Reviewed by Mary McLaughlin, Ma-TESOL; M.S. SpEd
Terri Sanders, a teacher at Hauke Academic Alternative High School in Montgomery County, was recently honored as the 2015 recipient of the Dr. David Gottlieb Teacher Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Visual Arts. Sanders was also named “Teacher of the Year” during the 2013-14 school year.
The talented teacher and artist, has an extensive background in the arts. Sanders graduated from Sam Houston State University receiving a graduate degree in Curriculum and Instruction and an undergraduate degree in Advertising and Graphic Design. She has been a teacher at several Conroe ISD schools for 11 years, teaching a variety of art techniques including painting, photography, drawing and ceramics.
In 2009, Sanders visited Bamako, Mali where she was able to expand her artistic portfolio working with silversmiths and woodcarvers as well as art students. She is also an avid artist in her spare time in which she enjoys photography, printmaking and watercolors as well as a variety of other art mediums. Her exhibits have been shown across Texas and other states in the country as well as Africa and Mexico and have earned her several awards.
In 2011, 150 of Sanders photographs were chosen by the US Department of Agriculture for use and she was also picked by the Woodlands Waterway Arts Council as a Master Artist. Additionally she is a member of the Conroe Art League.
This extensive background has enabled Sanders to initiate the “Art and Nutrition” project with the students from Hauke Academic. The pilot project took thirty students who were inexperienced in art and introduced them to artistic expression to determine if the art they reviewed influenced whether they chose healthier food.
The Dr. David Gottlieb Teacher Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Visual Arts has been awarded by The Woodlands Waterway Arts Council since 2009 as a way to honor outstanding dedication among teachers in the visual arts.