The Wisconsin Art Education Association celebrates excellence in our art classrooms. Art teachers provide so many opportunities for our young learners to showcase their skills and knowledge through the visual arts. Art educators foster artistic experiences for students to create, present, respond, and connect. During the school year, Wisconsin art educators are nominated for WAEA "Art Teacher of the Month." If you wish to nominate a Wisconsin art educator for Art Teacher of the Month, please submit your suggestion within the online form.
For questions, please contact [email protected].
For questions, please contact [email protected].
April 2025
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Teacher: Keriann Kirkeng
School: Lake Mills High School, Lake Mills Keriann goes above and beyond to create a safe and welcoming environment where students feel encouraged to express themselves through art. She is not only passionate about art but also about fostering creativity confidence, building strong relationships with students, and supporting their emotional well-being. Her commitment to growth and consistency is evident in her thoughtful lesson planning and the meaningful connections she creates with her students. She restarted the Visual Arts Classic in her district this year, giving students opportunities to engage with art on a competitive and collaborative level. Art classes have partnered with the local humane society, creating projects that connect students to real-world causes. One particularly impactful example is the students’ pet portraits of the police facility dog, which the class thoroughly enjoyed and which strengthened ties between the school and the community (check these out on the school Facebook page! They are so neat!). In addition to her work at school she also has written articles for the school arts magazine, advocating for the importance of art education and showcasing student achievements in her previous schools. Keriann is a dedicated Art Educator who has spent the last 12 years teaching art with the last three in Lake Mills School District. She spends her summers teaching summer school while dedicating her extra time to her children at home. Outside of school she enjoys reading, gardening, and taking walks with her two pugs. |
March 2025
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Teacher: Ryli Decorah
School: Maple Dale-Indian Hill School District Ryli possesses an extraordinary ability to inspire students through engaging and innovative lesson plans that cater to a diverse range of learning styles. Her classroom is a vibrant, nurturing environment where students feel encouraged to explore their creativity and express themselves. She seamlessly integrates various artistic techniques and media while interweaving art history, thus exposing students to the richness of art while fostering their individual styles. Each day, Ryli starts each class with an encouraging message the kids LOVE: Ryli: Hello my most amazing art students. Students: Hello my most amazing art teacher. R: How are you today? S: Ready to create! R: Ahem (Students repeat) R: I make messes (Students repeat) R: I make mistakes (Students repeat) R: But deep inside (Students repeat) R: I got what it takes! (Students repeat) R: Because...I am an artist! (Students repeat) Ryli has been in the Maple Dale-Indian Hill School District for 6 years. Throughout this time she has taught artists in 5K through 8th grade. She organizes a wonderful art show that showcases students’ work and celebrates their achievements. This not only boosts students’ confidence but also fosters a strong sense of community and appreciation for the arts. |
February 2025
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Teacher: Lauren Dillinger
School: Stratford School District Lauren is an exemplary teacher and artist. She builds relationships with students in one year that has created a large increase in her numbers. Ultimately she has shined a light on art in Stratford. In her first year she developed a MS/HS art show that had great success. She has plans to continue and grow this year to year with hopes of providing student art to community businesses as well as including elementary into the art show. She is a recent graduate with BS and BFA degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Stout, starting her second year her art teaching career at Stratford High School! She grew up in nearby Rozellville, WI and attended Auburndale High School. Lauren says, "as an aspiring teacher of art education, I view my role in the educational process is to provide students with an understanding of the visual world in response to themselves, celebrate diversity while building connections, and challenge students to engage in a hands-on, safe learning environment. Intending to guide students toward building an appreciation for the arts, I desire to promote students’ overall mental, emotional, and physical well-being to ensure that they will be prepared to pursue any field or endeavor as well-rounded, creative individuals." Teacher: Jennifer Handrick
