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Posted on: 3/7/25
From a young age, Katherine McDonald loved art. As she got older and started exploring career opportunities, McDonald felt that combining her love of art and her love of working with children was the best decision.
“It really came down to, ‘what do I want to do every day?’ and this is it,” she said. “I wouldn’t really choose anything else or be any other type of teacher. What I love most about art is teaching and sharing it with other people. So I feel really lucky that I get to do that.”
McDonald is the art teacher at Cotswold Elementary School. She graduated from Merancas Middle College High School in 2021 with her associate degree and then went to Appalachian State University with two years of college under her belt. She was able to graduate in December 2023 and began working at Cotswold in January of the next year.
McDonald enjoys introducing her students to different art mediums. She said she shares with her students some of her strengths and weaknesses when it comes to art, and hopes it encourages them to take risks when they’re working on their projects.
“I try to teach as many different mediums as I can because students all respond differently to different mediums, so it’s a great way to have some inclusivity in the classroom,” said McDonald. “I’m not great at drawing, but I’m good at painting and working with clay. So I tell my students that and tell them that we all have different strengths.”
In addition to the different art styles, McDonald said she loves
introducing her students to different artists and helping her students make connections with art. McDonald interned at the Mint Museum for two summers and enjoyed giving tours, working with the summer camps and family programs.
“The Mint really shifted my perspective of how people can continue to connect and relate with art outside of the classroom and in their everyday lives,” said McDonald. “It made an impact in how I teach and relating the art students are making to the context of their lives.
“I also love showing them artists who are like them, who represent them not only in how they look and where they’re from, but also in their abilities and their styles,” she added. “Creating that inclusion and representation has been by far my favorite part of the job and watching that spark and intrigue in them. That’s how I got into art when I saw that I was represented in it.”
McDonald is in her first year at Cotswold and can’t imagine being anywhere else. As a beginning teacher, McDonald said it was an adjustment coming in the middle of the year and making the classroom her own. But she said the school has been super supportive, and she was able to build trust and respect with her students.
“The school here really does value the arts, and I love spreading the love of art around the school,” said McDonald. “I just want to be the best teacher I can be, and I’m learning so much every single day.”
