Bio:  Abby (she/her) is an artist and educator with a passion for fostering creativity and confidence in her students. With experience teaching middle and high school, she believes deeply in the transformative power of art education. Abby embraces choice-based art and Teaching Artistic Behavior (TAB) pedagogy, empowering students to shape their artistic journey while nurturing their creativity.

Her involvement in the Fulbright Teachers Exchange Program, where she served as an exchange teacher to the United Kingdom, was a pivotal experience that reinforced her dedication to cross-cultural learning and teaching. Abby loves traveling and actively takes opportunities to engage in educational and cultural exchange opportunities.

Bio: Kari is in her 26th year of teaching visual arts in the Maplewood Richmond Heights School District. During those 26 years, she has spent time in the studio with students spanning preschool through eighth grade. In her current position, she serves as the Atelierista for pre-K through second grade at MRH Early Childhood Center. 

She has been using the pedagogical approach for over 16 years facilitating high-level creative thinking and beautiful artwork within a very diverse student body. Kari’s thoughts on art education curriculum were quoted in Engaging Learners Through Artmaking: Choice-Based Art Education in the Classroom book by Katherine M. Douglas and Diane B. Jaquith. 

Kari has presented at Midwest Educational Technology Conference, Fine Arts Regional Council, The Big Event for Teachers at the St. Louis Art Museum, the National Art Education Association Conference, and numerous MO State Visual Art Conferences. She has offered personalized professional development to several school districts throughout Missouri and Illinois. Kari was named an Emmerson Educator of the year for the state of Missouri and the MRH School District Teacher of the year. Kari is also a proud member of the STL TAB Regional Professional Development group that presents in conjunction with MAAE throughout the region. 

Bio: Inspired by her high school art teacher, Elizabeth Williams has been happily teaching for the past twenty-six years.  With a Bachelors and Master's degree in Art Education from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, Ms. Williams has taught kindergarten through high school artists in Illinois, Iowa, and for the last seventeen years she has taught at Meramec Elementary in Clayton, Missouri. 

It was while squeezing in one last NAEA session fourteen years ago, that Elizabeth sat mesmerized hearing about and seeing images of Anne Bedrick's magical TAB art studio. This fortuitous moment transformed Elizabeth's art pedagogy. Her art studio became student-centered and artwork became relevant and meaningful to students.  Alongside her colleague Maryellen Picker, she became part of a grass-roots TAB community as St. Louis art teachers started to gravitate towards this choice-based approach.  This workshop was born out of these early collaborations.   . 

Elizabeth is also involved in Art21 Educators, a professional learning community that supports innovative curriculum with Contemporary Art, artists and themes. Ms. Williams believes deeply about the importance of arts education in both formal and informal educational settings and welcomes teachers both hesitant and excited about the TAB approach. 

Bio: Tiffany is a visual arts educator with over 28 years of experience teaching throughout the state of Missouri. Early in her career, she taught at a Montessori school and later at a school grounded in a Constructivist instructional model. These formative experiences significantly influenced her educational philosophy and fostered a strong commitment to student-centered learning.

In 2013, she discovered Teaching for Artistic Behaviors (TAB), a choice-based framework that closely aligned with her beliefs about effective arts education. Since that time, her practice has focused on developing an art studio environment that empowers students to take ownership of their learning. Tiffany is deeply committed to helping students understand how to thoughtfully engage with materials, processes, and ideas, while building confidence and independence as artists.

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