KATIE BLASKE
Physical Science Teacher
Avon High School
Avon, Indiana

Katie Blaske graduated from Purdue University in 2004 with her B.S. in chemistry and again in 2006 with her Masters in Chemical Education.  Originally planning to become a research chemist, she worked for S.C. Johnson and Sons as well as Cargill, Inc.  During her final years of college, she discovered she enjoyed teaching and tutoring.  From teaching college chemistry labs, to student teaching in rural Indiana, to a position at a large suburban high school, she has seen and taught in many different situations. 

Katie has been teaching at Avon High School since 2006.  In a rapidly growing area, she enjoys seeing how her students relate to their changing community and pulling in new viewpoints to her classroom.  At AHS, she has worked with her colleagues to create a new integrated chemistry and physics curriculum that helps students relate science to their lives.  In 2008, she began working with researchers from Purdue University to adapt a college curriculum to expose high school students to authentic science research, and conducted research in her own classroom to determine the effectiveness of that curriculum. She has also worked with the school and the community on recycling programs and getting the school to lessen their energy uses and build solar panels for more sustainable power.

In her spare time she enjoys creating softer, wearable objects: “When I’m not studying standards or playing mad scientist in the lab, my life’s passion is knitting.”