11/07/2025
University Galleries: Museum Education
Museum Education Program
Our Museum Education Program has been recognized by the School District of Palm Beach County as an approved Field Experience Provider since 2005. Each academic year, we produce cross-disciplinary lesson plans that allow teachers to incorporate field trips to University Galleries into their curriculum. The Museum Education Program trains Florida Atlantic University students in educational techniques related to teaching and learning in art museum environments. We offer interactive gallery tours to youth through partnering schools and after-school programs, and to adults in the South Florida community.
School Partnerships
The FAU Museum Education Program has been a dynamic extension of the classroom by providing arts education to the Palm Beach County School District and its community. We have developed on-going partnerships with several regional public schools and every year we welcome new partnerships with teachers of any discipline to bring their students to the galleries both remotely and in-person.
An example of a successful partnership was with Art teacher, Lisette Cedeno of The Conservatory School, and 45 middle school students in a project-based learning class focused on art in activism. This partnership encouraged youth activists to speak up about issues in their community through works of art. The students benefited from the classroom outreach and visit to FAU where in addition to seeing the exhibitions in our two galleries, they were also able to visit the Visual Arts' studios and the Jaffe Center for Book Arts.
Community Programming
The Florida Atlantic University Galleries Public Programs are a series of free workshops and art events taught and led by FAU staff, faculty, students, and alums. These events are made possible in part by the Kaye Arts Integration Endowment.
Artist Mentorship Program (AMP)
Since its inception, the Museum Education Program has collaborated with and provided arts education services to children in after-school settings. Undergraduate FAU students are hired each semester to teach visual art classes either remotely or in person throughout several regional locations. AMP promotes young people's creativity while encouraging artistic skills and cultural enrichment. Students have visited University Galleries and the FAU campus several times throughout each semester thereby exposing them to contemporary art and college life. By using arts integration philosophies and teaching methods, AMP teaches the visual arts through weekly hands-on projects, dialogue, and instruction.
ImageMakers Photography Exhibition
The University Galleries has hosted the annual ImageMakers Photography Exhibition since 2010, coordinated by the Boys and Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County and their Cultural Arts Program Manager, Casandra Tanenbaum. The children are introduced to photography and digital technology by taking their own photographs on field trips throughout the county. A selection of these photos will be entered into a national competition organized by the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
Meet our Team
Helen Edmunds
Museum Education Coordinator
Helen Edmunds, a native to south Florida, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in 2021. Outside of work Helen focuses on her artistic pursuits of ceramics, photography, and printmaking. The University Galleries Museum Education Team is an exciting opportunity for Helen, as she is passionate about visual arts education and community outreach.
Phoebe Potter
Museum Education Assistant
Phoebe Potter is an art student currently seeking a BFA with a concentration in sculpture as well as a minor in women, gender and sexuality studies. She earned her associate in arts from Broward College in 2023. She has received the Spring 2024 Portfolio Review Scholarship Award, the Rotary International Award for Excellence in Visual Arts in Honor of Yaacov Heller, and the 2024 Friedland Art Scholarship.
Phoebe initially started her higher education journey as a secondary education major with a focus in mathematics, however since switching disciplines, she still establishes the importance of education advocacy through her work with the University Galleries Museum Education department. Outside of the galleries or the studio, she shares an affinity for books, office supplies, music, and animals.