February 17, 2021
Remembering Emily Trespas
Beloved art instructor passes away at 49Emily Trespas, a beloved member of our faculty in the art department, passed away on February 11, 2021, after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Tributes poured in on Instagram and Facebook after news of her death was shared with the Andover community.
Emily began her Andover career in 1999 and throughout her tenure taught introductory and advanced-level courses in painting and drawing, printmaking, and visual studies. In addition to studio classroom teaching, she coached Outdoor Pursuits and Power Walking, and served as a house counselor in Morton House for 17 years. Her infectious energy, bright smile, and boundless creativity lifted so many in the Andover community.
In 2014, the Academy awarded Emily the Edward S. Harkness Instructorship. Prior to her passing, Dean of Faculty Jeff Domina visited Emily to appoint her to the Independence Foundation Teaching Endowment and officially honor her as faculty emerita.
As Emily wished, a memorial service will be held on campus at a time to be determined.
“There are few teachers who have gone so far beyond instructing me, but as a mentor, sharing in her pedagogical theory, so keenly observing trends in student learning, and approaching students with care simultaneously serious and playful. I’m thinking about Ms. Trespas’s creative philosophy, challenging lessons, and commitment to cultivating students as not just technically skilled artists, but observers and communicators of the physical and emotional worlds.” — Eli Newell ’20, via Instagram
A Sample of Emily’s Art
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