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Education
In 2004 Ashley received her diploma from Parkview High School, where she lettered in Biology and was a member of National Art Honors Society. Later that year she went on to Georgia State University and enrolled in the Art Freshman Learning Community in order to surround herself with peers who shared her aspirations. Ready to jump into education, Ashley began taking her major coursework sophomore year. That same year, she extended her social and professional networks by joining the Student League of Independent Potters and Sculptors (SLIPS) and joining the aquatics staff at Georgia State University’s Student Recreation Center. Fall semester 2006, she studied abroad in Brisbane, Australia at the University of Queensland. She made friends with locals, as well as other international students from Germany, France, Canada, Holland, and Japan. Her semester abroad was an amazing experience that only fueled her urge to travel. Upon returning to the States, Ashley resumed her coursework, tackling the remainder of her education classes and some extra ceramics courses. In her final semester, she student taught at Knight Elementary School and Dekalb High School of Technology- North (see tabs to the left). In December of 2008, Ashley graduated with a BFA Art Education with concentration in Ceramics.
Study Abroad
In July 2006, Ashley found herself in St. Lucia, a suburb of Brisbane, Australia where she knew no one and needed a place to live. Shy by nature, she had to learn to come out of her shell and fast. To the amazement of many who knew her and especially herself, she rose to the occasion. Within a few short days, her new pay as you go mobile phone was filling up with the phone numbers of everyone she’d meet with plans to go house hunting together. She soon moved into a home just off campus with her new Canadian and German roommates. In her classes she learned about Australia’s art, history, and ecology. In her spare time she experienced the country first hand. Ashley found time to travel to Cairns, Noosa Heads, Surfer’s Paradise, Fraser Island, Whitsunday Islands, Adelaide, and Kangaroo Island. When her family arrived at the end of her semester, they traveled with her to Sydney, Melbourne, and Lamington National Park. She returned home after five months with a new sense of confidence and independence.
Substitute Teaching
Georgia State University Student Recreation Center
Work Aside
Being an art major, naturally, art is one of Ashley’s preferred hobbies. Her favorite gallery is the Art House Gallery, which (to her dismay) recently moved from Atlanta to New York. She has enrolled in three of Art House’s previous projects and looks forward to signing up for her next one. She is also passionate about travel, be it day trips to Cloudland Canyon or road trips to Quebec. She is always looking forward to her next excursion. Ashley loves finding new ways to be active. She has taken a whitewater kayaking class, rafted several rivers in the Southeast, as well as the Colorado River, and aspires to learn to rock climb one day. Her latest athletic challenge is to become a runner for the first time in her life, starting with the Couch to 5K program. Ashley has participated in the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life four times, twice as a team captain. She has also participated in Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night, Sister’s by Choice’s Pink Ribbon Walk, and Community Life Concepts’ Walk it Off for childhood obesity.