | Family Engagement Administrator

Mrs. Redzic completed her BA in Arts (psychology and comparative religion) at Western Kentucky University, along with her MA in administration. Mrs. Redzic has served in education for more than 15 years in different states (Kentucky, New York, Tennessee, Arizona, and Michigan). She worked as a teacher, paraprofessional, and academic counselor before coming to MVCA in 2016 as a member of the Family Academic Support Team (FAST). In 2016, she transitioned to a leadership role as family engagement administrator. Mrs. Redzic strongly believes in the five E’s that drive her team in supporting all MVCA students: Student Engagement, Equipping, Encouragement, Expectation, and Empowerment. She resides in Grand Rapids with her husband and two children.

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Gena Sparks | Senior Manager of Special Programs

I began my educational career in Texas as a Special Education Substitute Teacher, and the rest is history. I have been in Special Education for 28 years in a variety of roles in several states. I began my virtual education journey with K12/Stride in 2014 in Indiana as a Special Education Teacher and Related Services Coordinator. This move came after several years as a Special Education Coordinator and Due Process Designee in Arkansas. In 2020, I accepted the wonderful opportunity to serve in the role of the Academic Administrator of Special Programs for one of K12/Stride schools at Insight School of Michigan and now serve as the Senior Manager for Special Programs in a shared role with Michigan Virtual Charter Academy. I received my undergraduate degree from University of Houston in Interdisciplinary Studies. My Masters degree is proudly from Michigan State University in Education with a specialization in Leadership and Special Education. My Director for Exceptional Needs certification was earned from Indiana University, Bloomington. My heart is filled with joy in working with Special Populations, having the opportunity to make a significant difference in the lives of individuals who may face unique challenges, providing support and advocacy while promoting inclusivity.

I reside in Portland, Michigan with my family and rescue dog, Breslin.