Louise Kames, MFA
Chair and Professor of Art
I love to take students abroad and help them learn new things, such as how to navigate the Paris Metro or the London Tube. I encourage them to experience a sense of awe in unexpected places.
Art Education
Bachelor of Arts
Do you desire to inspire a future generation of artists? Is art your passion? Do you enjoy working with children or young adults? Has an art teacher inspired and mentored you to find your creative niche in the world? A art education degree is the right path for you. At Clarke University, you can pair a art education major in art with a teaching certification to teach kindergarten through high school (K-12). You would be joining two of Clarke’s most highly regarded programs. If you’ve ever searched “Art Education Degree Near Me,” you will have discovered that Clarke’s accredited teacher education program prepares you for licensure and a successful career. Clarke art alums with K-12 teaching certification find immediate success in the job market. While most art education majors graduate to work in traditional classroom room settings, some have also found teaching opportunities at museums, community art centers, maker spaces, and senior care centers, among many other opportunities. Take a drive to Dubuque, Iowa, to discover what our bachelors in art education is all about. You’ll learn why Clarke University is one of the best colleges with art education major.
You might be wondering, “What are the most excellent art education degree programs near me?” The Clarke advantage is the number of art classes you take, making you a content expert. We encourage art teacher degree students to take studio courses across the disciplines to prepare you for any teaching opportunity. These include drawing, painting, digital imaging, ceramics, sculpture, printmaking, and photography. Your studio art major is complemented by the Education major core plus specific coursework in art methods. With your BA art education degree at Clarke, you’ll have the advantage of spending many hours in the elementary, middle, and high school classrooms before student teaching in your final semester while finishing your art education degree.
In the Art Education degree program at Clarke, you’ll creatively study how people learn and how best to teach them. We strive to educate and prepare teachers who will influence the cognitive, moral, and social development of children in kindergarten through high school in today’s multicultural world. Graduates of art education degree programs possess real-world experience and demonstrate the programmatic outcomes as licensed, professional educators who become influential teachers throughout the nation and beyond. You will gain first-hand experience at Dubuque’s arts elementary school and high school where methods classes are taught on-site. You’ll have many hours in the classroom even before student teaching. This added classroom experience enhances your resume and can be a key to landing your first teaching job.
Engaged in Community
Art educators make a creative impact on the students of the future; in the classroom and in the community. Whether you want to teach third-graders how to draw or inspire high school students to experiment with technology and paint, our art education program prepares you for a successful career as a practitioner of art with your art education degree. Our art education majors are active in Dubuque’s vibrant arts culture whether working one-on-one in a studio mentorship or participating in active public art campaigns. Our emerging art education majors gain valuable professional skills and connections by working with internationally known muralists, sculpting with snow in an Art in the Park winter festival, curating exhibitions for the Dubuque Museum of Art, flexing sculpture skills as a fabrication artist at McCullough Creative, or working in the ceramics studio of well-known Paul Eshelman.
Program Details
Students interested in the art education major at the elementary, middle, or high school level major in studio art and take a sequence of education courses leading to K-12 Certification in Art. Clarke’s Education Department is well-known for its Professional Development School (PDS) program where many education courses are taught on-site at local elementary, middle, and high schools in Dubuque. The art methods courses follow this model and are taught at Prescott Elementary, Dubuque’s downtown arts magnet school, and at Stephen Hempstead High School. This teaching environment provides art education major students with greater immersion in the elementary and secondary art classroom. A professional and critical atmosphere encourages additional artistic involvement beyond the classroom into studio exercises, exhibitions, internships, independent study, and travel.
Cool Classes
Take a peek at a few of the unique classes you’ll be involved in at Clarke as you study for your bachelor’s degree in art education.
ART AND DESIGN METHODS — Gain proficiency with digital tools and learn the basics of interdisciplinary art and design practice.
LIFE DRAWING I — Draw like Leonardo da Vinci in the Human Anatomy Cadaver Lab.
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION — Study racial, ethnic, social, and cultural groups and their social and education challenges.
How About A Career?
An Art Education degree can be useful in leading to many careers both locally, nationally, and internationally. Our bachelor’s degree in art education graduates have landed positions at these local Dubuque and regional schools and businesses:
- Dubuque Community Schools
- Dubuque Holy Family Schools
- Dubuque Wahlert Catholic High School
- Bellevue Community Schools
- Clayton Ridge High School
- Elkader Central High School
- East Dubuque High School
- Galena High School
- Lancaster Community Schools
- Beckman Catholic High School
- Western Dubuque Community Schools
- Greenfield High School
- California ESL Teacher China and South Korea
- The Chicago High School for the Arts
- Northside Catholic Academy in Chicago
- Creative Adventure Lab
- Dubuque Museum of Art
Dubuque Art Scene
While studying for your BA Art Education, get involved in Arts around Dubuque at places like:
- Creative Adventure Lab
- Key City Creative
- The Smokestack
- Millwork Night Market
- Downtown Mural Project
Meet our Faculty
When our art education degree graduates speak about the Clarke moments that shaped them, there’s always a professor in the story. That’s because being a faculty member at Clarke University requires a deep passion for educating, encouraging, and empowering students. Here, your professors will know your name. They will push you to develop your full potential, and then they’ll ask for more. And, they’ll be right there to congratulate you when you exceed even your own expectations. Often, it’s a relationship that lasts a lifetime.
