Kathryn S Orvis

Agricultural Sciences Education and Communication

Associate Professor – Extension Education

Phone

765.494.8433

Fax

765.496.1152

Office

Lilly Hall of Life Sciences Room 3-231

Address

915 W State Street
West Lafayette, IN 47907-2054

Horticulture and Landscape Architecture

Associate Professor of Horticulture

Email

orvis@purdue.edu

Faculty Profile
Dr. Orvis shares a joint appointment between the Departments of Agricultural Sciences Education and Communication and Horticulture and Landscape Architecture. Her research and extension work focus on the utilization of plants as teaching tools. Additionally, her background in plant genetics affords her the capacity to focus on various aspects of science literacy and biotechnology education. Dr. Orvis teaches several courses, including HORT 10100 (Fundamentals of Horticulture).

Education
PhD, Plant Breeding and Plant Genetics, University of Wisconsin, 2000
MS, Plant Breeding and Plant Genetics, University of Wisconsin, 1997
BS, Botany and Lyman Briggs, Michigan State University, 1995

Courses Taught
HORT 10100 (Fundamentals of Horticulture)
ASEC 21200 (Greenhouse and Landscape Fundamentals for Educators)
ASEC 52000 (Principles of Extension Education)

Research Interests
Plant science education; experiential learning; science literacy; biotechnology education; program evaluation.

Grants & Projects
Co-PI, North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture, Research and Education (NCR-SARE) Increasing the Sustainable Production and Access of Fresh Produce in Urban Areas of NW Indiana 2018-2021.

Senior Personnel, Youth Outreach and 4-H portion of the Sustainable Production and Distribution of Bioenergy for the Central USA (CenUSA) project. 2011-2016.

Collaborator, Enhancing Science Capacity in Introductory Animal, Plant, and Food Sciences Courses. USDA NIFA Higher Education Challenge Grant. 2010-2013.

Awards & Honors

(2018) NACTA Educator Award. North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).

(2018) Certificate of Distinction. IAAE-Purdue (Indiana Association of Agricultural Educators).

(2019) ASEC Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award. Dept. ASEC.

(2018) ASEC Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award. Dept. ASEC.

Selected Publications

Zeller, M., Riordan, T., Zaleski, H., Herzfeld, D., & Orvis, K. S. (2010). Food: Edible Antibiotics in Food Crops. In Life Science Ethics (377–380). Springer Netherlands.

Orvis, K. (2005). Junior Master Gardener in Indiana.

Rothhaar, R., Pittendrigh, B. R., & Orvis, K. S. (2006). The Lego® analogy model for teaching gene sequencing and biotechnology. Journal of Biological Education, 40(4), 166–171.

Dirks, A. E. (2005). An evaluation of the junior master gardener program in third grade classrooms. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science, 15(3), 443–447.

Orvis, K. (2003). Genomic Analogy Model for Educators (GAME): from jumping genes to alternative splicing. Journal of Biological Education.

Orvis, K., & Orvis, L. S. (2003). Growing Healthy Minds and Bodies through the Junior Master GardenerŒ¬ (JMG Œ¬) Program.