Art Teachers Receive State Award

Art Teachers Receive State Award
Posted on 10/18/2019
Art Teachers

The Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA) recognizes schools and districts across the state of Pennsylvania for their commitment to visual arts education opportunities for all students PK-12. PAEA has launched a new award known as the “Outstanding Visual Arts Community”. The endorsement is given to schools and districts which have demonstrated the importance of their visual arts programs in the following ways:

  • Rigorous and Inclusive Programs: Arts programs demonstrated rigor using standards-based curriculum taught at every level by highly qualified and certified arts educators.

  • Highly Accessible Programs: Art programs were offered to all students at every level of education with a sustainable budget for the visual arts.

  • Highly Visible Programs: Schools and districts identified their programmatic accomplishments, curriculum for all levels, art staff, mission statements, and arts events using their school websites and social media.

In September of 2019, Middletown Area School District was informed that the MASD Arts Department was one of the first districts to receive this honor. Only 57 out of the 500 Pennsylvania school districts were selected. We are very proud of our Art teachers and their impact on our students and community!

Lana Greinermiller
Lana Greinermiller
Elementary
Katie Woodworth
Katie Woodworth
Elementary
 
Stacey Miller
Stacey Miller
MAMS
Elizabeth Strite
Elizabeth Strite
MAHS

  • Each of our Visual Arts teachers is certified to teach Art K-12. Miller and Woodworth have their Master degrees and Strite has two Master degrees. Greinermiller is currently working towards her Masters through The Art of Ed University.

  • Miller presented at the PAEA conference in Pittsburgh in 2017 and earlier in Grapevine, Texas, representing a national committee of educators.

  • Every K-8th grade MASD student has art as a part of their required curriculum. Students at the high school level have the ability to choose art as an elective in the form of a traditional studio class or digitally based art such as graphic design or multi-media including video or photography.

  • A sustainable budget allows for our art program to grow, our teachers to keep current with advancements in Art Education, and students to participate in local and national art competitions.

  • MASD celebrates our young artists and their accomplishments through posts/articles in the District newsletter and on the District website and other social media platforms.

  • The art department holds an annual district-wide art exhibition to celebrate the talented young artists with our district.

  • In 2018-19, thanks to Reid Elementary teacher, Gina Pronesti, K-12 art students had their holiday ornaments displayed at the Governor’s Mansion last year; and Miller’s middle school students were selected to create gorgeous ornaments that hung on a tree in the White House during the holiday season.

  • In recent years, several high school students received awards for their artwork and were accepted into art shows at the Whitaker Center and the Camp Hill Plein Air Festival.

In addition to their commitment to MASD, all members of the Art Department keep up their own art practices:

  • In addition to working on her Masters, Greinermiller has an Instagram account dedicated to art education and a booming Etsy Store, MsG’sArtRoom.

  • Woodworth helped the Youth Organized United in painting a community mural behind Roberto’s Pizza this past summer.

  • Miller sells her paintings at various art shows around the area and teaches art lessons from her home.

  • Strite practices photography through personal projects and as a small business. She also built her husband’s business website and regularly does design work for them.

Collectively our art teachers foster creativity and higher order thinking through creative problem solving, a growth mindset, perseverance and discovering that problems often have more than one right answer. They all teach to help kids reach their potential and to experience that “aha” moments when the student who doesn’t regularly come to school says, “I wasn’t going to come to school today, but I came because I’m so excited to do this project.” What an amazing measure of success!

boy writing a picture
boy cutting paper girl painting girl painting self portrait

 

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