khetrick3@ivytech.edu • 812-330-6289 • Office: S112 in the ICLS building
2021 recipient of the President's Award for Excellence in Instruction

I am an Associate Professor of Biology & Biotechnology at Ivy Tech Bloomington, and I also serve as the Chair for both the Biology and Biotechnology programs. I earned my Bachelor of Arts in Biology and Chemistry from Judson University in Chicagoland, and I earned my Ph.D. in Microbiology, with minors in Genetics and Biochemistry, from Indiana University Bloomington. My graduate and post-doctoral training is in microbial genetics, as my research focused on DNA replication and repair, regulation of gene expression, mutations, and stress responses in bacteria and archaea.

The research was fascinating, but I always knew that I wanted to become an educator and share my enthusiasm for the life sciences with students. I began teaching at Ivy Tech part time in January 2015 and was hired full time in August 2016. I truly enjoy working with our caring, talented colleagues, and I find helping our driven students to successfully reach their academic and professional goals to be most fulfilling! Outside of Ivy Tech, I enjoy performing and listening to music, casual hiking, inter-state and international travel, food of all varieties, and reading/watching mysteries and science fiction. 

Biology courses I regularly teach:

• BIOL 105: Biology I - Molecular and Cellular Processes (Major's level)

• BIOL 211: Microbiology (Focuses on healthcare)

• BIOL 222: Genetics (Major's level)

• BIOL 279: Introduction to Scientific Research (Capstone course for Biology majors)

apoehlman@ivytech.edu • 812-330-6090 • Office: S116 in the ICLS building

I have a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Purdue University and a Ph.D. in Behavioral Ecology from the State University of New York.  My doctoral research combined animal behavior and immunology, to examine behavior of mice with respect to a complex of genes that are important for the immune response.  I enjoyed this combination of working with live animals but also doing lab work.  After that, I moved to western New York state, to Chicago, and then to Alaska for term professorships, and then to a post-doctoral position in medical genetics at the University of Chicago.  This was an intense but amazing (and fun) experience.  I then moved back to Indiana and worked for IU as a research associate in charge of a shared genetics/endocrinology lab.  While there, I assisted biologists who wanted to incorporate new techniques into their research programs.  I enjoyed meeting new people and helping them!  

I came to Ivy Tech around 2007, and since arriving, have taught many of the Biology courses, especially BIOL 105 and BIOL 107.  I enjoy the interactions with my students and colleagues.  I can safely say I have learned much from these interactions, and I always miss them when the semester ends.  Outside of work, I enjoy traveling (during non-pandemic times), gardening, hiking and other sports, and watching movies with my husband and our Golden Retriever. 

Biology courses I regularly teach:

• BIOL 101: Introductory Biology (Non-major's course)

• BIOL 105: Biology I - Molecular and Cellular Processes (Major's level)

• BIOL 107: Biology II - Diversity of Life (Major's level)

• BIOL 211: Microbiology (Focuses on healthcare)

slee@ivytech.edu • 812-330-6036 • S113 in the ICLS building
2014 recipient of the President's Award for Excellence in Instruction

Dr. Lee is a professor of Biotechnology at Ivy Tech Community College - Bloomington.  He received his Ph.D. in Molecular Biology from Miami University of Ohio and had a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. James Jose Bonner at Indiana University.  Since joining the Ivy Tech faculty in 2004, Dr. Lee has developed and taught many Biology and Biotechnology courses as well as Certificates in the topics of Medical Device Quality and Biopharmaceutical manufacturing (the two main biotechnology employment bases for South-Central Indiana). Many graduates from the Biotechnology program at Ivy Tech Bloomington are recognized as highly educated and trained employees by the local bioscience industry.  Dr. Lee has served as a principal investigator for multiple federal grant projects from National Science Foundation’s division of Advanced Technology Education and the U.S. Department of Labor.

