Faculty Members
Virginia Commonwealth University Art Education faculty members are dedicated and celebrated researchers, teachers, and leaders in the field of art and art education. The work of our faculty is published in dozens of journals, anthologies, books, and professional conference proceedings at the national and international level. In addition, our faculty works to maintain exhibition records of their own art work and also curate exhibitions of other artists. They have terminal degrees in our field and are attuned to cutting edge issues in art education such as exhibition of student art, hypertext and hypermedia, interdisciplinary curriculum and instruction, supervision and assessment, service-learning, drawing strategies and analysis, photography, classroom dialogue, community research and outreach projects, and visual culture studies.
Faculty
Dr. Pamela G. Taylor, Department Chair & Associate Professor
804-828-3804
pgtaylor@vcu.edu
Dr. Pamela G. Taylor earned her Ph.D. in Art Education from the Pennsylvania State University at which time she was named a Getty Doctoral Fellow for her research “Hypertext-based Art Education: Implications for Liberatory Learning in High School.” Following ten years of public school teaching, Dr. Taylor taught at Radford University and The University of Georgia prior to coming to VCU. Dr. Taylor is well respected in the field of art education for her research in the areas of hypertext theory, interactive computer technology, hyperaesthetic theory, service-learning, curriculum, and assessment in art education. She currently serves as editor of Art Education (The Journal of the National Art Education Association) and is the higher education representative to the Virginia Art Education Association.
Dr. Taylor's publications include a book-length exhibition catalog on the work of artist Joseph Norman, book chapters and essays in art education anthologies, numerous invited and peer reviewed articles in such respected journals as Studies in Art Education, Art Education, FATE in Review, Computers in Schools, The International Education Journal, Innovate, and The Journal of Hypermedia. Her co-authored book (with B. Stephen Carpenter, II, Christine Ballengee-Morris and Billie Sessions) entitled Interdisciplinary Approaches to Teaching Art in High School was published by the National Art Education Association in the summer of 2006. Her current research involves service-learning and art foundation, interactive computer technology and inquiry and meaning-based art education, music video and visual culture art education, art education experiences in Cuba, and virtual learning portfolios.
http://www.people.vcu.edu/~pgtaylor
Ms. Sarah Branigan, Administrative Director & Instructor
804-828-1996
sbranigan@vcu.edu
Sarah Branigan earned her Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in 2001 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with an emphasis in painting and drawing. In 2005, she earned her Masters in Art Education from the University of Georgia where she completed her applied project, "Opening Doors: Cuban Art in the American Classroom," based on her study abroad travels in Cuba.
She taught art at both the middle and high school levels in Commerce, Georgia as well as Raleigh/ Durham, North Carolina. Other experiences include volunteering as an AmeriCorps member in Atlanta, Georgia, serving as an intern with the North Carolina Museum of Art in the outreach department and developing and implementing art based programming for several not for profit organizations.
Her current projects include co-founding and directing programs for STUFF (www.richmondstuff.org), a local non-profit focused on creative reuse, environmental awareness and eco-education. She is also involved in a website dedicated to jumping, www.JumpBecause.com.
Dr. Melanie Buffington, Assistant Professor & Graduate Programs Coordinator
804-828-3805
mbuffington@vcu.edu
Dr. Melanie L. Buffington, Assistant Professor of Art Education, earned her Ph.D. and M.A. at The Ohio State University and her B.S. at The Pennsylvania State University. She previously taught middle school art in Maryland and has interned in numerous museums.
Her current research interests include: museum education, technology in art/museum education, Web 2.0, integrated/interdisciplinary curriculum, multicultural education, contemporary art, and pre-service teacher preparation. She has published articles, reviews, and chapters in several publications in the field including Visual Arts Research, Art Education, Studies in Art Education, Computers in the Schools, and the Journal of Cultural Research in Art Education.
Dr. David Burton, Professor
804-828-3783
dburton@vcu.edu
Dr. Burton has taught at VCU for 25 years. He received his Ph.D. in Art Education from the Pennsylvania State University. He has been honored as an NAEA Fellow (2005), NAEA Higher Education Art Educator of the Year (2001), NAEA Southeastern Art Educator of the Year (1999), VAEA Virginia Art Educator of the Year (2001), VCU School of the Arts Distinguished Achievement in Teaching (2002), and VCU School of the Arts Distinguished Achievement in Service (1997). He is active in professional art education organizations at the national and state levels. Dr. Burton has published numerous articles on demographics related to art education, secondary analysis of national (NAEP) research in art education, and student art exhibitions, in such publications as Art Education, Studies in Art Education, and Visual Arts Research. His book entitled Exhibiting Student Art was published in 2006 by Teachers College Press.
Dr. Nancy Lampert, Assistant Professor
804-828-3772
nalamper@vcu.edu
Dr. Nancy Lampert holds a bachelor of fine arts degree in Painting and Drawing from San Francisco State University, a master's degree in Art Education from VCU, and a doctorate in Education from The College of William & Mary. She taught art at the secondary level in Massachusetts, and has also worked as a professional artist, graphic designer, and art director.
Dr. Lampert's current scholarship focuses on curriculum, technology in art education, and critical thinking in the arts. Her research has been published in Art Education and Studies in Art Education and she recently co-authored a textbook chapter on standards based integration of technology into art education curricula. Dr. Lampert has presented her research regionally, nationally, and internationally.
Dr. Sara Wilson McKay, Assistant Professor
804-828-0471
swilsonmckay@vcu.edu
Sara Wilson McKay is Assistant Professor of Art Education at Virginia Commonwealth University. Since writing her dissertation on the politics of vision and visuality at The Pennsylvania State University, Dr. Wilson McKay’s research has extended to include the ways in which works of art create new seeing, how looking can be a dialogic process, and the possibilities of seeing more of the educational process in and through art. Employing critical and new media theory in her work, her publications range from practical pedagogical models for teachers of art to theoretical essays considering art and education in a broader purview. Recent publications include: "Imagined Possibilities: New Media Theory in Art Education" in the Information Technology and Teacher Education Annual 2006, "Living the Questions: Technology-Infused Action Research in Art Education" in Art Education: The Journal of the National Art Education Association (November 2006) and "People Should Come to Work: Un-becoming Cartesian Subjects and Objects in Art Education" in the Journal of Social Theory in Art Education (2005).
Ms. Jan Johnston, Adjunct Instructor
804-828-4865
johnstonja@vcu.edu
Jan Johnston holds a B.A. from North Carolina State University in Multidisciplinary Studies and received her K-12 Art certification in 1997. While teaching middle school and high school in North Carolina, Jan earned her National Board Certification and completed various levels of training in the International Baccalaureate Programme. She is a recent graduate of the VCU’s Art Education MAE program where she was a service-learning graduate assistant, adjunct instructor and a University Supervisor. She continues to pursue a certificate in Instructional Technology and is currently working with the Mayan Arts Program (MAP), an arts based, international service–learning venture to the highlands of Guatemala.
Adjunct Faculty
Travis Fullerton
804-828-7154
Dr. Min Cho
804-828-7154
University Supervisors
University Supervisors act as advocates, role models and mentors for student teachers.
Samuel Banks
Kathy Barclay
Pam Cosby- Smith
Anna Golden
Janet Payne
Pearl Quick, Level II Clinical Faculty
Jane Rowley, Level II Clinical Faculty
Gene Toutsi
Kim Turner, Level II Clinical Faculty
Peggy Wood
