The West Virginia Art Educators Association (WVAEA) has awarded Department of Architecture Art & Design Chair and Associate Professor of Art, Joel Dugan, with the Higher Education Art Educator of the year award.

“It is an honor to even get nominated and to receive the award,” said Dugan. “Knowing that it is coming from peers that I have interacted with means a lot and is a huge compliment.”

Dugan received his Bachelor of Fine Art from The College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, in 2002. In 2011 he completed his MFA at The Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Art at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Dugan is an accomplished visual artist and works primarily as a painter.

He has an active national and international exhibition record of over 122 solo and group exhibitions. Dugan has also completed many public art commissions and multiple corporate commissions for institutions such as The Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Detroit Athletic Club, Fort Hays State University, and the State of Michigan. He also works to cultivate community interest in public art and community projects throughout the regions he has called home.

“The art department has done a lot of outreach to get local students to engage in art and to create a public face within the community,” said Dugan, “We use public art as a method to create partnerships with organizations like Mainstreet Fairmont and Marion County that allow us to grow beyond Fairmont State’s campus throughout the community.”

College of Science and Technology Dean, Steve Roof, describes Dugan’s impact as an artist and educator on Fairmont State and the surrounding community.

“I think this award recognizes Joel’s outstanding contributions to art education in the state,” said Roof. “His outreach to high school art teachers across the state brings many high school students to campus, many of whom choose to enroll at Fairmont State. His work in community art gives college students who work with Joel on these projects valuable experience in big art, and provides improvements in the visual appearance of the community which raises the profile of the college within the community, ultimately leading back to new students considering an art education at Fairmont State.”