The Dexter Leader
A Heritage Newspaper
Weekly Publication
Teacher receives part of grant
By Sean Dalton, Staff Writer
PUBLISHED: January 31, 2008
Science students at Dexter High School are the beneficiaries of a $1,200 grant and experience gained from one teacher's internship experience this summer.
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Katie McKinley, a 10th-grade biology teacher at Dexter High School, participated in the eight-week Dow Corning New Era internship at the company's headquarters and industrial facilities in Midland last summer, as part of a Michigan State University teacher education program.
McKinley is a 2006 MSU graduate majoring in biology with a chemistry minor.
She met part of her qualification for the intern program by graduating in the top of her class with a 3.99 grade point average — the highest of all the science teacher candidates.
In addition to bringing that hands-on experience to her students, the company awarded the $1,200 grant earlier this month to buy equipment for her classroom. "I mainly worked with chemists, but I also saw what (Dow) engineers were doing on a daily basis," McKinley said.
The big lesson she wants students to know is that you can get a good job like the ones at Dow Corning with a bachelor's degree in almost any field.
"I learned a lot about their day-to-day activities by asking about educational background, and in doing so learned that you don't necessarily need a specific background in a given field," said McKinley, who once wanted to pursue wildlife conservation before changing her focus.
"Many have a bachelor's in one area and work as a chemist in something unrelated. They teach you specific processes that you repeat over and over again."
Students in her class are involved in labs and other group work that encourages teamwork, which McKinley says is paramount to succeeding, based in part on her experience at Dow.
"You have to get along with different people, share responsibility and share ideas, not just copy and overlay each other's work," she said.
Jobs for chemists and engineers who improve everyday products need to be filled and pay well, she said.
McKinley's experience involved working with a silicone-based product that is being designed to encase radioactive materials.
Her excursions into Dow Corning labs also exposed her to teams working on heat-resistant paint for products such as barbecues and other mundane commercial and consumer applications.
"We worked on a waterproof caulk that would make window installation simpler and require less time," she said.
McKinley advises her students and encourages everyone who is interested in a science-related job to take at least four years of high school science.
She urges students who will seek tough job competition in the general economy to consider improving their odds favor by studying science.
"There are also many situations in which employers in the sciences encourage further education," she said. "Many chemists have bachelor's degrees, but they are be asked to work on their master's."
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