While students are busily studying for classes, playing sports or hanging out with friends, a question arises: how does Principal Dr. Debra Munk spend her day?

“There is no typical day,” said Dr. Munk, though she normally has lots of meetings with parents, students, staff members and various committees. She tries to get to school by 6:30 a.m., almost a full hour before classes begin and her day will go long past the 2:10 p.m. bell.

On any given day, Dr. Munk usually has a list of things she wants to accomplish and sometimes is unable to even get to item number one. This is because her days are packed full of activities and she often has night meetings.

Although Dr. Munk is constantly busy with school and meetings, she still has time to travel all over the world. Her traveling experiences open her mind and allow her to be a “global thinker.” Her travels affect the way she makes decisions within the school because she sees how hard students from other countries work and how she can change the students at RHS. “[I] want to encourage the students at RHS to work a little harder and take their educations more seriously,” she said.

Dr. Munk’s global experiences make her realize that we have a long way to go in our nation’s education system to compete with other countries, like China. This is also the reason why she follows the motto “One School, One World, One Future.”

Dr. Munk has been to all 50 states, the latest being Alaska in the past year, as well as many European countries. “[Traveling has allowed me to] appreciate the beauty and diversity of this great country,” she said.

She was born in New York City (she grew up as a Mets and New York Giants fan!) Dr. Munk says she had a good childhood. Her mother was a homemaker and an amazing cook while her father fought in World War II.

Her whole family “loved to play sports” while Dr. Munk specifically enjoyed field hockey and basketball. However, she was in school before Title IX, so she could not play on her high school team. While her brother got a full ride to Utah State for basketball, she was not even allowed to play on a recognized school team. Now when she sees the varsity girls’ games at RHS she feels “great happiness” that they have the same opportunities as boys.

Dr. Munk now has seven children and nineteen grandchildren whom she enjoys visiting as much as possible. While Dr. Munk has to devote a lot of time to her job, she somehow manages to do the things she enjoys. “I have had a great life so far,” she said.