Miami High has a new Sting in town! Our new art teacher, Ms. Lee, joined the Miami High family at the beginning of this school year. Currently, she teaches three art classes: Painting I, Drawing I, and Portfolio. She doesn’t just aim to improve students’ art skills, but also to make sure they have fun while doing it.

On the Job

Ms. Lee loves working with kids, and taught art at Citrus Grove Middle School before coming to Miami High. She greatly enjoyed her time there – still, she had her eye on someplace else.

She really wanted to be a teacher at Miami High. “I was waiting for this opportunity to open up for a long time,” she said. “It’s my dream job! After [former art teacher] Ms. Revilla retired last year, I seized the opportunity.”

Ms. Lee’s favorite part about Miami High is the school’s spirit. “This school is just brimming with it,” she said. “The kids have a good attitude, they’re really involved, and they’re fun to be around. So far, my time here has been a good experience!”

This fall, Ms. Lee was able to see the school in one of its shining moments as a judge for the floats in the homecoming parade back in October. “That was very exciting,” she said. “It was my first homecoming event, and I have got to say it was awesome; I had such a good time. It was inspiring how many hours the kids put into the entire thing.”

Although Ms. Lee has only been at Miami High for a few months, being a part of our school fills her with determination. One of her goals is to help make the art program at Miami High as strong as it can be.

“When I arrived at Citrus years ago, the school didn’t have much of an art program,” she said. “In my time working there, I played a part in developing it into something bigger and better than ever. I hope I can do the same here.”

If there’s one thing worth working for, Ms. Lee says it’s for the kids. “One of the main reasons I became a teacher is to help children in any way I can,” she said. “When I see students in need, I try my best to help them whether it’s with homework help, materials, or even my own food at times. I believe that if you show children kindness, they in turn will be kind to others.”

Many students are pleased to be taking an art class with Ms. Lee. “You don’t necessarily have to be a good artist,” said senior Maria Vargas. “You just need to put in all your effort. I barely knew anything about painting [before taking this class], but now I know how to do it pretty well!”

Junior Brian Avila said, “This class has given me an opportunity to express all my creativity. I learned a lot – not only artistically, but about confidence and being myself through painting.”

Freshman Melanie Millo said that not only has the class helped her with her drawing skills, but also that the classroom environment is comfortable and nice to be in.

Ms. Lee’s students are very positive in their opinions about her. Junior Angelica Castellon said, “I love Ms. Lee! She’s very funny and makes class enjoyable. I’d take this class again.” Brian Avila said he appreciates how she helps each student completely and thoroughly. Maria Vargas said, “It feels like you can trust her and tell her anything.” Junior Jazlyn Chang-Valdes said that although Ms. Lee can be strict when she wants to, she is never too hard on anyone.

Childhood and Education

From a young age, Ms. Lee was already putting her creative mind to work. “I loved to paint,” she said. “I started to draw in elementary school, and I was always doing it. Back in the day, when you were able to go to summer school and take as many classes as you wanted, I took art class every summer. That’s when I knew that I loved it, and I was good at it. I just kept on while I was in high school, and when I got to college, it’s what I studied. I also have my phenomenal middle school teacher to thank – she was a part of what inspired me to become a teacher.”

Ms. Lee went to high school at Coral Gables Senior High and took art class each year for four years. She was an involved student, participating in several clubs, and got the most out of her high school experience; she feels that because of this, she finds it easier to relate to her students.

Ms. Lee got her art education at the University of Miami where she earned a bachelor’s degree in art history and Florida International University where she got a master’s degree in art education.

To get her master’s degree, she had to do a large variety of projects which included writing and research. The master’s program ultimately culminated in a student gallery show where she had the opportunity to exhibit a series of her own paintings. After college, she moved onto a career in teaching.

Temporarily, Ms. Lee ran a small private art studio. While doing that, she was able to work with several elementary school-aged students and give them grounding in art. In 2004, she began teaching at Citrus and stayed there for ten years before joining us at Stingtown.

Personal Life

Ms. Lee was born and raised right here in Miami – specifically in the Brickell area – and is an only child. While painting was one of her choice activities, young Ms. Lee also enjoyed spending her free time outside.

“We didn’t have as much as you guys have now,” she said. “Today, kids can spend most of their day inside the house. Back then, we had fun just being kids! Bike riding in the park and going to the movies were some of my favorite things to do.”

Now, in her free time (if that even exists for teachers), Ms. Lee still likes to create her own art. In particular, she prefers to create abstract or still life art, using either pencil, paint, or oil.

Among her favorite books and series are The DaVinci Code, the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, and the Harry Potter series. She especially enjoys Harry Potter because anybody can pick it up and enjoy it. She was in her twenties when she first read Harry, and she enjoyed both the novels and the movies just as much as anybody else.

Ms. Lee has her hopes for the future. “Hopefully this is where I retire,” she said. “I’d love to be here for the length of my career as long as I can be, but even if I wasn’t teaching, I’d be doing something in the art world – kind of like Ms. Revilla. Also, my students keep bothering me about having kids, but having to manage students is enough already!” she joked. “Most importantly, I hope that the future holds good health and happiness.”