In a town like Osage, Iowa—with a population of just more than 3,600—you wouldn’t expect to find one of the most widely used resources for art educators.
But for Derek Balsley and his wife, Jessica, founding and operating their company, The Art of Education, from the small Iowa town they grew up in makes all the sense in the world.
“All of the talent gets sucked out every time a class graduates from here,” Derek said. “Very few come back because it’s not an option. The job they want to have isn’t available here and there’s such an opportunity to say, ‘You don’t have to find a job to work somewhere else, you can create a job that lets you work here.’
“Not enough people realize the potential they have to work from wherever they want.”
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The Art of Education was born when Jessica (left), who was working on her masters, struggled to find professional development resources for art teachers. So she and her husband created what she had struggled to find: online resources for art educators looking to further their knowledge and grow professionally.
“We’re actively attempting to empower art teachers to thrive in their careers,” Derek said. “Everything we do is aimed at helping art teachers find success and enjoy their jobs, which is where they spend a big portion of their lives.”
And with more than 50,000 readers from around the globe each month, it appears the Balsleys weren’t alone in their problem. 
Now the Art of Ed has a team of 13 scattered across the country and its site offers everything from daily lesson plays to fully accredited online classes, through the company’s partnership with Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa.
“There is no locality,” Derek (right) said. “We’re going to be hyper niche-oriented and devoted to this one type of person. Instead of offering just three or four courses that are relevant like a traditional college might, we can offer more like 15 or 16.”
The team has even hosted a number of virtual conferences—the most recent in January, which drew more than 1,300 educators. For $100, art teachers from around the world can tune in live or watch the archived videos of the speakers after the fact.
Credits: Photos courtesy of the Art of Ed.
