Note: The above image is an edited photo of Mr. Nelson, made by a student as part of a halloween project in fall 2021.

Art shapes McCaskey in so many ways, whether that be performance arts such as theater and music, or visual arts like drawing and painting. Mr. Nelson is one of the few visual art teachers at McCaskey. He teaches Drawing and Painting 1-2, Drawing and Painting 3-4, Digital Photo 1-2, and Foundations of Art.

Prior to teaching at McCaskey, Mr. Nelson grew up in Harrisburg. He went to Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, where he lived for eight years. When asked why he decided to teach at McCaskey, he said, “Back in the 2015-2016 school year, I started student teaching with Ms. Wolf at JP. I was so impressed with the sense of community in the classroom. I enjoyed the camaraderie with the students and staff. I felt instantly welcome and like I was a part of a team working towards a common goal. The kids were eager to try new things and learn. I thought, ‘I love this, I love helping these kids grow creatively and I love being a positive part of my community.’” He thought, “I would be lucky to work at a high school like McCaskey.” Little did he know that the stars were going to align perfectly, and he got the job as an art teacher at McCaskey.

Mr. Nelson explains that one of the best things about teaching at McCaskey is “when the students seem to be really engaged and connected with what I am trying to teach them. I love when they take the idea and run with it and make it their own.” He follows the idea up with this, “As educators, we often find ourselves putting in a lot of hours outside of school to come up with interesting and engaging lessons that will make students excited about learning. When the students are excited about the work they are creating, it is so rewarding and joyful.” 

Mr. Nelson very clearly enjoys the experience of being a part of McCaskey. “I really love the people I work with. I have made friends at McCaskey that feel like family. We all come from such different backgrounds. Sometimes, we do not agree, we argue, feelings can be hurt or misunderstandings occur, but at the end of the day, I really feel like the staff is united in a common goal, to be a supportive positive part of our community. We know that none of us can exist without any of us.” 

What is also very important about Mr. Nelson is that he isn’t just an art teacher, but a working artist as well. He has a family and is happily and proudly the father of two sons. His oldest is three years old and his youngest is not even a year old yet. His wife is a photographer and graphic designer and has a photo studio in their home. Mr. Nelson, on the other hand, has a studio that is basically an old barn, three miles north of the city. “I work out of an old barn with a wood burning stove and ultra-high ceilings, across the road is a meadow that provides a lot of inspiration for landscape painting. It is really an ideal setup.”

As an artist, Mr. Nelson mostly creates landscape paintings. Lately though, he’s been interested in “looking at the meeting places between manmade and natural.” He is fortunate to be able to sell a lot of his work through word of mouth, Instagram, galleries, etc. However, his commission work has been doing the heavy lifting for a lot of his sales.

In the end, what Mr. Nelson wants most out of anything in his teaching career is for his students to feel confident about themselves and their creativity via visual media. He says that he wants his students to use creative problem solving, which is a good skill to have as an artist and nonartist.

Here are some droplets of wisdom from the man himself: “I tell my students, take risks and be confident in your choices, you have all the skills you need to do the right thing. Use your powers for good.”