A message from Anne Schenk, managing director of TCOTC

I’m honored to join TCOTC as the Club’s first Managing Director. A Detroit native, I recently moved to the Twin Cities to be full-time with my partner, Ari Hoptman, who teaches at the University of Minnesota. You may have seen Ari on TV or in local theatre productions. We currently share a home with our three dogs: Peanut, a beagle mix, and Buddy and Tegan, both Korean jindo mixes.

I was drawn to apply for the managing director position because of TCOTC’s focus on positive reinforcement training. I was impressed by the Club’s long history not just as a dog-training club, but also a community resource and advocate for positive relationships between humans and their canine companions. I was first introduced to clicker training after adopting Tegan two years ago. You can read more about that on the TCOTC Dog Blog. I’m looking forward to continuing to train Tegan at the Club, and hope to introduce Peanut and Buddy to positive-reinforcement clicker training as well.

As managing director, I’ll be working with the Board of Directors, staff and members to advance the Club’s strategic plan, with the overall goal of growing membership and strengthening the Club’s position in the community. I’m particularly interested in helping the Club operate as efficiently as possible while providing the best service and highest quality instruction. I’ll also seek opportunities for media attention and public visibility to help TCOTC become known as “the premiere dog-training club of the North.”

I’m grateful to the warm welcome I’ve received from the members, volunteers and instructors I’ve met in my first few days. As I meet more of you over the next days and weeks, I’m very interested to learn what you like about TCOTC, and what ideas you have to make it even better. In the meantime, you can reach me at anneschenk@tcotc.com, or look for me next time you’re at the Club!