{"id":163338,"date":"2026-01-12T10:18:33","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T15:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=163338"},"modified":"2026-02-06T13:54:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T18:54:09","slug":"wright-state-senior-paints-a-new-path-through-fine-arts-internship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2026\/01\/12\/wright-state-senior-paints-a-new-path-through-fine-arts-internship\/","title":{"rendered":"Wright State senior paints a new path through fine arts internship"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Wright State painting major Cienna Wallace is gaining hands-on teaching experience as an intern at the Miami Valley School, blending her passion for art with education. (Photos by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n

A typical day for Wright State University arts students usually unfolds in a campus studio surrounded by brushes, canvases and clay.<\/p>\n

For senior Cienna Wallace, it looks a little different. Twice a week, she heads to the Miami Valley School in Dayton, where she\u2019s breaking new ground as the school\u2019s first-ever fine arts intern from Wright State.<\/p>\n

Wallace, an arts major<\/a> focusing on painting, is charting a new path that bridges art and education. While education majors gain real-world experience through student teaching, no such opportunity existed for fine arts students interested in becoming art teachers \u2014 until now.<\/p>\n

\u201cWright State is trying to give those students the opportunity the same way any other subject gets to do student teaching,\u201d said Wallace, who is from Wilmington.<\/p>\n

Wallace works at the Miami Valley School on Mondays and Wednesdays, assisting the four arts teachers who work with students in kindergarten through 12th grade. Her days include helping younger students decorate sketchbook covers to working with middle and high school students in ceramics and other studio projects.<\/p>\n

Learning the layout of the school, remembering students\u2019 names and figuring out how to support each teacher has been a fun challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cI observe the teachers \u2014 how they teach, give demonstrations and how they present their expectations,\u201d she said. \u201cIt keeps me on my toes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The experience has broadened her artistic perspective, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn some cases, I\u2019m learning the same thing the students are as they\u2019re learning it,\u201d she said. \u201cLearning in other art mediums, that\u2019s been really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wallace said the experience has been equally educational for everyone involved.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe teachers I work with are learning how to have an intern in their class, and I\u2019m learning how to be an intern,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m learning alongside them. I was a little bit nervous being the first intern, but I\u2019m kind of glad I am.\u201d<\/p>\n

The internship was sparked by a relationship between Wright State and the Miami Valley School. Glen Cebulash, professor of painting and drawing at Wright State, said his wife, Rachel Stanzione, an art teacher at the Miami Valley School, proposed the idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince Miami Valley hadn\u2019t previously had interns and since we don\u2019t have a formal art education program, it seemed like a great opportunity,\u201d Cebulash said. \u201cI felt confident that we would be able to provide some talented and motivated interns.\u201d<\/p>\n

After discussions between the faculty at both schools, Wallace was recommended as an intern.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom every indication, she is doing a fabulous job and has represented the art program at Wright State very well,\u201d Cebulash said. \u201cI think it\u2019s been a challenging and enlightening experience for her and will play a big role in her future career decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Wallace, the internship has confirmed her passion for teaching.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo far, yes,\u201d Wallace said, \u201cI do want to continue pursuing art education.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Cienna Wallace assists Miami Valley School art teachers, working with K\u201312 students on projects ranging from sketchbook design to ceramics and studio art.<\/p><\/div>\n

Cebulash said Wright State hopes to continue to offer the internship program.<\/p>\n

Wallace\u2019s internship reflects Wright State\u2019s commitment to experiential learning and community partnerships, giving students real-world experience with local schools, businesses and organizations. The collaboration with the Miami Valley School expands experiential learning beyond campus, benefiting both students and the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope this opens a lot of doors between Miami Valley and Wright State,\u201d Wallace said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new partnership between Wright State and the Miami Valley School is giving painting major Cienna Wallace real-world classroom experience and opening doors for future fine arts students interested in teaching. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":66,"featured_media":163353,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,2034,4859,725,726,747,715,4298],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-163338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-career-services","category-fine-and-performing-arts","category-home-news-sidebar","category-homepage-feature-rotator","category-liberal-arts","category-news","category-student-profile"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/66"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=163338"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163338\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":163370,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/163338\/revisions\/163370"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/163353"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=163338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=163338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=163338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}