Growing up, Mary Jeffrey didn’t always know her path would eventually lead to teaching art. She was content to have art lessons occasionally and spend the majority of her free time playing snare drum in her high school’s marching band.

Jeffrey’s love for art deepened when she dropped out of marching band to take her first art class her senior year.

“I always knew I’d liked art, but that class made me realize I loved it,” Jeffrey said.

Jeffrey’s art teacher would eventually influence her to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Painting & Drawing at Western Michigan University.

“I knew my career would now involve art in some form,” Jeffrey said.

After graduation, Jeffrey moved to Chicago, where she became a high school recruiter for the Illinois Institute of Art. It was then that Jeffrey realized she was meant to teach art to students.

“Getting to see what art these students were making, watching how excited they got, that’s when I figured out teaching was what I was going to do,” Jeffrey said.

From there, Jeffrey received her Master’s Degree in Secondary Art Education from DePaul University. She considered teaching in Chicago, but decided to move to Texas due to more open job positions.

Jeffrey’s job had brought her from Bryan/College Station to Pflugerville to eventually LISD. Her teaching career has now spanned five years.

“Creating art is all about the process,” Jeffrey said. “You can have a vision in your head and watch it go through changes and modifications as you’re making it. That’s what I’d like to see of my students.”