Open SUNY Online Teaching Ambassador 2019: Suffolk – Meredith Starr

Meredith Starr is an Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at Suffolk County Community College. She holds a BS from New York University and an MFA from Long Island University. She is a member of the Wayfarers Gallery in Brooklyn. Her interdisciplinary artwork is based on data she observes in her personal life and an investigation of social issues. She fuses science with artifacts of our humanity, exploring themes such as love, interstellar communication, identity politics and ecology. She has shown internationally in such cities as the Hague, Hong Kong, and Seoul, and nationally in Chicago, DC, Pasadena, and New York.

Ms. Starr developed ART 113 Modern Art History for the Department of Visual Arts at SCCC and will be teaching additional art history survey courses online in the upcoming semesters. Art history is highly visual which makes it an excellent subject to bring to the online platform. What is essential to the curriculum is an exploration of criticism and theory. To that end, she strives to create interactive experiences during which the students have rich dialogues about art work. She incorporates creative activities such as scavenger hunts and video blogging that inspire the students to engage intensely with the course material and each other. Ms. Starr also creates a supportive, and empathetic experience by ensuring that her online art history courses present diverse examples and are accessible for all learners. In this inclusive learning community, students in her online course make meaningful connections between the elements and principles of art and history. As a result of a range of inquiry and research, students go beyond their own preconceived notions of “What is Art?” and grow together as thinkers.  

“I am excited to be an Open SUNY Online Ambassador. In this digital age, students expect their face to face courses to have an online component, and many are seeking out online courses to save them commuting or housing costs. I strive to exceed their expectations in the online setting by not only building a consistent format and schedule for delivery of course content, but by providing a cohort- based approach, similar to the training I received. As an Ambassador I will continue to bring my passion for teaching to the online platform, as well as work with my colleagues to determine best practices and  dynamic instructional methods for teaching online.”