Star City High School art teacher Roger Darren High has been elected to serve as the next president of the Arkansas Art Educators, a statewide organization of art teachers.
High will serve for two years as president-elect before beginning a two-year term as president of the organization. He will then serve two years as past president.
The purpose of the Arkansas Art Educators is to communicate the beliefs of the organization to the organized teaching profession and to the community at large, to strengthen the position of art as a discipline in the schools, and to affect positively the role of art in the global community.
High currently serves as president of the Arkansas Art Educators Presidents’ Foundation, a nonprofit group that provides grants to Arkansas Art Educators members for art-related supplies, projects, and small classroom equipment for the classroom.
Since becoming president of the AAE Presidents’ Foundation High has simplified the grant application process, launched a t-shirt design contest for high school seniors, led the group to their most successful year of fundraising, and increased both the grant amounts and the number of grants that the organization will be able to award this year.
“I look forward to serving on the Arkansas Art Educators Board for the next six years as president-elect, president, and finally as past president,” said High. “I believe that together we will be able to strengthen art education in the state of Arkansas and provide the best possible visual arts instruction for our students.”
In 2017, High was named Secondary Art Educator of the Year by the Arkansas Art Educators at the group’s annual fall conference.
High has served as Arkansas Art Educators News Director since 2016 where he maintains social media accounts for AAE including Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and a public AAE News page on Facebook. He previously served as AAE Southeast Regional Director for two years.
High has previously served as local president for the Star City Education Association, the Dermott Education Association, and the Dermott Parent Teacher Association. He has served on several state-level committees for both the Arkansas Education Association and the Arkansas Department of Education.
