Katherine Woischke
12th Grade English Teacher
Bachelor of Arts, AYA Language Arts Education (Grades 7 -12), Miami University of Ohio
Ms. Woischke didn’t have to look far for professional inspiration. “My mom was a kindergarten teacher,” she says. “I would spend hours in her classroom growing up.” That time working with her mother started Ms. Woischke along on her career path as a teacher, including learning which students she wanted to work with, and which she didn’t. “I learned through that experience that I didn’t want to teach young kids, but rather older kids.”
An Exceptional Teaching Experience
Ms. Woischke joined Ohio Connections Academy in 2010. The online teaching experience was enjoyable then and has improved dramatically since.
Every aspect of the virtual classroom has gotten better, Ms. Woischke explains. The curriculum has evolved, both to adapt to the changing world and to leverage students’ increased comfort with technology. The technology itself is better; as a teacher she has better tools with which to engage the students. And teachers can now monitor students’ progress much more easily, Ms. Woischke says, a perhaps under-appreciated professional advancement.
She is even more excited about what’s ahead. As co-lead of the school’s English department and Grade 12 Professional Learning Community, Ms. Woischke sees countless examples of the passion and dedication of the Ohio Connections Academy staff. She knows there will be many more student successes to come.
I always love the graduation ceremony since I get to meet so many of my students there.
— Ms. Woischke
Two Kids, Five Plays
Ms. Woischke is the mother of two (active!) children. When she’s not teaching, “a lot of my time is spent with my … seven-year-old and four-year-old,” she says, “watching movies and playing board games.”
Ms. Woischke apparently has exceptional time-management skills, because in addition to her professional and parenting responsibilities, she is also the president of the Put-In-Bay Arts Council, a not-for-profit organization. Through the organization, she has had opportunities to participate in theatrical performances. Ms. Woischke has acted in several productions and is currently directing her fifth play! Brava!