Program Details
Students interested in the art education major at the elementary, middle, or high school level major in studio art and take a sequence of education courses leading to K-12 certification in Art. Clarke’s Education Department is well-known for its Professional Development School (PDS) program where many education courses are taught on-site at local elementary, middle, and high schools in Dubuque. The art methods courses follow this model and are taught at Prescott Elementary, Dubuque’s downtown arts magnet school, and at Stephen Hempstead High School. This teaching environment provides art education major students with greater immersion in the elementary and secondary art classroom. A professional and critical atmosphere encourages additional artistic involvement beyond the classroom into studio exercises, exhibitions, internships, independent study, and travel.
Engaged in Community
Art educators make a creative impact on the students of the future; in the classroom and in the community. Whether you want to teach third-graders how to draw or inspire high school students to experiment with technology and paint, our art education program prepares you for a successful career as a practitioner of art with your art education degree. Our art education majors are active in Dubuque’s vibrant arts culture whether working one-on-one in a studio mentorship or participating in active public art campaigns. Our emerging art education majors gain valuable professional skills and connections by working with internationally known muralists, sculpting with snow in an Art in the Park winter festival, curating exhibitions for the Dubuque Museum of Art, flexing sculpture skills as a fabrication artist at McCullough Creative, or working in the ceramics studio of well-known Paul Eshelman.
Cool classes
Take a peek at a few of the unique classes you’ll be involved in at Clarke as you study for your bachelor’s degree in art education.
ART AND DESIGN METHODS — Gain proficiency with digital tools and learn the basics of interdisciplinary art and design practice.
LIFE DRAWING I — Draw like Leonardo da Vinci in the Human Anatomy Cadaver Lab.
MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION — Study racial, ethnic, social, and cultural groups and their social and educational challenges.
Admission to Clarke University
In addition to an application to Clarke, high school transcripts, and SAT/ACT scores, freshman applicants must submit a portfolio of 12-20 examples of their work.
Applicants are considered on an individual basis. Apply to Clarke today to begin your journey.
How about a career?
An Art Education degree can be useful in leading to many careers both locally, nationally, and internationally. Our bachelor’s degree in art education graduates have landed positions at these local Dubuque and regional schools and businesses:
- Dubuque Community Schools
- Dubuque Holy Family Schools
- Dubuque Wahlert Catholic High School
- Bellevue Community Schools
- Clayton Ridge High School
- Elkader Central High School
- East Dubuque High School
- Galena High School
- Lancaster Community Schools
- Beckman Catholic High School
- Western Dubuque Community Schools
- Greenfield High School
- California ESL Teacher China and South Korea
- The Chicago High School for the Arts
- Northside Catholic Academy in Chicago
- Creative Adventure Lab
- Dubuque Museum of Art
Dubuque Art Scene
While studying for your BA Art Education, get involved in Arts around Dubuque at places like:
- Creative Adventure Lab
- Key City Creative
- The Smokestack
- Millwork Night Market
- Downtown Mural Project
Program in Pictures
Dubuque Art Scene-Gallery
Students are able to take a sculpting class
Students work on press printers
Erik Brolin puts on the finishing touches to his ceramic mugs.
Students draw on campus
Hannah Goldsmith draws a still life
Jessie Rebik, MFA
Associate Professor of Art
My ultimate goal is that, through developing their artist selves, students will become self-aware, empathetic, and have a clearer realization of who they aspire to become, as well as their relationship to their world.
Eric Wold, MFA
Associate Professor of Graphic Design
I believe that teaching graphic designs as a process-oriented activity helps students to develop life-long skills of thinking and tinkering; to establish habits that become practice; and to develop a process that maintains creative curiosity across disciplines and technologies.
There’s more to college than going to class.
The Classroom and Beyond
Study Abroad
Art students go abroad more than any other major at Clarke. Walk through museums in Florence, study Japanese art in Nagasaki, or paint landscapes in Wales.
Events & Exhibits
Meet fellow art majors at the new student picnic, visit museums in Chicago, and exhibit your work both on campus and locally downtown. Participate in mural painting and Fall Into Art.
Student Teaching
We utilize the Professional Development School (PDS) program where courses are taught on-site at local schools. The art methods courses are taught at Prescott Elementary, Dubuque’s downtown arts magnet school, and at Stephen Hempstead High School. This environment provides students with greater immersion in the art classroom.
Facilities & Equipment
The main painting and drawing studio is a beautiful space with skylight and windows on three sides offering views of the Mississippi River. The sculpture and ceramics studios have been renovated in recent years with the addition of a wood shop, welding equipment, and new gas kiln.
The Clarke Compass
Through your Clarke experience, you will be involved in many different activities that will guide you on your college journey. By your senior year, you will have a résumé of all your awesome involvements packaged and ready for your first interview.
Careers in Art Education
What can I do with a degree in this major?
But don’t take our word for it…
Our Students & Alumni
Kelsey Hammons
Studio Art, K-12 Art Education Certification ‘18, High School Art Teacher, East Dubuque High School
My degree in studio art with an emphasis in ceramics and a K-12 teaching certification immediately landed me a teaching position where I now give back by motivating young artists.
Kelly Eigenberger
MAE '16
The education program gave me opportunities to learn skills I would need in my future career by having many of my classes in elementary schools. Every instructor I had at Clarke helped me grow into the adult that I am.
Hannah Goldsmith
STUDIO ART/SCULPTURE '16
When I first came to Clarke, I was shy and introverted. The professors encouraged me to go beyond the classroom to visit local exhibits and galleries, as well as submit my work to various shows.
1:1
Students work one-on-one with art professors who are practicing artists, well-known in their fields.
100
%
Job placement rate
Clarke’s education graduates have a 100 percent rate for job placement or graduate studies.
600
Hours
By graduation, art education majors will have spent up to 600 active hours teaching.
Other Programs to Explore
Experience Clarke Art Education for Yourself