John Rodrigues

John Rodrigues

Ice Sculptor / Author


"High School Dropout to Harvard"

Lake Elsinore, CA USA


Don’t live somebody else’s life—take your unique talents and go live your own life.

Videos

By Roadtrip Nation

John Rodrigues

Milestones

My road in life has been direct.
Growing up, he always felt like he was smart, but his grades were terrible; he failed the first grade, and started feeling like he wasn’t as good as the other kids.
After years of constantly feeling beaten down by the school system, he gave up and stop caring, eventually dropped out of high school.
Before he dropped out, he signed up for a cooking class, and his teacher recommended him for a kitchen job at a local hotel.
While there, he saw an ice sculptor carving a block of ice and was completely mesmerized; the sculptor took John under his wing and started teaching him the art.
His yet-undiagnosed dyslexia strengthened his three-dimensional thinking skills, so ice carving came naturally, felt like he’d hit a “sweet spot.”
Before long, his ice sculptures were in high demand...and he was only sixteen years old; he realized he could make a living doing the thing that he loved.
Eventually, he went back to school and earned degrees from UC Berkeley and Harvard University.
Now, his passion is public speaking and educating others about how to foster the strengths that come with learning disorders.
Keep following my journey

Education

Bachelor
University of California-Berkeley
Graduate
Harvard University

Career

Ice Sculptor / Author

I make artistic ice sculptures for hotels, cruise ships, and restaurants.

Career Roadmap

Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Art
Food
Learning / Being Challenged

Interviewed By

Being You

Being You

Making learning differences your strength