Katie's love for the water was sparked as a baby, splashing around family pools with her parents, before she was enrolled in formal lessons when she was three. By eight, she was making waves with the Normal Parks Sharks in Illinois, where she swam competitively for six years, specializing as a breaststroker. A graduate of Illinois State University with a degree in Musical Theatre, Katie combines her passion for performance with her love for teaching. She delights in helping students discover their own aquatic passions, often witnessing them find their "thing" in the water. Outside the pool, Katie enjoys singing, dancing, and acting, and shares her home with her identical twin sister and a playful kitten named Cloud.