In Callie Probst’s view, art isn’t simply a subject to teach—it’s a way of seeing the world, a discipline that invites both discovery and persistence. In her first year at Jasper County, she’s already making an impact, teaching everything from eighth-grade art to upper-level drawing, painting, and sculpture classes.

Her path to the classroom was anything but conventional. A Teutopolis graduate, Probst didn’t take her first art class until her junior year of high school. By then, she was already signed up for nursing courses, complete with books in hand. But one elective changed everything. She began drawing portraits in graphite and charcoal, and the response was immediate. “People kept telling me, you have to go into art somehow,” she recalls. Encouraged by the recognition, she shifted her plans and never looked back.

Today, Probst balances teaching with her own thriving side business, Callie McMahon Art, where she has sold more than 300 commissioned portraits over the past seven years. Each piece requires anywhere from five to twelve hours of focused work. “It started with friends and family, but now I have a waitlist,” she says with a laugh. “People just send me photos, and I work from there.”

Her classroom reflects the same blend of rigor and encouragement that has guided her own journey. Probst doesn’t shy away from the realities of art-making: it can be messy, unpredictable, and frustrating. But for her, that’s where the learning happens. “Failure in art isn’t really failure,” she explains. “It’s a chance to adapt, to take your creativity and turn it into something else. Every mistake is a step toward growth.”

That philosophy resonates with her students, who find in art a rare space where perfection isn’t the point. Some discover natural talent; others simply enjoy the break from more rigid academic routines. For all of them, Probst believes art offers something essential: “Even if they don’t become artists, art gives them an outlet, a chance to breathe, a place to succeed in a different way.”

Her excitement for the program’s future is contagious. A new kiln is on the way, opening the door for ceramics and expanded sculpture opportunities. “My students are patiently waiting,” she says, “and so am I.” With experience managing kilns at her previous school, she’s eager to guide them into this new dimension of making.

Equally important are the relationships she’s able to build in Jasper County—something she longed for while teaching hundreds of elementary students in Effingham, often seeing them only once a week. “Here, I can actually have conversations, keep up with their lives, and connect with them as individuals,” she says. Whether it’s asking about a tennis match or noticing the details of a student’s project, Probst relishes the chance to know her students more deeply.

She’s also investing in her own growth, pursuing a master’s degree in art and design with a concentration in art education through Kennesaw State University. That step will allow her to bring fresh perspectives into her classroom while opening future possibilities for teaching dual credit or even at the college level.

Still, her focus remains firmly on her students here and now. She knows that in her classroom, some will uncover talents they didn’t know they had, while others will simply find joy in creating. Either way, the lessons last. As Probst tells them, art is never just about the finished product. It’s about the process—the courage to try, the resilience to adapt, and the joy of discovering what you can do.

For Jasper County Schools, her arrival signals more than a new teacher in the building. It represents an expanded vision of what art can mean in students’ lives: a place where mistakes aren’t setbacks but stepping stones, and where every portrait—whether drawn in charcoal or lived in a classroom—is a portrait of possibility.