The Art of Education
“The beauty of the Weber Fine Arts Building is that it’s small enough that you start to build friendships with everyone in the building.”
Always having a love for art, Omaha native Emily Olson knew she wanted to study art education. She wanted to attend a school that not only valued the arts, but also its role in education. This led her to the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s School of the Arts, as the school’s philosophy on art and education perfectly matched hers.
Emily was admittedly intimidated at first because she was surrounded by talented artists. However, through the kindness that her classmates and professors have shown her, Emily’s confidence and ability as an artist have grown tremendously.
“Once I was experimenting with drawing tools and a classmate of mine introduced me to using makeup brushes to blend charcoal,” Emily says. “The beauty of the Weber Fine Arts Building is that it’s small enough that you start to build friendships with everyone in the building.” The professors have encouraged and challenged her to step outside her comfort zone in what she is capable of doing as an artist. Media such as oil painting, that were once unfamiliar, quickly became a favorite of hers. Emily says that Professor Jeremy Johnson has had the biggest impact on her growth as an artist. Emily says that Professor Johnson made an effort to not only keep her informed on her progress through the art program but helped her as a student by truly caring about her
success.
“Professor Jeremy Johnson is so devoted to the program and his students,” Emily says. “He always makes me aware of my strengths as well as gives me practical advice that I can implement in the classroom.”
Emily graduated from the School of the Arts in December 2017 with an Art Education degree with a K-12
certification. She hopes to teach art in Omaha to students of any and all ages, whether that be pre-school, elementary, middle, or high school.
“I enjoy working with pre-school through twelfth grade students,” Emily says. “With each age level having their
own wonderful qualities and challenges. I would be delighted to teach any of them.”
After spending a few years teaching, Emily plans on continuing her own education by pursuing a Masters of
Arts in Education.
By Ryan Lance
CFAM School of Communication / Journalism and Media Communications major