Cathrine "Kate" Reck, Ph.D. came to Department of Chemistry at Indiana University in the summer of 2001 to hold the position of Clinical Assistant Professor. She earned a B.A. in chemistry from Kalamazoo College (Kalamazoo, MI), where she studied a year abroad in Strasbourg, France at the University of Strasbourg. Her Ph.D. is from Wayne State University (Detroit, MI) where she did her research in organometallic chemistry, specifically the synthesis of highly metalated aromatic compounds under the direction of Professor Charles H. Winter.
She carried out her postdoctoral work in the synthesis of highly electrophilic olefin polymerization catalysts under the direction of Professor Richard F. Jordan at The University of Iowa and The University of Chicago. After teaching at Michigan Technological University (Houghton, MI) for one year, she accepted a teaching faculty position here at IU. Her primary responsibilities are the teaching of freshmen chemistry, non-majors chemistry, inorganic chemistry and organic chemistry.
Our department implemented a 1:2:1 curriculum for all science majors in fall 2005. This entails that students take one semester of general chemistry (C117), followed by a two-semester sequence of organic with lab (C341/C342/C343), culminating with a one semester course in intermediate inorganic chemistry (N330).
Our C117 general chemistry course deviates from the order of most traditional chemistry texts in that an "Atoms First" approach is followed to create more of a storyline of topics rather than a random order of topics. Organic and biochemical examples are emphasized and laboratory experiments are closely correlated with concepts from the lecture portion of the course. As such, our students are exposed to one semester of general chemistry which provides a strong foundation for students to be successful in our two-semester organic chemistry sequence. Our fourth semester class, N330: Intermediate Inorganic Chemistry, revisits general chemistry concepts that are taught after organic chemistry and these concepts integrate together what they learn in organic. Our curriculum works to demonstrates relevance of chemistry to the life sciences.
My interests lie in how we teach the common threads that are found in all areas of chemistry and make them ingrained in our science majors. My focus is to develop our students’ chemical intuition and make them better-rounded science students, helping them develop their problem-solving skills toward further science classes. My goal is get our students to see the connections between the disciplines and not see them as individual topics that are learned independently from each other.
My current goals are to sit through the most common biology and physics classes that all science majors take to see where we can teach stronger connections to chemistry. Furthermore, I am in the process of writing a general chemistry textbook (Cenage/Brooks/Cole) that will parallel our one-semester general chemistry class from an atom’s first approach, as there are available textbooks on the market that teach the topics in the necessary order to meet our current curriculum well. Future goals include writing a sophomore-level inorganic textbook that can be used for 1:2:1 curricula nationwide.
"Less is More: The 1:2:1 Curriculum at Indiana University", Jill K. Robinson, C.E. Reck, Martha G. Oakley, International Conference on First-Year College Chemistry, online publication, 2007.
"Chemistry C117, Principles of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Laboratory Manual," C.E. Reck, et. al., 1-6th editions, Hayden-McNeil Publishing, Inc., Plymouth, MI, 2003-2008.
"Chemistry N330, Intermediate Inorganic Chemistry, Laboratory Manual," C.E. Reck, S. M. Wietstock, K. Aumann, 1-3rd editions, Hayden-McNeil Publishing, Inc., Plymouth, MI, 2007.
"Newton's Dark Secrets" NOVA documentary aired November 15th 2005, shot on location at Indiana University in the Reck lab. It presented several results and re-enactments of Newton's alchemical experiments, conducted or devised by William R. Newman and Cathrine E. Reck. The BBC version of the documentary aired May 2004 in Britain.
"Tantalum-Mediated Coupling of C2B9H102-. ΜSynthesis and Characterization of [(-H)(C2B9H10)2TaCl2]," C.E. Reck; Y-X., Su; I.A. Guzei; R.F. Jordan Organometallics, 2000, 19, 4858.
"Synthesis, Structure and Reactivity of a 2,3-Dialuminated Indole Derivative," C.E. Reck; A. Bretschneider-Hurley; M.J. Heeg; C.H. Winter Organometallics, 1998, 17, 2906.
"Synthesis and Characterization of a Dimagnesiated Aromatic Compound: Oligomeric Derivatives from 1,4-Bis(chloromagnesio)-2,5-di-tert-butylbenzene," C.E. Reck; C.H. Winter, Organometallics, 1997, 16, 4493.
"Newton's Dark Secrets"
NOVA documentary aired November 15th 2005, shot on location at Indiana University in the Reck lab. It presented several results and re-enactments of Newton's alchemical experiments, conducted or devised by William R. Newman and Cathrine E. Reck. The BBC version of the documentary aired May 2004 in Britain.
Faculty Advisor, IU Chapter, Timmy Foundation: http://www.indiana.edu/~timmyfc/
The Timmy Foundation organizes and executes medical mission trips by working with partners in the Dominican Republic, Honduras and most recently El Salvador. The IU Timmy Chapter chooses approximately 20-24 students to accompany 5-6 medical volunteers to work in a third world country over spring break. A typical trip provides care to 1500 patients and provides students to a whole new experience. Consider getting involved by helping fundraising toward or applying for an upcoming trip.
Volunteer, Volunteers in Medicine (VIM Clinic): http://www.vimmonroecounty.org/
In Monroe and Owen counties, nearly 21,000 individuals are without any type of health insurance. Members of the local community, hand-in-hand with members of the medical establishment and Bloomington Hospital, have established a non-profit organization which provides health care to the under-served individuals in the community. Volunteers in Medicine clinics rely on donated time from both retired and active physicians and nurses, as well as volunteers from the community to provide administrative support. This is a great way for students to get hands-on clinical experience while helping their community. Consider committing 4-5 hours/week over the period of one academic year.
Volunteer, Volunteers in Tutoring Adult Learners (VITAL): http://www.monroe.lib.in.us/vital/index.html
Volunteer tutors are needed to help work with adults who did not learn to read adequately and now want to read well enough to deal with everyday needs and reach his/her literacy goals. Ability levels range from non-readers to "pretty good" readers, native speakers of English, and English as a second language (ESL). Tutors are expected to be available for initial training sessions and regular follow up sessions, as well as to schedule regular meetings with learners. Commitment to serve at least 6 months is required.
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