Education Grant WinnerBrandy González-Kee

The digital world is in full swing right now. From the internet to social media, to mobile phones and tablets, society continues to plunge deeper into digital evolution. Yet, to understand how we got here, we have to remember how we got here—and that’s right smack-dab in the middle of art, where students are at their most creative!

Brandy González-Kee, educator at Clark High School, wanted her students to explore the image-making process through historical appreciation, and sought funds to help them see their finished product how it should be. Thanks to Power of the Dollar® members, she was awarded a $1,000 grant in December 2025 for her “Screen to Print: Building Foundations in Analog Image-Making” project idea, which she then used the grant funds to purchase a screen printing machine, a printing press printer, a stainless steel work table, a fabric screen printing ink studio set, and more!

“A lot of the stuff we used to do pre-computers—and I call it the whole analog era—is what’s being lost,” said González-Kee. “That artistry that is applied in a fine art way is what connects it to the digital era. It helps them with their digital literacy because they’re able to understand the history of image-making better. It gives them a whole lot more freedom to be expressive and not be so critical about the outcome.”

Prior to the new resources, Ms. González-Kee’s students relied heavily on hinged holders for screens. The problem they faced with these hinged holders was that it led to smearing and distorting their creations due to the lack of a vacuum table. Ultimately, as one can imagine, it can be frustrating—especially if it’s something you’ve worked on for some time. Now, students are eager to jump right into it, knowing their finished product will be how they envisioned. With this rounded-out, hands-on experience, students are also learning college-level coursework, which is unique to be immersed in.

“It’s just something they’ve never seen before,” she said. “The fact they actually get to do it and see it right in front of them instead of paying thousands of dollars for college classes, you don’t get these processes because they’re monetarily higher due to the specialized equipment. A simple stencil is enough exposure for them to understand the process and then apply process in a finer art way instead of just shirts, or posters, or whatever—which they can also do with a small business of theirs.”