School: Chippewa Falls High School, Chippewa Falls Area Unified School District Jennifer is the definition of a go-getter. Besides teaching a variety of classes that meet the National Art Standards, she is a leader or advisor for multiple clubs, organizations, trips and activities that involve art and give students opportunities at the high school level. She has spearheaded college level programming for students who want to go further than the regular curriculum and she advocates for the arts tirelessly with her peers, administration and anyone else who will listen! Jennifer is an advisor for the Chippewa Falls High School Art Club which has done service projects in the community such as painting the inside of a building of a homeless shelter. She also takes art students on National and International trips such as Chicago or Paris to give experiences that students will treasure for a lifetime. Jennifer Handrick has spent most of her art teaching career in the Chippewa Falls School District with the majority at the high school level. Her leadership in creating a diverse curriculum and providing college-level classes is impressive. She has a Master of Education in Professional Development. She is a chair for WAEA and is always looking to learn how we can better the arts in the Wisconsin education system. She is the advisor of the Art Club and the National Art Honor Society at her school. She is a coach for students involved in the Visual Art Classic Team and the Visioneer Design Challenge Team. She has taken students on trips to cities and Countries as a group leader during her summers to give a worldly experience. She is an AP art teacher for Art & Design and Art History and provides college credit classes to both students going into art and not going into art for their careers. |
December 2024
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Teacher: Natasha Monahan
School: Amherst Elementary and Middle School, Amherst Natasha understands the true power of relationships and developing an ongoing love of art in every form. She understands children of varying developmental ages and reaches ALL children regardless of their level of art ability. She advocates for inclusivity for children and families alike. She is a role model with her peers and a leader in every way. Natasha encourages all students and calls them all artists. Those who feel they are not good at art when they begin in her classroom develop confidence and perseverance. She finds activities and projects that help them feel successful. She builds character and confidence and individualizes learning to students' strengths. Natasha illuminates our hallways and school with student art, as well as our community. You can go to many locations around our community and see student artwork showcasing our students and school. Natasha graduated from UW Milwaukee in 2012 with a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts. She has a Master's Degree from Silver Lake of the Holy Family in educational leadership. Natasha has worked for the Tomorrow River Schools for 12 years as the elementary/middle (grades K-6) art teacher. |
November 2024
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Teacher: Rachel Akey Podoll
School: Bridges Virtual Academy, Merrill Area Public Schools, Merrill Rachel been teaching MS & HS art in a virtual program for the last 4 years. She developed her curriculum and her teaching methods and has developed a highly successful art program at Bridges Virtual Academy. Rachel highly values student engagement. This can be a challenge in a virtual environment. She has created systems and expectations for her art students and has led staff professional development on how to increase student engagement in a virtual environment. Rachel Akey has collaborated with English Without Borders (https://ewbn.org/) which is an international program with educators and government officials from Tajikistan. For two years in a row she has demonstrated how to teach art in a virtual environment on this international platform. Rachel Akey Podoll has been teaching art in a virtual setting since 2020 at Bridges Virtual Academy. During that time, she has found ways to overcome the barriers of being in a different environment than students, and find ways to inspire them in their artistic abilities. Our school's website (https://www.bvaedu.org/student-art-gallery) uses student artwork throughout the website as the visual pictures for pages. In addition, the artwork of student's can be viewed at our student art gallery. In addition, Rachel Akey Podoll earned her Master's Degree with her capstone project being on Art Education in a Virtual Environment. |
October 2024
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Teacher: Amber Riemer
School: Medford Area Middle School, Medford Amber has a profound impact on her students through both her teaching and her ability to build strong, trusting relationships. She creates a classroom environment where students feel safe to express themselves creatively, often encouraging those who are shy or have difficulty with traditional forms of communication to come out of their shell through art. Her calm demeanor and thoughtfully designed projects have been particularly successful with students who exhibit challenging behaviors, helping them to focus and engage positively. By fostering an atmosphere of acceptance and expression, Amber highlights the vital role that art plays in the emotional and social development of students, making her an invaluable asset to our district. Promoting positive student relations is where Amber shines the most. In her traditional art classes, she can often be found working one-on-one with students and offering personalized feedback to help students push themselves to be the best artist they can be. She encourages a classroom environment of acceptance, creativity, and fun. Her Expressive Art therapy group welcomes those who might feel lost or out of place at school and gives them a place to create, talk, and build relationships when these students may not have felt they had this opportunity in other aspects of their educational experience. Amber Riemer has been a dedicated middle school art teacher in the district since 2017, teaching 5th, 6th, and 7th grade students. In addition to her classroom work, she helps facilitate an Expressive Art therapy group, offering a creative outlet for students to explore their emotions. As the art team PLC leader, she plays a vital role in fostering collaboration among her colleagues and frequently works with groups like Student Council to support events that enrich the student experience. |
