Tara Blaser

she/her/hers

Contact

Philosophy / English Instructor
Humanities
Phone: 217-234-5321
Email: tblaser@lakelandcollege.edu

Education Information

College/University

Graduate Certificate in Health Care Ethics , Saint Louis University
M.A.: English, Eastern Illinois University
B.S.: Philosophy and English, SUNY Oneonta

Professional Affiliations/Award

• Received Lake Land College's 2020-21 "ICCTA Full-Time Outstanding Faculty Member" award nomination.
• Received the 2019 "Woman of Achievement" award. “This award, sponsored by the EIU Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program, is presented annually to women who have made outstanding contributions to their communities and who serve as role models worthy of emulation.” Staff at H.O.P.E. of East Central Illinois made this nomination.
• Received the “Exemplary Practice” award from the NCSD (National Council on Student Development) for the Lake Land College Mystery.

About

Hobbies and Interest

• Collecting cat hair, but not on purpose (I just have cats and wear black)
• Imagining increasingly elaborate ways I could survive a zombie apocalypse with nothing but sarcasm and snacks
• Exploring and experiencing the world with my spouse (he teaches anatomy, so between us we cover body and soul)

Courses Taught

• Introduction to Philosophy
• World Religions
• Ethics
• Ethics of South Park
• Health Care Ethics
• Logic
• Composition II

Faculty statement/Why do you like teaching at Lake Land College?

Because where else can I spend my days talking about the meaning of life, the morality of robots, and the occasional zombie hypothetical? Lake Land has that perfect mix of small-town heart and big-question curiosity. I love teaching here because the faculty are fabulous, and the students bring a mix of curiosity, resilience, and real-world grit. Many are balancing families, jobs, and the occasional existential crisis, and yet, they still show up, ready to learn, ask big questions, and challenge themselves (and sometimes me).

Research interests, Specializations, and Background

Research interests:

• Ethics in artificial intelligence (because someone needs to tell robots that stealing jobs is rude)
• Digital accessibility in education (designing with the belief that access is not an add-on, it is a starting point)
• Philosophical zombie apocalypse scenarios (Purely academic. Probably.)
• Teaching methods that are not sleep-inducing, especially for logic and applied ethics
• Intersection of technology, justice, and moral decision-making (basically, how to not be the villain in your own cyberpunk novel)

Specializations:

• Artificial intelligence and ethics (I have taken enough AI courses and webinars that I might be part-robot at this point)
• Applied ethics (making real-world dilemmas make sense, or at least less confusing than trying to read Kierkegaard before coffee)
• Logic and critical thinking (I live for fallacies!)
• Universal design (building courses that do not leave students or robots behind)
• Creative course design (currently plotting the rise of game-based learning like a benevolent educational supervillain)
• Faculty mischief (Successfully pulled off an AI imposter in class to teach students about personhood and trust. Would do it again. Probably already planning it.)

Background:

• Graduate Certificate in Professional Ethics – Texas State University (basically a license to overthink in a morally responsible way)
• Earned the Digital Accessibility for Educators Certificate from ION, because no one should need a secret decoder ring to navigate learning
• Completed multiple AI courses (Coursera, Union Seminary, ION, and more webinars than I can count without caffeine)
• Philosophy and Humanities instructor, where I try to make “what does it mean to be human?” more fun than it sounds
• Love cats
• Survive purely on stubbornness and ethically-sourced sass
• Firmly believe I could outsmart zombies, out-talk ChatGPT (debatable), and still return library books on time

Community Service

• Dedicated to making meetings more bearable through clever comments and artful eye contact. Committee morale specialist, unofficially.
• Once explained the concept of Kantian ethics to a cat. The cat was unmoved, but it still counts as outreach.
• Regularly translates “terms and conditions” into plain English for confused humans everywhere, because someone has to do it.
• Helps others navigate ethical dilemmas, big and small, from medical consent forms to whether you should ghost your group project.
• Has served on enough campus committees to qualify for a punch card. One more, and the next one’s free.