Dr. Tom Anderson and Students Honored at the 2014 CVATD Awards Ceremony
From top left, YiWen Wei (Ph.D. in Art Education), Sarah Gladwin (Ph.D in Arts Administration), Chelsea Harris (MS in Art Therapy), Rachel Mims (MS in Art Therapy), Ashley Hartman (Ph.D in Art Therapy), Alexandra Allen (MS in Art Education), and Rachel Vesia (MS in Art Education).
From bottom left, Dr. David Gussak (Chair and Professor of Art Therapy) and Dr. Tom Anderson (Former Chair and Professor of Art Education)
On Tuesday April 8th, the College of Visual Arts, Theatre and Dance held their Annual College Awards Ceremony. This awards ceremony, hosted by our very on Dr. David Gussak, highlights and recognizes the students, faculty, and staff of the College.
Find more information on the College’s blog.
This year the Department of Art Education awarded scholarships to the following individuals.
- Jessie Lovano Kerr Scholarship YiWen Wei (Ph.D. in Art Education)
- Marylou & Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship Ashley Hartman (Ph.D in Art Therapy)
- Marylou & Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship Sarah Gladwin (Ph.D in Arts Administration)
- Marylou & Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship Chelsea Harris (MS in Art Therapy)
- Ivan and Inez Johnson Family Scholarship Rachel Vesia (MS in Art Education)
The College awarded and honored the following students and Faculty of the Department of Art Education.
- Lilian Carlton Joughlin Criddlebaugh Endowed Scholarship, College nominee for the University Graduate Leadership Award, and the recipient of the Dean’s Graduate Leader Award Rachel Mims (MS in Art Therapy)
- Distinguished Creativity Dr. Thomas Anderson (Art Education Professor and former Chair of the Department)
Jessie Lovano Kerr Scholarship
From left: YiWen Wei, Sarah Gladwin, Ashley Hartman, and Art Education Professor Dr. Tom Anderson
YiWen Wei is currently conducting research at Florida State University and pursuing her Ph.D. in Art Education. In honor of her hard work and perseverance, YiWen has been awarded the Jessie Lovano Kerr Scholarship at the awards ceremony. Generous donors and retired FSU professors, Dr. Lovano-Kerr, Art Education, and Dr. Kerr, Psychology, are active members of the Florida State arts community. Dr. Lovano-Kerr is integral to our college as a current Dean’s Advisory Board member.
YiWen Wei has been honored to be a recipient of the Jessie Lovano Kerr Scholarship. She is a first-year doctoral student in Art Education, who also earned her Master’s in Art Education from Florida State in 2013. It is her goal to become a professor in art education and to facilitate her country of Taiwan to cultivate local culture based on communities. In addition, she has compared and contrasted American and Taiwanese museum-school collaboration and came up with the idea of “Museum-In-School Model.” She hopes to promote this model and the value of art education in her teaching as well as her professional research.
Marylou & Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship
From left, Ashley Hartman and Chelsea Harris
Recipients Ashley Hartman, Sarah Gladwin, and Chelsea Harris are each outstanding students in the Department of Art Education. For their efforts within the department, our students have been presented with the Marylou & Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship. Kuhn was a long-time professor and chair in the Art Education Department at FSU (1950-1989), having earned her B.S. and Ph.D. from Ohio State University and her Master’s from Columbia Teachers College (NYC). She passed away in 1999 and was beloved and respected by many. The Marylou and Ernestine Kuhn Scholarship is awarded to benefit female graduate students in Florida State University’s School of Visual Arts, Department of Art Education.
Ashley Hartman is a full-time doctoral student pursuing her degree in Art Therapy while also working to fulfill the licensing requirements for Mental Health Counseling. She seeks to contribute to future research in the visual arts field and hopes to seek employment as an academic professor in the future. Ashley also aims to conduct research investigating the ways in which art therapy can be integrated into various settings such as art education curricula, K-12 schools, museums, medical settings, non-profit organizations, and volunteer organizations.
Sarah Gladwin is a first year doctoral student in Arts Administration. Her background is in anthropology, classical civilizations, and museum studies and she hopes to continue on this track by working with museums to bring education out of the classroom and into the art-world. In addition to her schooling, Sarah works at Florida State in a full-time position as she is extremely dedicated to pursuing her passion of Arts Administration. She is very honored to be receiving this scholarship and to be supported by the Department of Art Education in her educational endeavor.
