Bringing the community together
The University of Maine Art Education Community Outreach program is an intercultural program that acknowledges and celebrates the diversity found within both the state of Maine and the country we call home. UMAECO prides itself in supporting all peoples and especially those from minority populations.
My name is Kate Westhaver and I am an art education and studio art major at the University of Maine. I was born and raised in Damariscotta, Maine, a small village on the midcoast. In the summers, I’m a sternman for my Father’s lobstering business in Pemaquid Harbor. I love the outdoors, and I am an avid hiker and camper from spring to fall. Also, I enjoy recreational running, and I am planning on participating in 5k races as soon as it gets warmer out!
I am extremely interested in visual culture, as I love understanding other people’s thoughts, emotions, and experiences through any visual art form. Although I have enjoyed learning about painting, printmaking and digital art, I am also extremely interested in fashion, makeup, and set design. In terms of my own art, I love to explore all the different materials that the university has to offer, and I love creating distinct worlds and individual scenes with most mediums.
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My name is Iorthanis. I am a third-year student with the University of Maine Arts College, majoring in art education. I have lived in Maine all of my life. I have taught students in first to third-grade classes and will soon be helping in the completion of a community project involving the creating educational materials and experiences for an edible landscape open to the public. My goal for completing this program is to become a high school level art teacher. The reason I wish to be a teacher is to support students in their pursuit of artistic achievement and to better create interdisciplinary content to have art be considered as important to the development and education of children as a course alongside math and science by implementing meaningful cross curricular lessons into the classroom.
Greetings and salutations from the desk of Marion MacEwen, Art Teacher and long time fan of Charlotte’s Web. My work experience includes 8 years in the Art Department at Brewer High School and several more at RSU 25, where I worked as an ed tech III, substitute, and special education ELA teacher. I never did get to drive the bus, but I have been privileged to learn at the knee of some truly gifted educators, whose lessons continue to inspire my work with children and families.
When I'm not writing curriculum, teaching classes, or cleaning brushes, I can be found in the company of two small humans who call me Mom. We’re a household of readers with shelves and stacks dedicated to the pursuit thereof. As you may have suspected, we keep sketchbooks as well. My favorite mediums are charcoal and clay. Nature is most often my source of inspiration.
I am working toward a master's of education degree at the University of Maine. I am thrilled to be collaborating with the Bangor Land Trust and the Edible Landscape project, having cultivated a deep love for our Maine Mother Earth from the time I chewed my first teaberry leaf.
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Big Sky Drawing, January 2020
Charcoal on Canson Paper
Hello, I am Sarah Picard. I am from Saco, Maine and lived there my whole life until moving to Orono to study Art Education at the University of Maine. I have one brother who is also studying Education in Farmington. During the summer, I work with students from all over the world through an exchange program at Thornton Academy. A majority of my students come from China and range in age five to seventeen. When I am not working or studying you can find me outdoors mostly, especially during the summer. The best part is spending time with my dad on the boat doing anything from lobstering and fishing to water skiing and tubing. My family and I love camping and spending time with our dogs.
My own art has been most focused on food. I feel strongly about the issue of food insecurity, and my work reflects this. Working in soup kitchens and food pantries opened my eyes to see how many people rely on these resources. I recently visited Niagara Falls, New York which gave me a new perspective on how big an issue this is throughout the United States.
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Fork & Knife November 2019
Wood
Jell-O Potholes, October 2019
Jello
- Blake Eden