Mrs. Burgess grew up in Peoria and originally thought she’d go into journalism but many twists and turns along the road led her to education. Teaching art is, in a way, in her blood as her mom is a teacher and her dad is an artist. She has taught in a variety of settings and had a variety of other jobs, but teaching art is the one thing that she truly feels uses her God-given gifts in a way that really matters. Art has always been a huge part of her faith and faith journey, but, until now, she has always taught in the public school setting. Mrs. Burgess is really excited to get to be more open and honest about faith as it relates to art and to see how she can grow as both an artist and a Christian through that process. In her free time, Mrs. Burgess does a lot of art and photography. She has worked as a professional photographer since 2007 and really loves doing as much of that over summer break as she can. Fun fact: she once shot a wedding in Hawaii for a Tony Award-winning actress! Some of her other specialities include pottery, drawing and graphic architectural watercolor paintings. Mrs. Burgess also loves being a mom and spending time with her little boy and husband, traveling and trying new things! Besides all that, she also loves physical fitness and is a certified yoga instructor.