FORT WAYNE, Ind. – University of Saint Francis senior Emily Napier has been named the 2019 Student Art Teacher of the Year for Indiana by the Art Education Association of Indiana.
The award will be presented at the AEAI convention Nov. 7-10 in Vincennes, Ind. Award recipients are nominated by their teachers for exhibiting outstanding artistic achievement and service in education. Napier is an art education major.
“When I was nominated for the award by my adviser Jody Nix, I already felt very blessed,” Napier said. “It means all my hard work throughout the past four years has paid off. When I submitted my application, it was centered around students at Wayne New Tech High School and a Fort Wayne community project called ‘Instruments of Hope.’ I am very thankful for Jody’s role as an educator and mentor to me and providing me with this opportunity.
“The continuous work on my art as well as how to educate our youth has been recognized in a way that I still cannot believe,” Napier continued. “Being a first-generation college student, it means that my support system of family, friends, teachers and mentors get to celebrate in this achievement alongside me. It means I get the opportunity to represent the USF community and all that it has given to me as a second family. Lastly, it gives me hope that I am where God has intended me to be at this point in my life serving others with love. I am so very thankful.”
Jared McBrady, former USF assistant professor, recalls Napier’s dedication to becoming a skilled teacher. He has saved some of her classroom work to share with future students.
“She demonstrated enthusiasm and engagement as she developed her craft,” McBrady said. “She was a reflective practitioner, eager to receive and implement feedback to more effectively deliver instruction.”
Napier, of Kendallville, has exhibited her work in many venues and volunteered for many hours and many capacities. She has won numerous awards, including Leadership in Diversity and Inclusion Award 2019, School of Creative Arts Academic Achievement Award 2016-19, Cougar Pride Award 2018, Mary Husar Memorial Award and Outstanding Field Work in Education 2019. She was also the illustrator for “The Burning Building,” a prayer book for “Josephine’s Hope.”
The AEAI is the professional education organization dedicated to promotion, advancement and improvement of art education at all levels in Indiana.
Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 70 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the School of Health Sciences, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Keith Busse School of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership and School of Creative Arts. In addition to its traditional programs, USF designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point and online. USF Downtown houses the university’s business and music technology programs while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis campus experience includes 18 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships and is recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution. Approximately 2,200 students from a broad geographic region attend USF.