Wasilla High teacher dies in Parks collision

    MEADOW LAKES -- A 33-year-old Wasilla High School science teacher and mother of two was killed in a head-on collision Saturday night near Mile 46 of the Parks Highway north of Wasilla.

    According to Alaska State Troopers, Jennifer L. Van Ausdal, 33, was traveling southbound in a 2005 silver Subaru Forrester at approximately 8:05 p.m. when she crossed the center line and struck a northbound 1995 black Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Erin L. Kruse, 50, of Houston. Kruse’s Jeep then collided with a southbound 1999 green Mercury Tracer driven by Gabriela Olide, 18, of Wasilla.

    Van Ausdal was transported by LifeGuard helicopter to Providence Medical Center in Anchorage, where she was pronounced dead.

    Van Ausdal's 10- and 11-year old sons were also seriously hurt in the crash. Troopers said Zackary Van Ausdal, 11, was airlifted with his mother to Providence, where he was in stable but critical condition Sunday evening. Van Ausdal’s other son, Timothy, 10, was taken by ambulance to Mat-Su Regional Hospital, where he was in the intensive care unit Sunday. Citing patient confidentiality laws, hospital staff would not release any information on his condition.

    Kruse was also transported to Anchorage by LifeGuard. Troopers said Sunday that she was at Alaska Regional Hospital in stable condition.

    Olide was treated for minor injures at Mat-Su Regional. Two passengers in her vehicle were uninjured.

    Seat belts were worn by all involved.

    Mrs. Van Ausdal is survived by her husband, Dennis, a teacher at Wasilla Middle School, and her two sons. 

    She was a 1993 graduate of Wasilla High School who grew up in the Valley as part of a large family.

    According to those who knew her, “Jenny” was a deeply spiritual person who enjoyed music, spending time with her family and helping out at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, where she was a “very active” member, according to Suzanne Stewart, who is coordinating memorial arrangements at the church.

    “She helped with music, working with cultural events,” Stewart said Sunday.

    Stewart said plans for a memorial service have not yet been finalized, as members of Van Ausdal’s family are still en route to Alaska.

    Wasilla High principal Dwight Probasco said Van Ausdal taught physical science, biology and physics at the school.

    Probasco said he'd known Mrs. Van Ausdal since when she entered the school as a freshman, and even taught the young Jenny Wilcox as a 10th-grade biology student.

    On Sunday, he said Mrs. Van Ausdal will be remembered as a popular, outgoing teacher who was a favorite of students and faculty alike.

    “The children really connected with her,” Probasco said.

    He said Van Ausdal — who also taught at Houston High before transferring to WHS three years ago — had an open-door policy with students, allowing them into her classroom for lunch, playing music during breaks and offering up her rocking chair to those who needed to take a load off.

    “She was just the kind of teacher every student should experience,” he said.

    Probasco said a crisis team will meet before school Monday morning to discuss the loss, and extra counselors will be brought in to help students and staff deal with their grief.

    “It’s going to be a rough day,” he said.

    Losing a member of the Wasilla High School family — especially one with a long history in the community — will be difficult for everyone, he said.

    “Our school is more than just walls, it’s the people inside,” he said. “There’s a big hole now.”

    Both Van Ausdal and Probasco took special pride in the fact that she was a teacher who’d returned to her roots to educate the next generation of Valley youth.

    “It’s kind of neat, we have 21 teachers on our staff who graduated from Valley high schools,” he said. “Now we’ve lost one of them.”  

     Saturday's accident occurred within feet of a memorial cross erected for a previous fatal accident at nearly the exact same location.

Troopers returned to the scene Sunday morning to continue the investigation. Two troopers and a lieutenant spent much of the morning photographing the area, taking measurements and collecting other data.

There were almost no skid marks visible on the stretch of road leading up to the crash site, which was marked by the remnants of the previous night's tragedy — including spilled motor oil, some broken glass, vehicle fluids and the bright orange paint used by police to mark the scene.

    Alaska State Troopers are seeking anyone who may have witnessed the accident. Anyone with information is asked to call (907) 745-2131.

Contact Frontiersman reporter Matt Tunseth at 352-2265 or matt.tunseth@frontiersman.com