Two things stick out about Jenny Snaza. She is someone who cherishes her family and is determined to support exploration of the arts. She herself is an imaginative artist who loves to delve into the world of wild mixed media.

Jenny Snaza was born in Reno and grew up as the middle of three children. She describes her childhood as idyllic. Her family lived on a one and a half acre farm that had many different types of animals including dogs, chickens and horses. Mrs. Snaza would often play with the animals. She was very much an outdoors kid, which helped her to develop an imaginative and creative brain. She also loved to invent games to occupy herself and her siblings, which resulted in them developing a close relationship. All of these experiences led her to become a very complex thinker. Mrs. Snaza wanted to find the deeper meaning of things. Her mother was the primary caretaker in her family. At a young age, she had many responsibilities, including various chores and animal care. She grew up valuing responsibility and a strong family unit.

While attending Galena High School, Jenny Snaza found her passion for the arts from her teacher, Mrs. Yau, who encouraged her to explore different types of art media. Following high school graduation, she pursued an engineering degree at Seattle University. However, after taking a drawing class, she realized that she would rather seek a degree in the arts. This led her to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Honors Visual Arts as well as a French Language and Literature degree. Post graduation in 2009, Mrs. Snaza struggled to find a job, like so many other people during the Great Recession when work was scarce. Luckily, she managed to find employment at Starbucks while studying graphic design at Sierra Nevada University. She soon found work in graphic design at Molten, a sporting goods company. After encountering challenges as she transitioned from marketing to teaching, Mrs. Snaza attended the “Alternative Route to Licensure” program through the Washoe County School District. Because of this, she was able to receive her Master of the Arts in Teaching, also from Sierra Nevada University. This allowed her to follow her passion and teach art classes. Fast forward a few years later, and Mrs. Snaza is now an art teacher for Bishop Manogue Catholic High School.

Over the years, Jenny Snaza has won several notable awards in both the arts and sports. In high school, she was a team member at the 2003, 2004, and 2005 Ski Championships. She was excited to be a part of the 2004 Volleyball State Championship as well. Later, in 2010, she was honored as the “Volleyball Coach of the Year” for the High Desert League. In 2017 and 2018, Mrs. Snaza won the Reno Chalk Festival for 3D Art two years in a row. She recently held a solo art show at the Sierra Arts Foundation which resulted in her selection for the National Art Education Association exhibition. It’s quite evident that Mrs. Snaza loves being challenged! This is one of the reasons why she chose to learn French. “Learning French has been a huge challenge for me, which I think motivated me to keep going,” she said. “I am a bit introverted, which makes verbal expression not always the easiest.”

Mrs. Snaza’s personal life is very family focused. She prioritizes serving her family to the best of her ability. To do this, Jenny Snaza wakes up very early hoping to get 30 minutes of coffee time to focus herself and her day. She and her husband, Ben, then work together to get their girls up and ready. Millie is nine years old and Joey is four years old. Ben drops off Millie at her grandparents’ house so they can take her to school while Mrs. Snaza brings Joey to daycare. After this, she goes directly to school and prepares for her classes. Once the school day is over, Mrs. Snaza hurries to pick up Millie. This is her favorite part of the day! Mrs. Snaza gets to spend some quality time connecting with her daughter, hearing all about Millie’s day. She then takes Millie home and prepares dinner for her family. Once a week, Mrs. Snaza tries to carve out time for herself so she can create her art. She also enjoys hiking and fishing with her family. Mrs. Snaza considers her life to be “busy but rewarding,” and hopes that she is able to maintain this work-life balance. In the future, she aims to continue teaching, perhaps even at the collegiate level. She is also committed to continuing to express herself artistically.

Mrs. Snaza values kindness and is confident that people are essentially good. “I believe that humans can do incredible things when we listen to and care about one another,” she said. “I also believe in service and giving back to our community. I believe in the power of creativity and I think that true innovation can only happen when people are given space to explore their interests without fear of judgment.” Her sincere desire is that people feel accepted and loved. In the classroom it is very clear that she truly values these principles. Mrs. Snaza routinely emphasizes the significance of removing negative judgment from both people and projects. She works diligently to create a friendly atmosphere by welcoming students with cheerful music at the beginning of each class, always wearing a smile, as well as creating a safe space for self-expression. Mrs. Snaza hopes her life will inspire others to be “creative, fearless, kind and accepting.”