Adjunct instructor begins role as president of Georgia Art Education Association

Stan Dodson, adjunct instructor in the Department of Art and Design in Pamplin College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, recently assumed presidency of the Georgia Art Education Association. 

Dodson was elected in 2019, but his full term of service to GAEA is six years: two years as elect-in-waiting, two years as president and two years as past president and awards chair. 

The mission of the Georgia Art Education Association is to advocate for the highest quality visual arts education and provide for the advancement of knowledge through service, leadership and research. 

“It is a pleasure and honor to be part of the GAEA leadership team and I look forward to advocating for the arts and advancing the platform of arts-based education,” said Dodson. 

“Through the arts, minds are developed, meaning created, and united together through community collaborations we can enrich lives while cultivating critical thinkers to solve many of today’s great challenges.” 

Dodson serves as a visual art instructor and chair of the Fine Arts Department at Burke County High School, where he recently advised two students toward a rare perfect score on a college-level Advanced Placement exam in spring 2021. The students are two of only 46 students in the world to earn every point possible on the AP 3D Art and Design Exam. 

Dodson recently authored chapter contributions in the upcoming book Authentic Assessment for Reflective Practice by Teachers and Students, published by the National Art Education Association. 

Additionally, Dodson has two upcoming presentations on arts-based research and practices and pedagogy.  

The first, being presented in Charleston in February 2022 for the Critical Questions in Education Conference, will showcase an arts-based approach to utilizing personal voice and choice as educators reimagine their curriculum post-pandemic to address current themes on identity, community, social justice and empathy. 

The second, being presented in New York in March 2022 for the National Art Education Association National Convention, will discuss a connected approach to providing innovative and thought-provoking lessons that inspire and develop creativity, problem solving and risk-taking skills within a secondary curriculum. 

Dodson earned his BFA in illustration from Ringling College of Art and Design and his master’s degree in art teacher education from the University of Florida. He is pursuing his Doctorate of Education in Educational Innovation from Augusta University’s College of Education.