3 minute read
Meet Scott Beil, Peck's Upper School Art Teacher
Middle school often gets a bad rap, and that’s exactly why Scott Beil says he loves teaching it.
Many view these years as merely ones to suffer through, because it can be messy and awkward. Like toddlerhood 2.0, it marks a period of intense growth and development across a relatively short period of time.
One minute a middle schooler is out at a dance with their friends, eager for new social opportunities and greater independence, and the next, they’re cuddled up in bed with a teddy bear. But Beil says we need to flip the script: middle school is about finding out who we are, discovering our passions, and shaping a path for the future.
“Art is an opportunity to walk in someone else’s shoes, take a look at something new, and share a perspective that others might not see,” he says.
“That perspective is individualized, and it’s coming from each student. Art is the space to let their voices shine.”
Authenticity is extremely important to Beil. Having spent years working with special needs learners at the Matheny Medical and Educational Center (Gladstone, NJ), he acted as a guide for individuals with physical limitations to create art.
Whether using lasers to track eye movements or questions to understand where he should place lines, shapes, or dots on a canvas, Beil did not interpret but rather facilitated his students’ artistic visions.
“While my hand touched the canvas, every decision on that canvas was theirs. And that shifts your focus on art. There are a wealth of benefits in taking the time to look through someone else’s perspective.”
Scott Beil teaches visual arts to grades 5-8 at The Peck School, and currently serves as its K-8 Arts Department Chair. He also coaches Cross Country, and holds Open Studio time in the mornings for grades 5-8.
Art is often a series of questions. Sometimes they don’t have answers. Sometimes you are asking the question of yourself. Sometimes you are asking it of society. Sometimes you put something out into the world so people can talk about it and then share their thoughts back. It is an essential element of human connection.
An accomplished artist, Scott Beil is also an expert in tapping into the creative potential within every elementary and middle school student. In his professional career he has taught K-8 art classes for several years, coordinated arts programming at Matheny Medical and Educational Center, and exhibited his work throughout various galleries in NY/NJ.
Beil has worked with the education staff of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney, Guggenheim, and MoMA through the Collecting Connections program, a collaborative summer teacher institute designed to integrate the study of visual images into the classroom.
The 2007 recipient of the Somerset Cultural and Heritage Commission Excellence in the Arts Award, Beil holds a B.A. in Art Education from The College of New Jersey, and an M.F.A. in Studio Arts from Montclair State University.
The Peck School is a K-8, co-ed, independent school in Morristown, NJ. www.peckschool.org
We set the standard for excellence in K-8 education, where academic preparation and character development intersect powerfully in the learning experience. By embedding consideration of others, service, and belonging in all that we do, we are designing an integrated approach to education that develops
