It’s the first day of school, most teachers come in and sharpen pencils or make sure all the desks are in order. They get ready to do a long speech on how to behave in class and what the class will entail. They try to prepare themselves for the income of students, who will most likely be asleep during all of this, but this is not quite the case in the art room. Teachers lay out watercolors and paint brushes. Try to condense the syllabus explanation so they can get right to creating. Another difference, a new art teacher, Mrs. Bolen. 

Mrs. Bolen has been teaching for 13 years. She has done 2 art portfolios in highschool and went to college at Wayne State. She has a passion for helping people with their ideas and loves being able to connect with students, this is why she wanted to go into teaching art.

   “Teaching is one of the best careers you can choose to connect with people,” said Mrs.Bolen. She continued on saying she “…can’t imagine teaching anything else.”

Mrs. Bolen noticed that the students were very welcoming to her so she will enjoy being able to help her students bring their artistic ideas to life. She mentioned that knowing that she impacts so many students is the best reward she could receive from teaching. She is always ready to assist any student, even if it is not a student in her class. 

In Mrs. Bolen’s personal art career she enjoys a multitude of projects. She owns her own studio, named Bolen Fine Arts Studio in which she creates memorial projects for people.

   “The tears or the joy or the just straight raw emotion you get from creating this artwork for somebody is so fulfilling and that’s been really cool since in the last year since I’ve started doing that” said Mrs. Bolen. 

 Her favorite art mediums include chalk pastel or charcoal. She also enjoys upcycling pretty much anything, one of her favorite projects has been a water fountain. She has also redone furniture, engraved wood and experimented in other forms of woodworking.

As far as the future of the art program, Mrs. Bolen wants to continue with some of the things that are working, such as scholastics and the anton art center competitions, but would also like to add other opportunities for students. One art competition that is being added is one put on by the American Association of University Women. All entries are displayed but there are cash prizes for top 3. For more information, contact Mrs. Bolen in the art room to  pick up entry forms. 

Another feature Mrs. Bolen would like to add to the art department is an AP art program. This could allow many students to further their art abilities and really focus on portfolio building before college. It is possible that these classes could also offer college credit for art students.

Here is a link to her personal art and business facebook https://facebook.com/profile.php/?id=100091332641895 & name=xhp_nt__fb__action__open_user