Chelsea Harris, even as a child, saw the necessity of providing mental, physical, and emotional health to special populations. Through experience Chelsea became a passionate advocate for providing social services to homeless and special needs individuals, particularly individuals with Autism. Chelsea has a passion for helping individuals, who may have a hard time communicating verbally or interacting socially, to effectively express themselves through the use of artistic medium. Chelsea is currently pursuing her Masters of Science in Art Therapy and hopes to continue her education in pursuit of a doctoral degree in psychology.
Ivan and Inez Johnson Family Scholarship
From left, Cindy Johnson, Rachel Vesia, and Joe Johnson
Rachel Vesia was selected by the Art Education faculty to be awarded the Ivan and Inez Johnson Family Scholarship. This scholarship was awarded by their sons, Ivan and Joe Johnson. Joe Johnson serves as a member on the Dean’s Advisory Board and he is also a working artist. Dr. Ivan Johnson is an architect and is commonly considered the founder of the Department of Art Education here at FSU. He taught education in the College of Education and made a case for years that Art Education should be aligned with art and should have its own department. Ivan’s wife Inez was an advocate of art and art education as well.
Rachel Vesia came to Florida State with a Bachelor’s in Studio Arts with an emphasis in Digital Media and Anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh. She plans to pursue a teaching certificate and Master’s degree with the hopes of teaching high school students. Her interests in the field at this time are earth art and deep ecology, along with programs for at-risk youth. Rachel would like to encourage struggling youth to connect with their community and build their self-worth through art. Currently, she has been observing some of the schools here in Tallahassee and is learning more about becoming the educator she envisions herself as. After this semester Rachel will begin her student teaching internship and she is eager to learn what Tallahassee educators can teach her.
Lillian Carlton Joughin Criddlebaugh Endowed Scholarship
Cindy Johnson, Rachel Mims, and Joe Johnson. As recipient of the 2013 Ivan and Inez Johnson Family Scholarship, Rachel had a chance to thank them for their support from last year.
The College honored Rachel Mims with the 2014 Lilian Carlton Joughlin Criddlebaugh Endowed Scholarship, the College nominee for the University Graduate Leadership Award, and the recipient of the Dean’s Graduate Leadership Award. Lillian Carlton Joughin Criddlebaugh was an FSCW, Florida State College for Women, alumni who graduated in 1944. Her cousin, Lula, was raised together with Lillian in Tampa, lived under mostly the same roof until college, and graduated from FSCW together in ‘44. Lula and Lillian are, like many FSCW grads, very strong believers in the power and equality of women and the notion that we must stand up for our beliefs, character and intelligence. Lillian was an accomplished artist, specializing in watercolor and realism, and active with the Tampa Arts Council until her passing. Her family was prominent in the Tampa area, and she is the second cousin of Florida Governor Doyle Carlton.
Rachel Mims is a U.S. Army veteran who served on active duty for 10.5 years before returning to school. She is pursuing a Master’s in Art Therapy and hopes to utilize her education to find new and better treatments for other military veterans. Her journey from active duty to civilian life has not been easy but she says that it has been a wonderful opportunity to learn more about herself as well as her academic interests. Rachel is very grateful for this scholarship and it will help her to finish out her degree and move towards her career goals of helping those military veterans who could benefit from art therapy services.
Distinguished Creativity in the College of Visual Arts, Theatre, and Dance
Dr. Tom Anderson
This year our College awards were kept as a surprise to all throughout the College. One of our dearest, Dr. Tom Anderson, was honored with receiving the College’s Distinguished Creativity Award.
Dr. Tom Anderson has always embodied the model of creative scholarly work. Whether discussing his research or teaching style, Dr. Anderson has integrated an overtone of creativity that cannot be missed. His most recent project a documentary titled “Mark Messersmith, A Sense of Place” has brought in two sold out shows at it’s opening in November that has placed both the Department of Art and Art Education on the map. His research has always been a gateway recruitment to the Department and he has been making waves in the field of Art Education for over 35 years.