Valerie Sjodin teaches middle and high school art at Heritage. She's taught at Heritage for five years and brings valuable experience to the classroom. Mrs. Sjodin posesses a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Marylhurst University. She has also completed many workshops in painting, collage and mixed media art. She teaches mixed media workshops to adults and teenagers in her home and her work has been viewed in numerous local shows and venues in Hillsboro and the Portland-Metro area. You may view her work and read more on her website at www.valeriesjodin.com.

When you ask Mrs. Sjodin what motivates her to teach at a Classical Christ-Centered School she answers, "Teaching at a Classical and Christian School fits well with my world view and my view on Classical teaching as a strong foundation for Art. I believe Art principles developed during the Renaissance should be taught as the basis for learning art skills. I also think personal expression and cultural relevancy are critical. This blends well with the Cassical process of learning the grammar of art, questioning, discussing, exploring and expressing new ideas. Most of all I enjoy the students, their enthusiasm, and their creativity. I am thrilled at the privilege to witness "aha" moments when a student first discovers he or she has gained a new skill and created something beautiful."

Mrs. Sjodin and her husband, also her high school sweetheart, have been married over 28 years. Together, they feel blessed to have raised three children: a son, Joseph, married to Sarah, their “daughter-in-love,” and father of their first grandchild; their daughter, Jennie, graduated from Heritage in 2003 and is a recent graduate from Seattle Pacific University. Merri is currently a senior at Heritage, and tells her parents nearly every week how much she loves school.

“What is art? The best definition I’ve ever heard was given to me in a class taught by Terri Hopkins at Marylhurst University. She said, 'Art is to make special.' So living an artful life must be living in such a way that it makes our life and the lives of others special. I believe this is the beauty of being made in the image of our Creator. We may choose to create uniquely and personally. We are not limited to build a nest in a specific way as a certain species of bird. We can choose to make the mundane, extraordinary.”