Biography
Dr. Peg Speirs is a Professor of Art Education in the Department of Art Education at Kutztown University. Dr. Speirs earned a B.A. in studio art at Hiram College, OH; K-12 visual art certification at Westminster College in PA; an M.A. in Art Education at Miami University, OH; and a Ph.D. in Art Education with a minor in Women's Studies at Pennsylvania State University. Prior to doctoral study, Dr. Speirs taught art in Southern Local School District in OH for 10 years, teaching grades K-4, 7 and 9-12. During that time, she earned permanent teacher certification in the visual arts, grades K-12. Since 1995, Dr. Speirs has taught full-time at the college level, and was hired in a tenure-track position at KU in 1998. Her research interests include feminist art, theory and pedagogy; issues-based art education; and digital storytelling. Currently, Dr. Speirs is screenwriting and editing a documentary on women and tattoo, and has been making videos since 2012. Dr. Speirs co-edited the text, Contemporary Issues in Art Education, and other publications include co-authored articles and essays on teaching art for social justice, art and ritual, and a national study investigating the curricular influences of new art teachers. She introduced the course, Women in the Arts, to KU in 2000, and later co-authored The Dinner Party Curriculum Project, an on-line resource for K-12 teachers. As an administrator, Dr. Speirs served as Interim Associate Dean in the College of Visual & Performing Arts at KU for 4.5 years, ending the last term in 2018. Dr. Speirs is an artist, curator, and with her artist-husband Glen, co-owner of Studio/Gallery 908 in Reading, PA and Random Oaks Studio, a creative research community and artist residency program under development in Kensington, OH.
