Curriculum Vitae

I began my art career when I was in high school, drawing portraits at Six Flags Over Georgia where I acquired skills in public relations while I honed my talent to copy onto paper with a few quick strokes what my eyes saw in front of me. This experience gave me the confidence to continue developing my artistic abilities, even though it would be many years before I found my niche in this world.

In the commercial arts, I started out with a very simple paste-up job at a silk-screening company, arranging plastic letters on acetate and operating an ancient STAT camera. Each succeeding position added another building block to my graphic art skills until I acquired enough experience to become the art department manager of a small-town newspaper and later designed wallpaper borders for Plaid Enterprises. Supervisors saw me as an independent and highly skilled worker, quick, efficient, and well organized. My greatest pleasure, however, came from training new-hire co-workers.

Concurrent with my development as a graphic artist, I pursued my interest in teaching, beginning with substituting in the Cobb County, Georgia school system. I held positions as Principal's Aide, Teacher's Aide, and after-school Program Leader in between graphic arts jobs, and when my manual graphic arts skills became obsolete in the computer generation, I decided to combine my love of art with my love of teaching to pursue my degree in art education.

Throughout my college career, I have maintained a very high grade-point average and remained on the Dean's List every semester. I have eagerly regarded both fine arts and academic/liberal studies courses as challenges to be met and sincerely appreciated the opportunity for personal as well as professional advancement these classes have offered. In addition to fulfilling my requirements for graduation, I have found the university atmosphere to be socially stimulating; even though the age difference between me and the average student is great, intellectual and art-related conversations have always been interesting and I have found a great many interests that we share in common.

My adult life has been filled with opportunities for community service that have been as important to my personal development as my participation has offered to them. From teaching a self-esteem workshop in my son's elementary class to facilitating the "walking wounded" of divorced people through Beginning Experience, and from leading an after-school art club for incarcerated juveniles to creating a workshop advocating the arts in education, I have always seen the personal benefits far outweigh whatever contribution I make as an individual. I am always grateful for the opportunity to serve others and give my very best effort to every cause that I am involved in.

I have always regarded life as one huge learning experience, an umbrella sheltering a series of life-lessons designed to develop my self as a whole. It is through the process of creating art that I gain the most insight, and whether it is presented in formal settings such as the university, or day-to-day living as in work, service, and personal experiences, I look forward to every opportunity to explore the world around me and within me.