No is never an option for this Teaching Excellence Award winner

fine arts 2018 teaching excellence award

Congratulations to Fine Arts Associate Professor Danielle Julian Norton, winner of the 2018 Teaching Excellence Award!

CCAD created the award in 2007 as a way to recognize outstanding faculty members for excellence in teaching in the areas of discipline knowledge, instructional effectiveness, and student focus. Nominations come from alumni, current CCAD students, and faculty.

“In an incredibly competitive field of nominees, she stood out from the rest, thanks in great measure to support from her students, past and present, as well as from her colleagues,” said Provost Dona Lantz, who announced Julian Norton’s win at an awards ceremony on Wednesday, April 18.

Julian Norton (Fine Arts, 1999) shows that “no is never an option” for women artists following their dreams, wrote one such nominator. “This mentality is why … I am still making work and at 24 just showed my most recent body of work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York,” she wrote.

“She has so much passion for teaching students and supporting CCAD,” wrote another nominator, who said that Julian Norton “is professional and yet has the most refreshing sense of humor. Her critiques are thoughtful and constructive. She inspires and enlightens students in and outside of the classroom inviting collaborations and creative play which has proven to be the most effective form of education for me and others.”

Students “absolutely adore” Julian Norton because she “shows them how to work hard, take risks and experiment, be professional, and also have fun,” said another nominator. Julian Norton “is there for students when they need help on projects in and outside of the classroom,” they wrote.

Julian Norton teaches integrated and intensive sophomore studio courses, as well as all levels of sculpture. She works in multimedia installations and has received an Ohio Arts Council creativity grant and Greater Columbus Arts Council Germany exchange grant. Her residencies include Headlands Center for the Arts, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, and Anderson Ranch Arts Center. Julian Norton’s work has been exhibited at such venues as the Midwest Museum of American Art, San Angelo Museum of Fine Art, and Columbus Museum of Art, and has been reviewed in the Boston Globe and Sculpture magazine. After earning her undergraduate degree at Columbus College of Art & Design, she earned an MFA in sculpture from the University of Notre Dame.

To be eligible for the Teaching Excellence Award, nominees must be currently teaching for CCAD and have more than six semesters of service to the college. Previous recipients are ineligible for three years following the award.


Learn more about Danielle Julian Norton on daniellejuliannorton.com.