My Teaching Philosophy

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I believe it is my responsibility as an educator and an artist to make the art world more accessible for all of my students. I strive to engage students and their communities  in art making that is meaningful and representative of who they are as individuals while giving them the tools and skills they need to reflect and grow as artists. I aspire to create an environment in my classroom that is welcoming and pushes students beyond the capacities that they thought possible. I focus on building strong rapport with my students so that they trust me when I guide them through the personal and thoughtful art projects that inspire their work. I find it essential to show students the consistent work ethic that it takes to be a creator and an educator. Making my own paintings and drawings, or building, sewing and problem solving simply because I feel the need to create things in the world. Finally, I use these as inspirational moments for my lessons and weave ideas that students find important and relevant as starting points for projects so that they see themselves reflected in the work we do in class.