Biology courses regularly taught:

• BIOL 101: Introductory Biology (Non-major's course)

• BIOL 221: Molecular Biology (Major's Level)

jgalbreath8@ivytech.edu
2019 recipient of the Adjunct Faculty Award for Excellence in Instruction

Jeannie Galbreath has been an adjunct faculty member in biology at Ivy Tech Bloomington since the fall of 2012.  She has completed a selective professional development program for adjunct instructors through Ivy Tech, which has granted her the status of Associate Adjunct Faculty.  She is also a member of the team developing the Outdoor Learning Lab for Ivy Tech Students and members of the Bloomington community. 

Prior to moving to Bloomington and joining Ivy Tech, she spent ten years as a biology adjunct at Indiana University Purdue University Columbus.  Her degrees include a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education from Ball State University as well as a Master of Arts in Biological Sciences from Miami University (Ohio). 

It is Jeannie’s belief that there is something for everyone in the sciences.  Helping students find and explore that something is what motivates her daily.  Outside of class, Jeannie enjoys spending time with her family and pets (two dogs, one cat and five chickens), gardening, cooking, hiking, and reading. 

Biology course regularly taught:

• BIOL 101: Introductory Biology (Non-major's course)

ctopp@ivytech.edu

From 2007 until I retired in  2021, I taught junior and senior high school science in Greene County.  During those 15 years, I taught Discovery Science, freshman Biology, Environmental Science, Earth and Space Science, Principles of Biomedical Science , two dual-credit Biotechnology classes, and dual-credit BIOL 101.  Some of my science related past experiences include working for the DNR for 7 years as an Interpretive Naturalist, volunteer work for  both the Amphibian Monitoring Study in Stillwater Marsh in 2003 and Project OwlNet in Yellowwood State Forest. 

My family had little money, and although I was a good student in high school, there was no opportunity for me to attend college.  In fact, my mother and I are the only people in my family to graduate from high school.  Twenty years after graduation, I was presented with an opportunity to attend college.  I took the leap of faith and I have never looked back.  I graduated with an Associate of Science Degree in Conservation Law Enforcement in 1998 from Vincennes University; a Bachelor of Science in Life Sciences and a Bachelor of Science Education in 2002 and 2006, respectively, from Indiana State University; and a Master of Education in 2011 from Indiana Wesleyan University.  

My hobbies include horseback riding, bird watching, fishing and hiking. I live in a rural area outside of Jasonville, Indiana.  We have roughly five acres of land, and our closest neighbor is a fish and wildlife area that makes up my backyard.  I have no children, but I have six dogs that have the run of about two acres of fenced-in yard, two horses, and numerous cats.  My husband of 38 years and I love it here and find the peace of nature to be one of God’s greatest gifts.

Biology courses I regularly teach:

• BIOL 101: Introductory Biology (Non-major's course)

• BIOL 105: Biology I - Molecular and Cellular Processes (Major's level)

Zach graduated from Ivy Tech Bloomington in 2011 with an Associate of Applied Science in Biotechnology.   After graduation, Zach worked in cell culture process development at a local biopharmaceutical company.  In 2014, Zach returned to Ivy Tech as a lab technician/assistant for the Biotechnology and Biology programs. In 2023, he earned his Bachelor of Science in Biology from Arizona State University. In his free time, Zach enjoys hiking, movies, and reading.

Role in Biology: Lab Assistant for BIOL 105, BIOL 211, BIOL 221, BIOL 222, and BIOL 279

Elizabeth Baker has been a lab technician/assistant in Biology, Chemistry, and Earth/Physical Science classes at Ivy Tech since 2015.  Previously, she worked at Dow AgroSciences (now Corteva) and Baxter Pharmaceuticals.  She majored in biochemistry at Purdue University and studied agriculture at Ivy Tech in Terre Haute and Columbus.  Her favorite lab tasks are caring for the plants and animals used in classes and the Outdoor Learning Lab, particularly the Madagascar hissing cockroaches and the honeybees.

Role in Biology: Lab Assistant for BIOL101 and BIOL107