Kerisha Council

Elementary Art Teacher, David Cox Road Elementary School
Education:
Bachelor of Science in Transportation & Logistics, North Carolina A & T State University (2001)
Graduate Certificate in Art Education, UNC Charlotte (2011)

Hometown: New London, N.C.

Describe what you love about your job.

I love being able to share what I love about art to all students so that they can appreciate and perhaps love it as much as I do. Although there are aspects that I like about various medias, my favorite ones to work with are clay, collage, and yarn (stitchery). I love being able to show students things that they may have never done before because I love seeing the excitement they have on their faces from doing new things.

How did your education at UNC Charlotte prepare/shape you? What are some of the key things you learned? 

My education at UNC Charlotte provided the art education and art studio classes I needed to be able to teach, which were very beneficial to my success.  The most beneficial things that I learned was during the student teaching portion of my program and the hands-on training that I got when I had to put what I learned to the test when I started working with students.  I received the most meaningful feedback from both my UNC Charlotte supervisor and my clinical educator, as I thrived during my student teaching experience.

Do you have any particular experiences that stand out as being especially fun or meaningful?

Something that is very meaningful and special to me about being an elementary art teacher, in particular, is that I get the opportunity to meet and teach many of my students from when they begin school in kindergarten up through fifth grade. Through that experience, I get to not only to teach them various art related topics, artists and media, but I also see them grow and develop as a person and build relationships with the students.  The relationships to me are important, because it is easier for students to learn when they know and understand that you first care about them and their well-being.  So, when the students do move on to middle school, it is always a little hard to let go of them.  However, it is very rewarding to get to see some students who come back to visit and share memories they have about the school and art class as well and their current interests and aspirations.