Patricia Chavez, an art teacher at Ladue Horton Watkins High School, received the October Excellence in Education Award at the Oct. 23, 2017, Board of Education meeting. Congratulations to Patricia on this prestigious recognition!
Patricia has worked for the Ladue School District since August of 1999, when she took a position in the art department at Ladue Horton Watkins High School.
Patricia takes on leadership roles in the high school, offering her eye for design and her expertise when it comes to the blend of art and education. She serves as a the Fine & Performing Arts chair at the high school, and has played a critical role in the interior design of the newly-renovated high school building!
As high school principal Brad Griffith has said, “Patricia is a veteran master teacher, serving a wide range of students from all ability levels, motivating each student to do the best work possible, and nurturing creativity when some of these students don’t yet recognize their potential.”
If you ask her fellow educators, they will tell you that Patricia is both honest and diplomatic in her actions and words, and that she brings an enthusiastic attitude to work and radiates positive energy every day!
Patricia was born in Lima, Peru, and moved with her family to St. Louis when she was 5 years old. She and her husband, Mike Daus, have been married for 15 years and have three children: 12-year-old Mate, who is a seventh grader at Ladue Middle School; 10-year-old Vincent, who is a fourth grader at Conway Elementary; and 5-year-old Xavier, who is a kindergartener at Conway.
Patricia received both a bachelor’s of fine arts degree in Visual Arts and a bachelor’s of arts degree in English from Fontbonne University in 1996. She then went on to earn her master’s degree in Education from Maryville University in 2010.