Teacher |
Lawyer |
Artist |
I grew up in Garden City, New York. As a young person, I looked forward to attending Garden City High School because I had seen the murals in the school hallways painted by students. And, as a high school student, I painted murals in the hallways of my school. I had a generous and enthusiastic art teacher who sought opportunities for me and built my confidence as an artist. Below are snapshots of murals I painted as a high school student at Garden City High School.
I attended Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island from 1985 until 1987 when I left due to illness. I earned a Bachelor’s degree in psychology with a minor in fine arts from Hofstra University in 1991.
In 1993, I began a graduate program in fine arts at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There, I focused on collage and darkroom photography.
In 1993, I began a graduate program in fine arts at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. There, I focused on collage and darkroom photography.
At the beginning of my second year, I won a competition to teach an introductory drawing class. In exchange for tuition remission, I taught the curriculum that I had proposed. It was exhilarating to teach bright, Ivy League students from a variety of disciplines, most of whom took my drawing class to unwind or try something different. They responded to my enthusiasm and I to theirs. At graduation time, my black and white photographs were exhibited in a juried show curated by the director of the Philadelphia ICA. I earned a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Pennsylvania in 1995, having experienced the joys and challenges of teaching and found a new voice as an artist.
From 1996 until 2000, I taught various courses in the Fine Art Department at St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue, Long Island.
From 1996 until 2000, I taught various courses in the Fine Art Department at St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue, Long Island.
Crafts as an Artform class modeling their paper mache masks
In September of 2000, I began teaching at Sacred Heart Academy in Hempstead, New York, a private high school. There, I taught media studies, art and art history on the freshman, junior and senior levels until June of 2011. In 2004, I was awarded my New York State permanent certification to teach Art K-12.
Below are examples of posters that Sacred Heart students created to promote the strides walk in their school.
Below are examples of posters that Sacred Heart students created to promote the strides walk in their school.
I graduated from Hofstra University School of Law in May 2011 and was admitted to the New York State Bar in September 2012.
For almost three years, I have worked as an attorney, first in a personal injury law firm and currently in a trusts and estates practice, on Long Island. I realize that I miss teaching. I have been thinking of ways to connect and draw upon my diverse experiences to enrich my lesson plans and help students to draw connections between subject areas.
Below are a few examples of my own work, collage, pencil and two slide shows of recent digital photography.
Garden spring and summer 2015