Montverde Academy Department of Athletics has announced that assistant girls basketball coach Taneka Rubin has been named the department’s Student-Athlete Development Coordinator.
Rubin will be responsible for the facilitation of student-athlete development by coordinating workshops, seminars and speakers for the student-athletes, along with supporting student-athletes through Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) protocols, procedures and education.
Rubin had an extensive career as a professional basketball player. Her playing career spanned over four different countries, including stops in England, Portugal, Romania and Spain. She competed in Cluj-Napoca, Romania (2021-22), Porto, Spain (2020-21) Plascencia, Spain (2019-20), Lisbon, Portugal (2018-19) and London, England (2016-17).
Prior to her professional career, Rubin earned a master’s degree in International Business at the University of East London in 2017, after earning a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration at Florida A&M in 2015.
While at Florida A&M, Rubin was a member of its women’s basketball team for two seasons. She saw action in 60 career games and averaged 11.4 points, 4.1 rebounds while connecting on 81 three point field goals. Prior to that, she attended Glendale Community College in Glendale, Arizona, where she played on the women’s basketball team and averaged 16.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and was a First Team All-Region honoree and a Second Team All-ACCAC honoree.
A native of Sierra Vista, Arizona, Rubin attended Buena High School and was a four year letter winner for the Colts girls basketball team.
“I am thrilled about the support from the Academy for the creation of the Student-Athlete Development Coordinator position. This role is another significant stride in preparing our student-athletes for success both during and after their time at Montverde Academy,” Montverde Academy Director of Athletic Operations Khrystal Phiri said. “Taneka, with her experience as a student-athlete and professional athlete, is the perfect individual to support our student-athletes in their personal growth and character development.”
Rubin credits her mentors coach Eric Rashad and Dr. Janice Hilliard for her success along the way.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have mentors who have invested in me, and I desire to do the same for other student athletes. Basketball has taken me all over the world and I feel it’s my duty to pay it forward,” Rubin said. “We have a culture of excellence, teamwork and collaboration at Montverde Academy. I’m grateful to Khrystal Phiri for the opportunity to contribute value, my passion, and experience to our amazing student-athletes and leadership team that promote the visibility and impact of Montverde Academy locally, nationally and internationally.”
Last year Rubin played a vital role on the girls basketball coaching staff which helped the program to its third consecutive national championship. She will remain on staff with the girls basketball team as an assistant coach in 2024-25.
She begins her appointment as Student-Athlete Development Coordinator in early August.
About Montverde Academy:
Montverde Academy is a private, independent college preparatory school for grades Pre-K3 through post-graduate studies, with a boarding program serving grades 7-12 representing 90+ nationalities. Our mission is to inspire students to become knowledgeable leaders with global vision and passion for learning, in a disciplined and diverse community that nurtures character development. For more information, visit us online at Montverde.org and at MVASports.com.
