- Born November 29, 1977 in Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Attended Green Bay East High School-Home of the Red Devils
- Attended Texas Tech/University of Houston-Graduated Cum Laude
- 3rd/4th grade teacher for ten years
- Became a professional runner in 2011
Dawn started competitive running when she was in high school. She started off as a sprinter and was quickly transitioned to a middle distance runner by her high school coach. She earned a full scholarship to Texas Tech University. It was quite a distance from Green Bay to Lubbock but she had comfort in knowing that the Red Raiders had a passion for their team like Green Bay has for their Packers. She felt at home. With a coaching change after her freshman year and no new distance coach hired, she transferred to University of Houston and finished her eligibility as a Houston Cougar.
Once Dawn graduated, she put 110% into her teaching passions and stopped running. After ten years of teaching elementary school in Dallas, she reignited that competitive desire in 2010 and turned pro in 2011 for Nike. Since then, Dawn has qualified for the 2012 Olympic Trials in the 1500m and is a 2016 and 2020 Olympic Trials Marathon qualifier. She will compete in her next marathon on February 29th at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Team Trials.
Dawn can be found spending time with friends, family and all of the athletes she coaches. She has a husband Harry and 105 lb Rhodesian Ridgeback named Gunnar. Her love of teaching children and running combined gave her the idea to start SpeedKIDZ and SpeedKIDZ Elite. SpeedKIDZ is a youth program for girls and boys ages 8th grade and under that focuses on correct running form, speed/agility skills, running drills, leadership and a commitment to community and team family. She recently extended her program and launched the new APEX TC HS Elite program in June of 2019.
