After earning his Master of Arts Degree from the University of Alaska in 1964, Joel Rudinger enrolled in the University of Iowa's Writers Workshop and, in 1966, finished a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing. That fall, he entered the doctoral program in English Literature at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. In 1967, BGSU began construction of a new satellite campus in Huron, Ohio. Joel was one of three people first hired in 1967 to teach fulltime at the new Firelands branch. He finished his Ph.D. in 1971 with a 658 page field-study in American folklore, Folklore of Erie County, Ohio, the home county of the new campus. In 1972, he incorporated the nonprofit Rudinger Foundation and initiated a long-standing creative arts scholarship program. In 1972, Joel started the Firelands Arts Review literary journal. He published it for ten years, his creative writing students acting as editors. In 1978, he started the Cambric Press which published the Cambric Poetry Projects series and other books.

During his years of teaching at the BGSU Firelands College, Joel taught creative writing, the short story, intro to poetry, children's literature, folklore and popular culture, and The Alaskan Experience, thirteen day summer field trips to Alaska to experience native culture and the wild beauty of the state. His illustrated children's book, Sedna: Goddess of the Sea, is a retelling of an ancient Eskimo creation myth of how the warm-blooded sea animals came to be. He retired after forty-five years of teaching in 2013 with the rank of Professor Emeritus.

In 1995, Joel became a Third Degree Reiki Master and an Ohio ordained minister in the Church of Radiant Lights. Awards from BGSU-Firelands include a Links to Progress Award (2003) and Distinguished Creative Scholar (2004). He was Huron's Poet Laureate for three years. Joel is also an artist and has illustrated several books, such as Harry Eiss's The Mythology of Dance and Divine Madness, using the medium of black cut paper. He is an active member of the Huron Rotary club, loves golf, backgammon, and sweet, warm apple pie.

He lives in Huron, Ohio with his wife Susan, near the shores of Lake Erie.