• Who is Ms. Walsh???                                                          
     Educator profile picture                                                                                                                                                    
     
    Personal Information:
     
     I firmly believe that strong relationships of trust and respect between student and teacher is the foundation upon which we can to learn together. The more we know about each other the stronger this bond. Therefore, here are some things about myself: I am a single mom of two boys ages 13 and 8. I grew up 30 miles south of Erie in Meadville, PA. I have some unusual pets including a cat named Snickers and 2 pet rats named Jelly Bean and Jolly Rancher. Recently, our other pets have included a bearded dragon named Dante and a tarantula named Spike! I don't have a lot of free time but I love to read, watch movies with my boys, build with Legos, create animations, decorate cookies and get out of town to try new things whenever possible! I love comic book characters and their origin stories and I pride myself in my knowledge of Minecraft. 
     I grew up nearby in Meadville, PA but I have lived for about 12 years in Erie. 
    Some things you might not know about me include that I am a dancer and have been dancing since I was 5. I lived away from home at a boarding school for high school.  I have visited some really cool places around the world including Moscow in Russia, Paris in France and Rabatz, Croatia.  
     
    Credentials: 
     college
    Bachelor of Science from Allegheny College
    Major: Cognitive Psychology
    Minor: Dance/ Movement Studies 
     
     graduate school
    Master of Science from Drexel University 
    Instruction and curriculum design  
    arts integrated instruction  
     
    PA Teaching Certification 
     
     teaching artist
    Pennsylvania Council on the Arts/ Erie Arts and Culture
    Teaching Artist  
     
     
    My Mission and Vision: 
    It is my hope to cultivate a safe space where students can work together to strengthen their creative genius, allow their curiosity to lead them to discover answers to their questions about the world around them and to embolden them to see their potential in what they have to offer. I do not hope to give my students answers, no, I hope to help them find ways to discover the answers for themselves to promote life-long learning. Each student is a product of their own experiences, learn in their own way and possess their own unique creative genius. 
    It is a longstanding misconception that creative genius is only for special people.  Instead, I believe creative genius is a special part of everyone in their own way and informs how they will look at the world and question it, how they will look for answers, and how they will share their story and ideas. Finding solutions to a variety of unique problems is the future of our children and they need to practice applying what they know and exercising their creativity to find solutions to real world problems now. 
    Regardless of school scores, tax brackets, whether families rent or own, whether your family is large or small, traditional or unique there is at least one common denominator: kids have ideas, lots and lots of good ideas! It is going to be increasingly important for our students as they get older to be able to harness those ideas.