September 2024
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Teacher: Suzanne Milewski
School: Ronald Reagan High School, Milwaukee Ms. Milewski is passionate and dedicated for her students in Art History. For Example, she has kept student work from early 2020 (pre school closure) and is now returning it to students two years later! She is hyper-organized and always on top of the numerous requirements for an International Baccalaureate (IB) education. She is an active partner with our other art teacher. Together they do everything from Art Gallery Night annually to awesome rock band-themed T-shirts for staff to supporting the school through the year book and other photography supports. Suzanne Milewski teaches 9th grade Art Foundations and 10th grade Art History at Ronald Reagan IB High School. She is in charge of the yearbook and does 1,001 other things to help make our school hum. |
August 2024
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Teacher: Angie Lavery
Schools: Galesville Elementary & GET Middle School, Galesville, WI Angie goes above and beyond to encourage students to become the truest version of an artist. She teaches in a studio workshop model where skills are taught and then students are encouraged to create works that are unique and innovative. Angie also utilized a digital art portfolio to showcase student art with families and the community. Angie works with students by building relationships inside and outside of the classroom. She encourages students to gain a green thumb in garden club and finds ways to promote the artist in everyone. She uses the garden club to support the community. This club also provides food that is shared during our summer lunch program for all families in the district. Angie's love of art and gardening inspire our students to embrace their differences and adventure into new tastes and artistic skills. |
July 2024
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Teacher: Trisha Branson
School: Waupun Junior / Senior High School, Waupun Area School District Mrs. Branson's teaching career centers around the empowerment of her students. She has a strong passion to educate young minds and help them blossom on their artistic journey. She takes the time to build positive relationships with all of her students and is a strong advocate of the arts. She is a resourceful and imaginative art teacher with 17 +years experience teaching at the Elementary/High School/College Level. She holds a double bachelor degree in Graphic Communications and Art Education. She uses this to share her passion for both digital and the fine arts. She is trained in a wide variety of artistic mediums and has spent the last 6 years inspiring students at the Waupun Area Junior Senior High School. She enjoys teaching the arts and advising Junior high yearbook staff. |
June 2024
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Teacher: Jo Birkholz
School: Wilson Elementary School, School District of Janesville Jo Birkholz has been the heart and soul of Wilson Elementary School for her entire career in Janesville, WI. She has worked with multiple principals and built a strong and thriving art program that promotes optimism and creativity in all of her students. In addition to sparking joy and a love of art in her students, Jo is a natural leader. She serves as the head of the leadership team and the PBIS team. She is a district level representative for the Culturally Responsive team, holds NVCI training and is new teacher mentor. Jo continues to be a leader for the elementary art department in Janesville as well. With 32 years of experience, Jo has seen educational trends come and go but has always remained consistent in her high expectations and her ability to get kids excited to be creative and to be artists. Her enthusiasm and expertise in her subject matter combined with her natural ability to build relationships with students and families is exceptional and inspirational to others. |
May 2024
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Teacher: Robin Kelley
School: Halmstad Elementary School, Chippewa Falls, WI Robin has been teaching art for over 20 years and currently teaches elementary art at Halmstad Elementary School in Chippewa Falls, WI. Robin has served as the elementary level Visual Art Academic Chair and has always acted as a leader in her school, district and community. In addition to being an amazing art teacher, Robin wrote and illustrated a children's book and has sold over 1800 copies! She has done multiple readings and signings for schools in her area. Robin, "I’m so grateful that people like Ostriches Eat Sausages enough to buy it, read it and tell me they like it!" |
April 2024
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Teacher: Harry Kellogg
School: Chippewa Falls High School, Chippewa Falls, WI Harry Kellogg has been teaching high school art at Chippewa Falls High School for ten years! He specializes in 3-D and digital art and animation. In addition to being a very popular teacher, Harry coaches eSports and advises Ski Club and the Freshmen Class Officers. He is one of the coaches for Visioneer Design Challenge and will be helping out at Visual Arts Classic regionals for the first time this year. Additionally, he wrote the lessons for the Media Arts portion of the Wisconsin Arts Celebration Project for WI DPI! |
March 2024
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Teacher: Holly Wolf-Mattick
