Skip to content

Teacher Fellowship

Open yourself to the lessons of self-taught art

For more than 30 years, Intuit Art Museum has offered a rich variety of educational programming like the Teacher Fellowship. The Caelan Mys Learning Studio, donated by Jean and Lewis Greenblatt, is the Museum’s dedicated space for education, which provides hands-on opportunities for educators and students to enrich their museum experience.

Teacher Fellowship

Each school year, Intuit Art Museum welcomes a cohort of Chicago Pre‑K–12th grade school teachers to explore the history and contemporary practices of self-taught artists. 

Teacher Fellows work with artists, curators and museum educators to deepen their understanding of self-taught art and engage in critical discussions. Fellows gain access to IAM’s collection, special exhibitions and Study Center, while participating in hands-on workshops with contemporary self-taught artists. They learn best practices in curriculum development, arts assessments and classroom teaching. With support from IAM educators, Fellows design curricula inspired by self-taught art and receive feedback from peers. Participants earn up to 25 Continuing Professional Development Units (CPDUs), receive a $500 honorarium for classroom materials and join a collaborative learning community.

From September through January, Teacher Fellows participate in monthly Saturday professional development sessions to design a curriculum inspired by self-taught art. Sessions are held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sept. 13, Oct. 4, Nov. 1, Dec. 13 and Jan. 31. From February through April, Teacher Fellows implement their curriculum in their classrooms with continued support from IAM educators. In May, the Museum hosts a Student Exhibition featuring artwork created in the Fellows’ classrooms.

Eligibility 

The Teacher Fellowship is open to Chicago Pre-K-12th grade educators from all disciplines. 

Chicago Public School teachers will be prioritized.

Teachers may apply in teams of two from the school. 

This year’s application deadline has passed.

TF archive 13
TF archive 12
TF archive 11
TF archive 06
TF archive 04
TF archive 03
TF archive 02
TF archive 01
TF archive 07
TF 22 23 Student Exhibition 03
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 27
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 21
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 16
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 12
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 08
23 23 TFP Student Exhibition Low Res 06
22 23 TFP Student Exhibition

1/ 17

Events for Teachers

Untitled 1600 x 1234 px 1

Community Day: IAM everywhere

A day of all-ages activities to explore art created by and for the communities we live in.

Aug 23 2025

A day of all-ages activities to explore art created by and for the communities we live in.
2025 Intuit Art Museum 03 1

Exhibition Tour

Aug 29 2025

Explore our current exhibitions with a museum educator.
L1316 2024 Detail High res

Artist Talk: Pooja Pittie

Artist Pooja Pittie discusses her practice and work.

Sep 06 2025

Pittie, whose work is currently on view in Catalyst: Immigration and Self-taught Art in Chicago,” is a self-taught visual artist based in Chicago. Working with a disability, she explores the complex interplay between body and mind, movement and stillness.
IAM watching movies SEPT 25

IAM watching movies

Howard Finster

Sep 12 2025

Every Second Friday, enjoy short documentaries from IAM’s Robert A. Roth Study Center.
Untitled 1600 x 1234 px 4

Slow Look: Sunrise on a Water Scene

Explore a single work of art from Intuit Art Museum’s Collection

Sep 14 2025

A museum educator will guide a discussion about Sunrise on a Water Scene” (1959) by Betty Zakoian.
Untitled design 3

Rock over London, Rock on Chicago: A Wesley Willis Happy Hour

Explore the sounds and stories of a Chicago music legend.

Sep 18 2025

Grab a drink and spend the evening immersed in the music and drawings of self-taught artist and punk icon Wesley Willis.
Untitled 1600 x 1234 px 4

Exhibition Tour

Sep 26 2025

Explore our current exhibitions with a museum educator.
2025 Intuit Art Museum 10

Artist Talk: Alfonso Piloto” Nieves Ruiz

Oct 11 2025

Ruiz, whose work is currently on view in Catalyst: Immigration and Self-taught Art in Chicago’, is a Chicago-based artist who transforms clay and discarded items into captivating works of art.
Artist Built Environments 1600x1234

Artist-Built Environments: Reimagining Placemaking in Times of Crisis

Scholar Gabrielle Christiansen gives a talk as part of the 2025 Chicago Architecture Biennial.

Nov 13 2025

How can creative experiments on private property inform public ideas of space? Scholar Gabrielle Christiansen gives a talk at Intuit Art Museum as part of the 2025 Chicago Architecture Biennial.
Checkout