Dr. Blake Soller graduated from Chesterton High School as a young man, unsure of what he wanted from life and a career. Today, about 20 years later, Soller teaches English at Chesterton High School, having found an unlikely sense of drive and purpose through his service with the United States Military and inspiration from his wife.
Soller grew up in Michigan City, Indiana, and transferred to Chesterton High School in his junior year. Currently, Soller is a teacher at the same school, but education was not a pathway he knew he would take.
“When I graduated from high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do,” said Soller. “I had done a short apprenticeship in HVAC, and I worked at the Dunes National Lakeshore. Those were not for me. The only thing that truly interested me, at the time, was the military.”
Soller joined the military, where he became one of only about 250 dog trainers. In this position, Soller discovered a personal affinity for teaching animals and took that skill to teach people. When Soller was still early in his career, around 22 years old, he was told that he should have been a school teacher.
“At that time, I said, ‘No way, dude, I would never be a teacher,’” said Soller. “As time went on, though, this kept coming up. Through the repetition of helping people out and teaching them how to do different things, I started to accept it. I thought, well I guess I am alright at teaching. I realized, through my time in the military, that what I most enjoyed was mentoring people who may not have ever had somebody to step in and help them.”
Soller was encouraged to attend college by his wife, and to his surprise, he found great enjoyment in furthering his education. Soller began taking two college courses and continued through higher education for 12 years, receiving a PhD in education.
“I was not a great student in high school,” said Soller. “When I received my PhD in education in 2019, that was when I realized how much I had changed from 20 years ago. I want to be able to give that to others. When I first began my teaching career, I started at Valparaiso University as the Director of Instructional Technology. I switched paths and now teach English to upper and lower levels at Chesterton High School. I was inspired to make the swap because of the kids. My goal in teaching is to listen and understand my students, to be able to provide personalized support and be a mentor in their lives.”
In his free time, Soller enjoys reading true crime and fantasy, writing his soon-to-be-finished books, and volunteering through his church, Chesterton United Methodist Church. Soller is specifically involved with the church youth group and a program called Jacob’s Table that serves community meals. Soller attributes the value and enjoyment he receives from helping others to his upbringing and parents. He also cites his wife as his greatest source of inspiration.
“Despite all the successes I have had, I still look at myself and feel like these things happened by accident,” said Soller. “In times when I’ve felt I didn’t deserve my success, I remember that I am not doing my work for any accolades, but I am doing my work to help people. If there is any takeaway, I want to share this: don’t get discouraged when things don’t go exactly your way. At times, you will do everything right. At others, you will study and you will still fail. That’s part of the journey. Don’t put so much stress on yourself. You’ll find an unexpected mentor, an unexpected passion or path, and things are going to be okay.”