Kate Bartlett

“I was a student at AU as part of the bachelors plus program (Integrated Sciences grades 7-12). Originally I started at the Columbus branch of AU in 2006 and then transferred to main campus during the 2007-2008 school year. Once at main campus I began taking classes such as Physiology, Quantitative Chemical Analysis, Physics and Mineralogy. Compared to my science classes at The Ohio State University (undergrad) the AU classes had a smaller class size, more contact with the professor, co-operative learning groups, and meaningful labs that allowed for a sense of inquiry. It was also a great experience to get to know the research of the professors and have the opportunity to be involved in their research. Another HUGE plus for me was the fact that the professor that taught your class was the same person who instructed your lab section. All of my professors were extremely knowledgeable in their content area and made it tangible for the students. I truly appreciated that their door was always open, even if it wasn’t during posted office hours. I am currently a science teacher at Ashland High School. I am presently teaching Advanced Chemistry, Physical Science and Applied Science. My AU experience has everything to do with my current occupation. It was the connections that I made at AU that helped me to get a good student teaching position where I was able to build labs and lessons off of the principles set for me at AU. I currently try to model the fundamentals of my labs off of what I have learned from my professors at AU. Such as, inquiry based, critical thinking and application of content.”