An Artist-Led Collective
Teaching Artist Residency:
Pilot Program in the 2026/27 School Year
Exciting News!
In the 2026/2027 school year, Art Commons is staffing paid teaching artists in three elementary schools within the Issaquah School District.
In 2025, Art Commons applied for and received a Curiosity Pass grant from 4Culture to pilot an in-school Teaching Artist Residency program in three ISD elementary schools.
Art Commons is excited to announce the three schools selected to participate in the 2026â27 Teaching Artist Residency pilot program:
Apollo Elementary, Clark Elementary, and Maple Hills Elementary!
Developed in partnership with the Issaquah School District, Issaquah Schools Foundation, and the PTSA Council, the Teaching Artist Residency will strengthen elementary arts education by embedding a professional teaching artist in participating schools while supporting each school's existing Art Docent program.
The first grade and fourth grade in each school will participate in the pilot program in the 2026/27 school, bringing sequential arts curriculum, aligned with state arts learning standards, to about 500 students next year, and also create six meaningful part-time arts jobs in our community.
Through this pilot, Art Commons will ensure that more students can experience the creative, social, and emotional benefits of arts education. We are working toward a future where every childâregardless of school, income, or backgroundâhas access to meaningful arts learning that supports lifelong creativity and health.
Learn more about how we designed the pilot program, why it matters, and how we are thinking about impact.
If you are interested in learning more, please reach out to us at any time! We need people on our team to help make this incredible effort succeed for ISD students!
2026/27 Teaching Artists
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Robin Bundi - Clark Elementary
Robin Bundi is a Seattle-based artist, designer, and teaching artist. As a child she spent her days picking weeds and flowers and exploring creative pursuits, and not much has changed. Today, she is still deeply inspired by the natural world, and her work celebrates our connection to it through illustration.
Her studio practice includes watercolor painting, drawing, graphic design, and making her own watercolors from foraged materials. She holds a BFA in Graphic Design and Art History from Ohio University and a Certificate in Natural Science Illustration from the University of Washington.
Robin values long-term relationships with students and the growth that happens over time. She is especially excited about working with students from Clark Elementary.
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Kate Clark - Maple Hills Elementary
Kate Clark is a multimedia studio and public artist. She has developed temporary and permanent public artworks for parks, convention centers, and other public spaces throughout the United States. She received her BA with a focus on studio art at the Evergreen State College and her MFA in Visual Arts at UC San Diego.
For the past twenty years, Kate has also worked as a Kâ12 teaching artist with schools, museums, and community organizations across the Pacific Northwest, Southwest, and the East Coast.
As a teacher, she loves to expose students to a wide range of 2D and 3D media. She's looking forward to getting to know the students and community at Maple Hills Elementary through collective art making.
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Luz Bratcher - Apollo Elementary
Coming soon
