Mr. Charles Blaschke

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Mr. Charles Blaschke, age 77, of Arlington, Va., passed away Aug. 5, 2018. He is survived by his wife, Kathy Hurley, and a sister, Eleanor Gracey, of Albuquerque, N.M. Born in Beeville, Texas, and raised in Skidmore, Texas, Mr. Blaschke was the son of the late Raymond George and Mamie Sugarek Blaschke. He attended Texas A&M University, where he received a degree in political science. After graduating, he attended the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he received his master’s degree. During his time at Texas A&M, he served in Company B Corps and later went onto serve in the U.S. Army and at the Pentagon.

Mr. Blaschke began his career in Washington, D.C., working in the Johnson administration and advising on education policy before the creation of the U.S. Department of Education by President Carter in 1979. During his time in the Johnson administration, he was assigned to work with the Office of Economic Opportunity to help draft the groundbreaking Title I legislation that changed the face of education for many students, schools, and educational publishers. He was a member of the first class of White House Fellows.

In 1967, after serving in the Johnson administration, Mr. Blaschke founded Education TURNKEY Systems, which provided market research, analysis, planning and funding information of educational technology to more than 1,200 local education agencies, every state education agency, and more than 800 state policymakers. He conducted research and evaluation projects for the U.S. Departments of Education and Labor, as well as for Congress.

For 50 years, Mr. Blaschke analyzed and reported on the ever-changing landscape of U.S. educational policy. His ability to carefully analyze and translate policy for both the public and private sector contributed to the overall growth of the educational technology industry.

His numerous long-term clients, many of whom he worked with for more than 30 years, attest to the value his services provided over the years. He was an icon of the education technology industry as he provided the industry with an invaluable and unique service, observing the inside workings of Washington, while analyzing the implications of federal and state-level legislation that affected the industry and the students and educators they served.

Mr. Blaschke’s involvement in education policy circles in Washington, D.C., and beyond was prodigious. In recognition of his industry-wide work, the Software & Information Industry Association awarded him their prestigious Ed Tech Impact Award in 2012.

Perhaps Mr. Blaschke’s most meaningful and sentimental project was working with his beloved Texas A&M University to organize his research at the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library to be studied and used in education policy classes.

While his work was based in Washington, D.C., he was an avid fisherman and hunter who loved spending time at his summer house in Machipongo on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

He will be deeply missed by friends, family, and colleagues.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at the Wilsonia Harbor Way Boat Landing in Machipongo, on Saturday, Sept. 29, 2018, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Charles Blaschke may be sent to: Texas A&M Foundation, 401 George Bush Dr., College Station, TX 77840 or St. Charles Catholic Church, 545 Randolph Ave., Cape Charles, VA 23310

Online condolences may be sent to www.foxandjamesfh.com

Arrangements were made by Fox and James Funeral Home, Eastville.

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