About Kurt Blocher

My name is Kurt Blocher and this is my 12th year as the Science Lab teacher for ENSA. I have taught elementary science in a variety of schools and was thrilled to find out I would have the opportunity to teach science lab once again when I joined ENSA in 2013-2014.

This August marks the beginning of my 24th year of teaching. I began teaching as a fifth grade teacher at Pelzer Elementary, where I worked for two years. Then I taught fifth-grade science at Powdersville Elementary for five years, followed by two years as the science lab instructor at both Duncan Chapel and Westcliffe Elementary schools. Afterwards, I went back into the 5th grade classroom for two years at Duncan Chapel. Finally, I taught for one year as the Technology Lab instructor at Duncan Chapel before coming to East North Street Academy to teach science lab again.

As for my background, my father was in the Air Force so my family moved around a good bit when I was growing up. I was born and lived for two years in Taiwan. Later, my family moved through Georgia, Florida, Arkansas, and Washington (state). I went to college in Austin, Texas where I earned a B.A. in photography and met my wife, Carmela. After college, we moved up to Chicago and lived for eight years. In Chicago I worked as a photographer's assistant and desktop publisher for a graphic arts company while Carmela earned her Ph.D. in philosophy and taught at the college level.  During this time, I volunteered at both Lincoln Park Zoo and Children's Memorial Hospital.

In 1999, we moved to Greenille and Carmela started at Furman University teaching philosophy. Once here, I earned my elementary teaching certificate and Master's degree at Furman and started teaching. In 2006, I earned National Board Certification.  Subsequently, I earned a second Master's degree in STEM Education (science, technology, engineering, and math) from Pennsylvania Western University in 2014 and I renewed my National Board Certification in 2016.

Our son, Luca, attended East North Street Academy for 1st through 5th grades and graduated from Wade Hampton HS in 2025.   

My hobbies include biking, hiking, photography, nature, and science. As an elementary science teacher, I have had a wide collection of pets including: a praying mantis, hissing cockroaches, a pair of Luna moths, a tarantula, several turtles, two corn snakes, several ball pythons, a king snake, a black rat snake, a Uromastyx lizard, an iguana, a Chinese water dragon, two rabbits, a hamster, hermit crabs, tadpoles/frogs, a couple of hedgehogs, hundreds and hundreds of butterflies, and way too many cats.  In addition, I added tens of thousands of bees to the animal collection seven years ago and we have raised rainbow trout from eggs for the SC Department of Natural Resources for the past eight years.