Fox Ridge Elementary School

Community Unit School District 303

1905 Tyler Road
St. Charles, Illinois 60174
Phone: (630) 513-4460
Fax: (630) 584-9660
www.d303.org

To Whom It May Concern:

This letter offers my support of Jenelle Grosser as she applies for an art teaching
position. I had the opportunity to get to know Jenelle during her Elementary Art Student
Teaching Experience in St. Charles District 303. She worked under my supervision for
eight weeks in 2015.

Jenelle was able to connect with staff members at two schools as an itinerant student
art teacher with ease. She was an active participant in a Professional Learning
Community (PLC) with district art teachers. During these collaborative times, Jenelle
was not only interested in new learning, but also articulate in group discussions about
our work as artists and teachers.

Illinois State University thoroughly prepares future educators to succeed and Jenelle is
no exception. Her background and knowledge allowed her to inspire and connect with
students in the areas of painting, drawing, collage, sculpture, ceramics and art history.
Arriving to her placement with me, Jenelle was more familiar with the teaching method
of Discipline Based Art Education, but she was open to learning about and practicing a
Choice-Based Art method for the eight week duration with me. She read books by
leading authors in this particular field to gain the best understanding of the process.
Because of her dedication to developing and growing as a teacher, she became
proficient and successful in the methodology. Jenelle introduced the students to the
process of building ceramic sculptures. She created an informational video that she
presented to the classes. The video held the students attention and they were excited to
try the art form. She held discussions with the students about ceramic artists and did
observational and written assessments to gauge student learning. Jenelle is a
hardworking, intelligent and reflective art teacher. She would blend easily with staff, but
more importantly, she will connect with her students.

Sincerely,

Joyce Simkus