Passion is what drives many people to excel. Lynn Flieger Countryman’s passions for art and education have pushed her to refine her natural artistic talents and to share with others her enthusiasm for education. 

Lynn graduated from Arapahoe Community College in 1974 with an associate of arts degree. She continued her education at the University of Colorado at Boulder where she completed her bachelor degree in fine arts, with distinction as Phi Beta Kappa. In 1977, she earned a degree in commercial art from the Omaha Art School and soon after she returned to the University of Colorado to finish her masters degree. 

Lynn’s well-rounded education combined with her ever present passion have helped her become a leader in several arenas. As an art teacher for sixth through eighth graders at Prairie Middle School in Aurora, Lynn often serves as a mentor and motivator for her students. She reaches out to at-risk students and has a knack for building up fragile self-esteems. Lynn serves as a professor for the Teacher Education Program at the University of Denver where she developed new and challenging course offerings for elementary and secondary art education methods. Uniquely, as an artist, Lynn co-authored an article, Van Gogh & Menieres Disease, that was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Additionally, Lynn volunteered for 8 years for Arapahoe Community College’s Area Vocational School. Lynn designed and implemented the commercial art program, ensuring that it contained real-world applications. The medical / tech illustration portion of the program, which Lynn created, was the first of its kind in Colorado. In her private time, Lynn displays her work in numerous galleries and lectures on a variety of topics. 

Lynn’s accomplishments have not gone unnoticed. She has been recognized both locally and nationally for bettering her profession and for improving the lives of many. In 1996, she was honored as the Teacher of the Year at Prairie Middle School by the Cherry Creek School District #5 and as Middle School Art Educator of Colorado by the Colorado Art Education Association. Also in 1996, Lynn was selected as one of 36 teachers from across the United States, England, and Australia for The Disney American Teacher Awards.