Glen Crest teacher named Illinois Middle School/Junior High Art Educator of the Year

GLEN ELLYN – Glen Crest Middle School teacher Rich Stachon was named Illinois Middle School/Junior High Art Educator of the Year at a banquet Nov. 4 at the Marriott Hotel and Convention Center in Bloomington.

The award is presented annually by the Illinois Art Education Association to one teacher who has shown exemplary service, contributions and achievements in art education. This is Stachon’s 10th year teaching at Glen Crest Middle School in Glen Ellyn.

Stachon said art has always given him a language to communicate ideas he couldn’t otherwise express.

“Too many students do not understand the power and worth of art,” Stachon said in a news release from Community Consolidated School District 89. “I want students to know there is more to art than just drawing and museums. It’s about design thinking, problem solving, and communicating their view of the world.”

During his decade of teaching, Stachon has found ways to explore how art intersects with math, science and technology. His room is filled with all varieties of student creations: paintings, photography, drawings, 3-D printed prototypes, stop-motion animation and more.

“I ask students to think about how art and design can solve a problem,” Stachon said in the release. “At the end, they should ask: 'Did I solve the issue? If not, what can I change to help solve the problem?'”

The Illinois Art Education Association praised Stachon’s work as a teacher and his contributions to the greater art community.

“The awards committee believes Mr. Stachon’s work inside the classroom and his coordination with other teachers in the school provides an extraordinary education for the students at Glen Crest Middle School,” association Vice President Karen Popovich said in the release. “Mr. Stachon’s involvement outside the classroom, in the art education field, with the Illinois Art Education Association, and in the District 89 school community have benefited many people.”

Outside the classroom, Stachon is active in the larger art education community, presenting at conferences and writing monthly posts at educationcloset.com. He is a master teacher for Crayola and shares art insights through his Twitter account, twitter.com/rstachon.