Sometimes, teachers don’t get enough credit for all the effort and time they put into helping their students acquire the education they deserve. The taskload of serving more than 100 kids can snowball up in the blink of an eye, yet NAHS’s very own Shirley Guiteau figured out how to manage the task load. From teaching graphic design to building future leaders in SkillsUSA to encouraging fashion fanatics, she’s got her hands full. Design, Print, and Produce is all she’s known, but how did she find her way to North? That’s the great thing about life: it’s full of the unexpected.
Guiteau was born and raised in Birmingham, England, until she was five years old, moving to Florida soon after. She attended Carol City Senior High School, where she was recruited during her senior year to intern at a Communications Office. There, she was introduced to graphics and the designing of them. Interning at the Miami-Dade Communications Department to design for professionals in entertainment, fashion, and beyond, is when she realized what graphic design is truly about. She has learned that design isn’t just about making things look good-it’s about connecting ideas, people, and purpose. After she graduated, she went to Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida, for undergrad. Afterward, she moved to the Peach State to get her master’s degree at Georgia State. She got her master’s degree and went above and beyond to earn her specialist’s degree in design technology at the University of West Georgia. “My journey in graphic design began unexpectedly- with a telecommunications management degree and a spark of curiosity for creating websites in 1997,” Guiteau said.
Graphic design is a widely recognized field and is needed in almost every industry, from branding to advertising to digital media and product design. However, teaching it? Completely different. Most teachers just go up to the board and explain the assignment or project, not Guiteau. She comes up with educational games and provides needed support around the classroom, making sure her students understand their tasks. Senior Sanai Harris enjoys how Guiteau gives the students breaks during class time; everyone’s favorite is Draw The Circle. Guiteau even makes it a competition, and whoever’s score is the highest gets a treat. “She is an amazing teacher, very uplifting, brightening the room with her smile and passion for helping her students,” Harris said.
SkillsUSA is a national nonprofit organization that develops high school and college students for careers by integrating technical skills training with leadership, teamwork, and professionalism. She is one of the many advisors for SkillsUSA at North. With Derryll Johnson, Louis Alfred, Joelena Moore, and Niklas Vollmer by her side, they influence students to think about obtaining those technical skills. She helps train the SkillsUSA officers to lead the meetings, give them advice, and be a supportive advisor as one would past high school. She wants the club to have fun at events like the Fall Leadership Rally, Regional and State Championships, as well as the Georgia National Fair. “She is freer than other teachers and relaxed in a way, but still is on top of everything, she’s not afraid to be direct,” Harris said.
Without her, the SkillsUSA officers would be discouraged, and the Dubs in the graphic design Pathway would be extremely confused. Guiteau is just one teacher who should be appreciated more for the time and effort she gives to her students. The education and the wisdom students deserve wouldn’t be possible without her guidance. She reminds us that behind every successful student is a teacher who cared.
