Meghan Collins, an MSU alum with a BFA in Art Education who is now the Museum Educator for K-12 and Family Programs at the MSU Broad Art Museum and an Assistant Professor of Art Education in MSU’s Department of Art, Art History, and Design, has been selected by the Michigan Art Education Association (MAEA) as the 2025 Museum Educator of the Year.

“We could not be more thrilled for Meghan and for the recognition that comes with this fantastic award,” said Steven L. Bridges, Interim Director of the MSU Broad Art Museum. “Meghan’s leadership in the field is well-established, and it’s important to note how grateful we are for all that she continues to offer to our many audiences, always with care and thoughtfulness, here in Mid-Michigan and across the state.”

Collins joined the MSU Broad Art Museum in 2015 after teaching art in K-8 public schools in Lansing, Michigan, and Montgomery County, Maryland. At the museum, Collins works with future educators and K-12 youth as part of the program she piloted, In the Making: Young Minds at the MSU Broad Art Museum. Through this initiative, Collins mentors and oversees a team of 12 paid undergraduate students who facilitate gallery experiences and artmaking with school-aged youth and families in the mid-Michigan region through field trips, school visits, and free family programs. As a testament to her work in this space, Collins was invited to join the Department of Art, Art History, and Design at MSU as an Assistant Professor of Art Education.

Collins also initiated and continues to organize the museum’s teacher fellowship program, Global DEI Through Art, in collaboration with MSU’s African Studies Center, Asian Studies Center, Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and Linking All Types of Teachers to International Cross-cultural Education (LATTICE). Each year, this three-month program welcomes 20 teachers from across Michigan who teach various subjects. In 2023, Global DEI Through Art resulted in over 8,500 youth art interactions, broadening students’ understanding of global diversity, equity, and inclusion, deepening their critical thinking and curiosity about people and the world, and building their skills of observation, imagination, and creativity.

“She has proven to be an innovative educator with a deep commitment to the transformative power of art to provoke dialogue and foster formative connections across disciplines.”

Michelle Word, Director of Education at MSU Broad Art Museum

“Meghan’s voice has been transformational in shaping the museum’s broader educational philosophy and youth initiatives,” said Michelle Word, Director of Education at the MSU Broad Art Museum. “A strong advocate for co-learning, Meghan prioritizes collaboration and reciprocal relationships with students, teachers, and community partners in every aspect of her job. She has proven to be an innovative educator with a deep commitment to the transformative power of art to provoke dialogue and foster formative connections across disciplines.”

Collins is proud of the programs she’s developed and how they encourage youth and educators to see art as an opportunity to express curiosity and empathy while learning about the world around them.

“Art museum experiences invite us to look closely at what people make, showing what matters to a person in their place and time,” she said. “Contemporary art, in particular, offers so many opportunities for youth and educators to be curious and thoughtful about ways artists communicate what cannot be said with words about the world we live in today.”

Collins is part of the School for Art Leaders through the National Art Education Association and regularly presents at state and national conferences. She holds a Master of Arts in Art Education from the Maryland Institute College of Art.

Collins will receive the 2025 Museum Educator of the Year award at the annual MAEA Conference, scheduled for Nov. 7-10, 2024, at the DoubleTree Hotel in Lansing, Michigan.