Williamsport Area High School art teacher Dr. Andrea McDonough has been selected as a 2022 Pennsylvania Art Education Association Outstanding Secondary Art Educator.
“To be selected and named by the state committee is an incredible honor and one that I will be forever grateful for,” said McDonough, who has worked for 16 years at WASD as an art educator and K-12 department leader. “I am blessed and honored to be receiving this award and will continue to do the work wherever I land.”
The Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA) is an organization that actively supports and promotes visual art education through professional development, leadership and service. McDonough was selected among nominations across the state for her “creative contributions, excellence in professional engagement and dedication to service (in the field),” according to PAEA.
“Dr. Andrea McDonough’s reach across the arts community speaks to the quality of arts education afforded to Williamsport Area School District students,” said Dr. Chad Greevy, secondary curriculum supervisor and K-12 unified arts supervisor. “Her efforts to lead the WASD art department across the district is on display in all of our buildings and within all of our visual arts classrooms. Her instruction and guiding influence is consistently seen through her students’ works from the public art displays at Firetree Place to the art galleries in our downtown and classrooms of our local colleges. This award is a recognition of the quality of art experiences that she brings to our students at Williamsport Area High School and beyond.”
McDonough earned her bachelor’s in art from Lycoming College, a master’s degree in art education from Mansfield University and a doctoral degree from Drexel University. She also holds a pre-K-12 supervisory certificate in curriculum and instruction.
“I earn a salary doing what I love,” McDonough said. “Not a single day goes by that I don’t pause and appreciate this truth. Each student has taught me something about them and something about myself. The K-12 team I have the privilege of working with sets my students and I up for success every day and I am grateful for them individually and collectively.”
McDonough also supports the art and education departments at Lycoming College, working with pre-service art educators and PK-4 certification seekers. She’s been successful in grant-writing, with a passion for public art and the expansion of the visual arts experience in education and local communities.
Outside of teaching, McDonough is an artist who focuses on the exploration of mindfulness through drawing and experimental works as well as mixed media approaches. Her most recent exhibition was in Mansfield, Pa., where she was a participant in the Master and Grasshopper Juried Invitational.
McDonough will be formally recognized during an awards ceremony at the PAEA 2022 Conference in Lancaster on Oct. 30.
