Teaching Philosophy
Enthusiastic, creative, driven high school art teacher striving to provide a standards based, equitable, art education experience for children and teens full of exploration, experimentation, growth, literacy and rigor all while building a supportive, encouraging and inquisitive community that prepares students for everyday life, college and beyond.
My educational art room is a space for investigation, visual risk taking and, of course, fun!
Licensure and Certifications
ILLINOIS
Illinois Professional Educator License
K-12 Visual Arts
COLORADO
Colorado Professional Teacher License
K-12 Visual Arts
Education
BACHELOR OF FINE ARTS | Industrial Design
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
2002-2007
Dean’s List and James Scholar
MASTER OF ARTS IN TEACHING | Art Education
Columbia College Chicago
2009-2011
2010 Graduate Opportunity Award Winner
2011 National Art Education Association President, Outstanding Member Award Winner
2011 Rosenblum Award Winner
Teaching Experience
NILES NORTH HIGH SCHOOL | Visual Arts Teacher | 2011 to Present
Educating diverse students in all levels of Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Ceramics,
Digital Photography and Graphic Design in a nationally ranked fine arts program.
Growing through equity work like Courage Conversations, SEED and department initiatives.
Developed an after school National Art Honor Society to enhance student lives.
Created unique, on-trend curricula to motivate student achievement and group dynamics.
Organized student participation in dozens of art shows.
Helped students apply and win prestigious national and regional art awards.
Mentored new team members to increase teacher effectiveness.
Classes Taught and Student Portfolios
Art Foundations Ceramics1 Digital Photo 1 & 2
Painting & Drawing Ceramics 2 Graphic Design
Advanced Studio Art AP 3D Design Advanced & AP 2D Design
Equity Training Extracurriculars
SEED National Art Honor Society
Courageous Conversations Art Club & Graphic Design Club
Department Initiatives Girls' Track and Field Coach
Committees
Wellness Committee
Literacy Committee
References available upon request.
Art & Design Experience
AMY ZWIKEL STUDIO | Founder | 2015 to Present
Designing and maintaining website with effective SEO, branding, shop and portfolio.
Digitally photographing and editing all artwork for social media and web page.
Succeeding within various prestigious art shows throughout Chicago.
Earning and implementing wholesale accounts throughout the country.
Creating commissions and innovative fiber and painting artwork for worldwide brands.
Developing and teaching various workshops for private and corporate clients.
Collaborating with vendors for beautiful, unique event design installations.
HANDELAN-PEDERSEN | Graphic Designer | 2010-2011
Worked alongside designers to create high resolution digital illustrations for clients.
LAUNCH CREATIVE MARKETING | Art Director | 2007-2010
Collaborated in teams to design marketing, branding and advertising campaigns.