Clay Everett Mears Email & Phone Number

My professional experience has prioritized education and social services, often in conjunction with one another. I started my career as a Visual Art Instructor at a behavioral school in Massachusetts. There I developed a care-based, trauma-informed practice. I learned how to manage a classroom that could often be chaotic, create lesson plans that were accessible for a wide range of abilities, and develop rapport with students who were emotionally closed off due to years of abuse and neglect. However, my practice as an educator is not limited to solely academic environments. I additionally taught at several open studio courses and after-school programs, the Fuller Craft Museum, non-profit program Gateway Arts and Roads to Success, and Superchief community center and gallery space.My interest in the social aspects of art education have largely stemmed from my education at Pratt Institute where I studied Painting with two additional minors in Art History and Cultural Studies. Pratt gave me a strong technical background which was heavily utilized in my teaching career but my minors offered insight in the social applications for art and how people can have an individualized relationship with art and culture. My primary goal within my professional life is to foster the connection of individuals to their own untapped creative potential.

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  Pratt Institute

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