Art Education Leadership Award Winners 2024

Awarded to visionaries who continually inspire their peers in the art education community through their online school gallery on Artsonia.

Tara Albright

Twelve Bridges Elementary School (Lincoln, CA)

I have been teaching art here at TBE for the last decade. I have a true passion for teaching art to young kids, getting them excited about art and what they can create! I absolutely love seeing my students grow and develop their art skills and build their confidence as artists!

Michelle Bach

J. B. Nelson Elementary School (Batavia, IL)

I have been an art teacher for over 19 years and the art teacher at J.B. for the past 15! I love being with children and helping them explore the wonderful world of art! My goal for your child is to achieve their personal best and to develop an appreciation for the arts and how it is created.

Chelsea Calantoni

Green Valley Christian School (Henderson, NV)

I teach Elementary Art in Henderson, NV. Since 2011 I have been at GV Christian School, improving our art department and encouraging our students to be creative. Most of our projects are mixed-media, but you will also find ceramics, drawing, and painting.

Kristyn DeMint

Dundee Elementary School (Dundee, MI)

I have been teaching art for seventeen years. This year will be my fifteenth year teaching at Dundee Elementary School. Teaching art is my passion, and I look forward to the upcoming year. I am a graduate of Spring Arbor University (with a concentration in painting) and completed a master's degree in Visual Art Education at Eastern Michigan University. I currently reside in Milan, MI with my husband and two children.

Andriana Donlon

East Farms School (Farmington, CT)

For twenty years, I have had the privilege of being an art educator at the elementary level. There is not a day that goes by where I am not amazed by what such young students can create. They are fearless, feisty and fierce. They are the reason I come to work every day and I am a better human because of them. It has been my goal to create an arts program that honors the rich diversity of artists from all over the world. In doing so, students are able to see themselves in these artist and realize they can be artists too. Through rich units of study as well as incredible evenings celebrating our schools diverse cultures, I believe I am making those connections for students one day at a time. Their art reflects the joy, laughter, and love that my students share with their community and families, inspired by the world around them.

Leanne French-Amara

Normandale Elementary School (Edina, MN)

I am the lucky art teacher who gets to teach, learn and create art with the creative students at Normandale Elementary School! My favorite art projects contain color, texture and imagination.

Tricia Hilbert

West Wing Elementary School (Peoria, AZ)

I grew up in the small artist's community of Tubac, Arizona (45 miles South of Tucson, near Nogales). I have always loved art but being surrounded by artists didn't hurt either. I graduated from the University of Arizona ( Go Wildcats! ) with a Fine Arts/Art Education degree then began my career as an art educator. I have been teaching Art since 1991 and am so blessed to have such a fun job that I love to go to every day! I am married (just celebrated our 31st anniversary!) and have 3 amazing daughters who make me so proud. Our family also has a rescue dog named Wheatley who makes us laugh every day with his silly antics and a 18 year old cat that we adopted 2 years ago named Zoey who is surprisingly spry for her age. West Wing has been my school home since 2006 and I feel very much part of a family here. It will be difficult to leave but this will be my last year at West Wing as I will retire in May.

Anna Holder

Woodland Park Elementary School (Sheridan, WY)

As an art teacher, I believe in the words of Pablo Picasso when he said, "Every child is an artist." I feel so lucky to work with such amazing young artists and to get to witness the creative thinking, problem solving and innovation that takes place when they are creating. In the art classroom, along with exploring a wide variety of materials, we learn to share, clean up after ourselves, observe, reflect, interpret, express, listen to others and so much more. Art has been a huge part of my life since I was a very small child. I always knew I wanted to go into a profession that involved creativity and helping others, so being an art teacher was a perfect fit. I received a bachelor's degree in Art and Design with a K-12 teaching endorsement and a minor in Spanish. I have a Master's of Science in Education with a focus on preK-6th grade literacy. This is my 12th year working in Sheridan's schools, and my 9th as an art educator. In my free time I love to read, make art, and spend time outdoors with my husband Sean and our two kids.

Terry Hsu-Gander

Community Montessori School (Boulder, CO)

I am the Art teacher at Community Montessori Elementary, a public K-5 school in Boulder, CO. I started teaching Art in 2018 at Community Montessori, after several years teaching 2nd grade at an arts-integration school. Our classes are multi-age, in the Montessori tradition. I teach Art to Kindergarten, Lower Elementary (1st-3rd), and Upper Elementary (4th & 5th). I hope you enjoy viewing the beautiful artwork my students create!

Natalie Kieninger

Dennis Township Schools (Cape May Court House, NJ)

I graduated from Penn State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Art Education. I hold a Pennsylvania Teacher of Art Certification as well as a New Jersey Teacher of Art Certification and New Jersey Elementary Certification. I have been teaching art for the past 27 years. I believe that the arts are crucial to learning and help children to better understand the world. Teaching of the fine arts encourages students to be fluent in thought, flexible in acceptance, sensitive to feeling, creative in experimentation, aware of moral attitudes, inventive in their work, imaginative in creation, cooperative in social interactions and appreciative of the work of others. When creating my own personal work I enjoy using chalk pastels, oil paint, watercolor and ceramics.

Myralyn McCabe

W. F. Killip Elementary School (Flagstaff, AZ)

I teach art at Killip Elementary School. Art is taught to students in grades Kindergarten through Fifth. Students have art once a week for 30 minutes.

Kristen Meyers

Metro Christian Academy (Tulsa, OK)

I received my Masters Degree in Education from Oklahoma State University and have been passionately teaching elementary art since. Our kiddos are introduced to various mediums and creatively explore the visual arts, which are on display within the Artsonia school wide gallery. If you have a chance, please browse through the gallery and see all our students have worked so hard to create.

Kristin Olivo

Wayne Valley High School (Wayne, NJ)

With over 20 years of experience in art education, I have made it my mission to inspire students and nurture their appreciation for the arts. My teaching philosophy centers around creating a supportive and inclusive environment where students can explore their creativity and express themselves freely. I offer guidance in a variety of artistic
mediums, including painting, drawing, and mixed media, helping students develop their unique styles and talents.

Erin Smith

West Jones High School (Laurel, MS)

I currently teach Art I, II, III, IV, Advanced Art III and Advanced Art IV, as well as a middle school visual arts class. I have my master's degree in art education and have taught for 18 years. I believe everyone has the ability to be an artist, but they must be curious enough to seek it out, creative enough to solve the "problem," and stubborn enough to stick with it. Displaying art takes courage. In this student gallery, you will see all of these traits exhibited.

Jodi Youngman

Hudson Prairie Elementary School (Hudson, WI)

Mrs. Youngman received her B.S. in PK-12 Art Education in 2001 from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. After teaching in Mukwonago for five years, she joined the staff in Hudson in 2009. She received her Master's of Education in 2012, also from UW-RF. In the Hudson Prairie Art Studio, the child is the artist and classroom is the child's studio. Students learn about the Elements of Art and how to put them together using the Principles of Design to create successful works of art while developing their fine motor and critical thinking skills. Mrs. Youngman is married, with three kids, and two cats. In her free time she enjoys creating art, reading, and watching her kids in their favorite activities.