The National Art Education Association has named Lauren Stetz as the recipient of the 2023 Elliot Eisner Doctoral Research Award in Art Education. This prestigious award, determined through a peer review of nominations, recognizes the value of doctoral research to the profession of art education and its related disciplines, advocates on behalf of such research, and fosters continued support of doctoral research in art education. The award was presented during the NAEA 2023 National Convention in San Antonio.
Stetz, a College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) alum, earned her MA in Art History in 2012. In 2022, she earned her doctorate in art education with a minor in women's, gender, and sexuality studies from The Pennsylvania State University.
Through Stetz’s dissertation research, she developed the Violence Against Women Art Map. The map illuminates connections between artists globally, highlighting themes such as vulnerability, shame and victim-blaming, and law and government through the examination of the cultural, political, and historical roots of violence. The goal of the website is to build an artist coalition in response to violence against women, as well as to provide educational materials for art activism and prevention of violence against women.
Stetz credits her time as a CHSS student as a vital part of her success. “Within George Mason’s art history program, I was truly inspired by Michele Greet’s Latin American scholarship, which taught me to think critically about the contextual complexities of artmaking across time and geographies. I also had the opportunity to work with numerous brilliant art education faculty, including Renee Sandell, Roger Tomhave, and Kimberly Sheridan, while working as a teacher in Fairfax County Public Schools,” she said. “George Mason expanded my thinking as both an educator and scholar to consider the nuances of unique intersectional experiences and global perspectives within the arts.”
NAEA President James Haywood Rolling, Jr. states, "This award is being given to recognize excellence in professional accomplishment and service by a dedicated art educator. Lauren Stetz exemplifies the highly qualified art educators active in education today: leaders, teachers, students, scholars, and advocates who give their best to their students and the profession."
For more information on the Violence Against Women Art Map, visit https://www.vawartmap.com/.