School: The Prairie School, Racine, WI Holly has been teaching at Prairie for over 6 years and is the high school Glass and Ceramics teacher. She also works with our 7th and 8th grade students through art classes to give them an introduction to glass bead making and glass blowing (we are fortunate to have a hot glass studio on campus). Holly has also taught some Primary School classes. Prior to her tenure at Prairie, Holly was a successful practicing glass artist; most recently she had some pieces installed as part of Hotel Verdant's collection. For the past few years she has orchestrated the school's involvement with Empty Bowls Racine by running bowl making workshops with middle school students. This year she has facilitated the productions of nearly 60 bowls to donate to this worthy cause. |
February 2024
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Teacher: Chris Lynch
School: Pardeeville Middle School This is Mr. Lynch’s 30th year in the classroom. He works with all different types of students in grades 6 through 12 and teaches 10 different art classes. He is incredibly knowledgeable, kind, energetic, and caring. Mr. Lynch also runs the annual Bulldog Stomp, a popular 5K race that has raised thousands of dollars for cancer research each year. He is an incredible art teacher and we are lucky to have him at Pardeeville Middle School |
January 2024
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Teacher: Ryan Krippendorf
School: Plymouth High School Ryan Krippendorf has been a game changer at PHS! The Art Classes were always fairly popular, but now they are the highest demand elective classes in the school! Ryan grows young artists and revised the curriculum to be relevant, tied more closely to career clusters in art, and opened up pathways for our students to see themselves as artists and earn scholarships to achieve their goals of attending art school. Over the past several years, Ryan has helped students earn literally 100,000's of thousands of dollars of scholarships. He is a huge asset to PHS. |
December 2023
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Teacher: Kim Roberts
School: Oaklawn Elementary School, School District of the Menomonie Area Ms. Roberts is an excellent Art teacher as demonstrated by her engaging lessons, enthusiasm for art, and the quality products her students produce. She has boundless energy and extreme passion for Art. The halls are filled with displays which she spends countless hours preparing. She also displays student art at local businesses and shares widely on social media. In addition, Ms. Roberts is a long time teacher representative on the PTO, has open Art times during lunch and recess, and taught Summer School art. Kids love art and a big reason is Ms. Roberts. |
November 2023
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Teacher: Julia Hardin
School: Jefferson High School Julia is an art teacher at Jefferson High School who is passionate about art and teaching. She worked extra hard when students were attending classes remotely to make sure students had all the supplies and materials they needed to get the most out of their art classes. She also works hard to make sure student art is displayed throughout the building, in traveling art shows, and seen in the community. She isn't afraid to do new things like ceramic raku firing and was nominated for a Jerry Award for Outstanding Scene Design for the drama production of Disney's The Little Mermaid. She has also offered opportunities outside of school hours for staff to create ceramics projects and is part of our AVID site team. She is a great asset to the District. |
October 2023
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Teacher: Cara Krueger
School: Sevastopol Elementary School. Cara helped organize her school's Fine Arts night last spring. It was the first in the district and included participation from the music department, the MS/HS art classes as well as the technology education department. It was run in conjunction with a pancake dinner sponsored by the National Honor Society. There were approximately 500 people in attendance that evening (the district has approximately 600 students 4K-12). It was an amazing opportunity to have artists showcase their work before a live audience. There were many who complimented the efforts of putting this event together including a retired art teacher from Port Washington who now lives in the area. Cara has many qualities that make her an outstanding choice for this recognition. She: – is organized and prepared (to the point that she is an example for others regardless of subject matter). A long term sub without art in his background was comfortable taking the position because of what she does to prepare for lessons. - runs a well-managed classroom, with high expectations and standards and her students abide by that out of mutual respect. - is creative and plans interesting and engaging lessons. - serves as a mentor to new teachers. - is willing to assist whenever asked. - is always looking for new and innovative ways to teach and present art to her students. Cara is someone that would not only hold up as an exemplar teacher for other teachers interested in teaching art, But also as an exemplar for anyone going into the field of teaching. |
April 2023
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Teacher: Susan Buss
