Chelsea Rapin (Central '08)

Chelsea Rapin, Ph.D. is a 2008 graduate of Walled Lake Central HS. While at Central, she was a member of the softball, volleyball, basketball and soccer teams. She also participated in student council and French club.

After graduating, Chelsea attended Vermont University where she graduated in 2012 with an undergraduate degree in exercise and movement science. In 2014, she earned her doctorate in physical therapy. 

While in college, she was a member of the school’s ice hockey team for all four years of her undergraduate studies, serving as the team captain her senior year. She also participated in the student athletic advisory committee while in school.

Currently, Chelsea works as a physical therapist at the University of Vermont Medical Center. She specializes in pediatrics and post-operative sport injuries.  She also assists in teaching physical therapy students both in the clinic and in the classroom at the University of Vermont.

Chelsea also has a part time job that keeps her close to the game of ice hockey, working as an official since 2011. Her officiating career has featured multiple competition levels including high school, college, pro women’s hockey, and international. Highlights from her time as an official include working the Division III Frozen Four national championships in 2017 and Division I Frozen Four national championships in 2021. Internationally, she has worked the Olympic qualifier in Mexico City in 2016, Women’s World Championship Division IIA in South Korea in 2017, U18 Women’s A Pool in Russia in 2018, U18 Women’s Division IA in Austria in 2019, and Women’s Worlds A Pool in Calgary in 2020.

A highlight for Chelsea was the opportunity of a lifetime to travel to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as an ice hockey referee.

In her personal time, she enjoys fly fishing, hiking, being outdoors, and visiting National Parks.

When reflecting on her education in Walled Lake,  Chelsea said, “I had several amazing teachers in the Walled Lake Schools starting out at Oakley Park, then at Walnut Creek, and finally at Central. Being the oldest of three Walled Lake Central graduates, we shared several teachers. It always surprised me how much they would follow up and check in on me even years later when my brother was going through school.  Most would ask him how I was and how hockey was going for me. That sense of community meant a lot to me growing up and even more in the years after.”

“There are so many great teachers in Walled Lake schools but I’d like to specifically call out Ms. Griffin, Mr. Kamenoff, Ms. Simon, Ms. McKittrick, Mr. Froning, Ms. Baird, and Ms. Gustafson. All of those teachers really cared about me as a person and an individual. They are invested and want to see students succeed even when they are out of their classroom.  The teachers who taught me throughout my years in Walled Lake schools provided me with very important building blocks which truly set me up for success. I cannot thank them enough,” she added.