OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (WLOX) – One Magnolia Park art teacher is painting the way for future generations of artists. Only now, she does it with an award under her belt.
In a very colorful classroom, in a very colorful dress, is Mrs. Amber West and her students.
“Mrs. West, I think she’s the best art teacher ever. She dresses so fun. She brings puppets and stuff to play with us and she just does the best art,” says student Molly Boyd.
Art has been an outlet for West since a young age. Her passion is contagious to students like Lucca Drayer.
“It feels like being free when you’re doing art,” Drayer says.
Before exclusively teaching elementary school art, West was teaching High School Theater. She says there wasn’t really an art class where she grew up.
“The fact that I can pursue a passion of mine while influencing over 600 students, I’m glad to do it.”
West has been at Magnolia Park in Ocean Springs for five years.
This week, word came in that she’d been nominated for and won the Thad Cochran Visual Arts Public Educator Award. She received the honor at Belhaven University and the Capitol as a part of Governor Tate Reeve’s Arts Week proclamation.
“We as adults are so hard on ourselves,” West says. “If I can help the kids break that pattern and have them believe in themselves and believe that they can make great art… even if it’s just a bunch of scribble on paper that’s letting me do my job correctly.”
The students say they look up to Mrs. West, like Mrs. West looks up to the Magic School Bus’s Ms. Frizzle. Her staple is her themed dresses.
“I want to wear this to inspire others to be individual and be born to stand out,” she says.
A day of good behavior in the art classroom is rewarded with a dance break. It’s one of the many reasons students say they can’t wait for each Thursday’s class.
On February 21st, students and family can attend the Magnolia Park Spaghetti dinner and art show from 5 to 7 p-m.
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