School: St. Pauls Lutheran, Menomonie Wi Fiber artist and arts educator Susan Buss particularly enjoys assisting others to discover and develop their own unique creative voice while continuing to express her own. Susan incorporates traditional Needlework techniques, Screen Printing, Dyeing, and Weaving and materials in contemporary, conceptual, and unexpected ways. By using these methods of fiber arts and crafts that historically were considered “women’s work” in new and non-traditional ways, she gives them personal and intimate value that commands respect. She also aspires to inspire her students to express this creative energy balance as well. Her students learn traditional sewing, weaving, basketry, bookmaking techniques as well as drawing, painting, and sculpture disciplines that can be both practical skills in life as well as a means to artistic expression. Susan has the desire to balance her solo studio time working on her artwork with her family and her time mentoring and sharing her skills with her students. Susan has taught children and adults and one of the most important skills in teaching is her unlimited patience. She has created a peaceful respite for her students, giving them the opportunity to follow their own interests as she guides them through the creative process, where every mistake is looked upon as either a good learning opportunity or a chance to develop creative problem solving skills. Buss studied art at the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee and earned a degree in Fine Arts- Fibers and received her BAS in Art Education from UW Stout. She served on the ABK Weaving Center (Milwaukee) board as President from 2010-2014, Vice President from 2014-16. She also served on the Riverwest Artist Association, Jazz Gallery Center for the Arts (Milwaukee) board as president in 2016. Currently, she serves as Secretary for St Paul’s Lutheran School’s Parent Teacher Organization (Menomonie), after serving as President from 2017-2020. Susan serves on these boards and volunteers her time to advocate for arts education. In her love for the visual arts her service aligns with her passion to share its importance as a human experience. Susan was born in Beloit, Wisconsin, and was raised on a rural dairy farm. She visits the farmstead, no longer an operating dairy farm, and photo documents the transition. She also creates woven and painted landscapes inspired by Wisconsin’s unique and diverse terrain. Buss currently lives in Menomonie with her family of six and their dog Rico. She teaches all grade levels K-8 at St. Paul´s School in Menomonie, WI. |
March 2023
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Teacher: Shannon Molter
School: Hawthorne Elementary School, Waukesha Nominated by: Carina Masis Ms. Shannon Molter serves as an inspirational art teacher to every student she encounters. Her passion for art is evident as she offers her students the opportunity to explore and learn as artists through diverse and culturally relevant experiences. Her authentic style of teaching art has positively impacted our Hawthorne students and community in many ways. Ms. Molter inspires and positively influences our students as artists on many levels. Her passion for art and impacting children is evident throughout her daily interactions. She creates magical art experiences for our students by incorporating artistic styles and many cultural perspectives. What makes Ms. Molter stand out from others is her unwavering belief in all of our students. She also organizes and leads an after school art club offering our student the opportunity to extend their creativity and love of art after the school day is over. She collaborates with her specialist team on a regular basis, helps plan engaging assemblies and has helped lead many school projects such as our Hawthorne garden and outside Praire. Ms. Molter goes above and beyond creating and promoting positive relationships with our students. She is very proactive, and uses PBIS strategies to create a strong and positive learning environment. She intentionally plans her lessons cognizant that her students learn differently. She includes visual, hands on, auditory and kinesthetic methods of instruction, while allowing her students the opportunity to show their art in the same diverse ways. Ms. Molter has created a strong relationship between our school and the Milwaukee Art museum, providing the opportunity for our students to visit the museum and extend their learning while observing other artist's work. The school she serves also has a large Spanish-speaking population and Ms. Molter has eagerly began taking Spanish classes and even taking a summer trip to rural Mexico to improve her skills and visit local artists. |
February 2023
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Teacher: Emily McCabe
School: Edgerton High School, Edgerton, WI Mrs. McCabe not only gets great results on her AP portfolios, she is a kid magnet. Her AP scores have increased from a 2.8 in 2018 to 4.00 in 2022. Mrs. McCabe embraces students who traditionally would not continue their career in art to have confidence in their abilities and pursue Art as a career. Annually, she showcases student work at our District Art show. Emily McCabe is Married with 3 school-age children. She has been employed at Edgerton High School for 12 years as our sole ART teacher. Outside the classroom, Emily has been a High School Team Leader for 7 years. She shows kindness and support for students, while holding them accountable and helping them mature as young adults. |
January 2023
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School: Prairie View Elementary School, North Prairie, WI
Nominated by: Ann Dudek Elizabeth Engelking is an art teacher for Prairie View Elementary & Eagleville Charter School, part of the Mukwonago Area School District. Ms. Engelking goes above & beyond every day to share her love of art with students & staff both in the classroom and beyond. Our hallways our decorated and updated frequently throughout the year, showcasing the student's art projects. Additionally, every year we host an all-school art show, and the time beyond her school hours and the effort she puts into transforming our building to fit that year's theme is amazing. She is always willing to go above & beyond in everything she does. Our students love art class. Beth also spends time promoting the arts through a community event held locally each year and through teaching adult art classes for staff &/or community members. She has also (pre-Covid) worked on bringing in artists to our school and taking students to the Milwaukee Art Museum. |
