Winter Break Art Camp

Your child will spend their week away from school expressing themselves creatively and laughing with friends.

Grades K – 6

Melinda Welch

Melinda E. Welch earned her Master’s degree and teaching license in Art Education from the University of Cincinnati’s school of Design Architecture, Art and Planning. Melinda’s Masters thesis focused on developing a visual arts curriculum for a community arts center.

Currently, Melinda is teaching for the Clifton Cultural Arts Center and leading art classes at Bridgeway Pointe, UC Health, an assisted living residence.

Melinda’s teaching experience includes 14 years as Art Director at the Wyoming Fine Arts Center. While Art Director, she developed her vision for a visual art community driven by a strong, cohesive art curriculum and relationships with her students and families. She sought to connect with surrounding communities by integrating free art programming through connections with local schools, libraries and recreation centers. She often collaborates with diverse music teachers, and other non-profit organizations such as Elementz and BioKoto.

While in graduate school, she was employed by Kennedy Heights Art Center to teach adult and youth art classes. She also taught after-school art at Pleasant Ridge Montessori and the Pleasant Ridge Library. Her student teaching experience includes Walnut Hills High School, Sherwood Elementary, North Avondale Montessori, and Anderson High School. For the Contemporary Art Center, she taught an arts integration curriculum at Bond Hill Elementary. For the CAC she also led art programing at various local schools and in the UNMuseum. She has completed internships at the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Taft Museum of Art, Manifest Gallery and Prairie Gallery. She was part of a youth community photography program in conjunction with Happen Inc, Prairie Gallery and the Mill Creek Restoration Project.

Melinda is an active and experienced artist who works in ceramics, photography, collage and whatever else strikes her artistic fancy. She and her husband reside in Camp Washington with their two children.

Jessica Geary

Jessica Geary has been sharing her love for art with students for 11 years. She has experience teaching preschool, after-school programming, and a variety of art classes. Jessica is passionate about helping students discover their own creative spark and strives to make art fun and accessible for everyone. She delights in seeing students explore different mediums, from drawing to sculpture and everything in between.

Jessica believes art is about expressing individuality and experimenting with new ideas. Her classes focus on building skills while encouraging each student to develop their unique style. She is dedicated to guiding and supporting students as they take creative risks and find joy in their artistic journey.

When she’s not teaching, Jessica enjoys spending time in local coffee shops, embracing her role as a mom to four children, cherishing moments with friends and family, and pursuing her own artistic endeavors. Always eager to learn new things, she brings that enthusiasm back to the classroom to inspire her students.