Palm Harbor University High School art teacher Wipoj Huse and Dunedin Highland Middle School's Sydney Truby won 2026 teaching awards from the Pinellas Art Education Association (PAEA).

Huse was named 2-D Secondary Art Teacher of the Year. Truby received the Rookie Art Teacher of the Year award. The PAEA announced the winners at the Visual Arts District Training on Aug. 31.

Palm Harbor University High, which serves 2,413 students in grades 9–12, celebrated Huse's honor on its Instagram account on Aug. 25, calling the recognition well-deserved. Dunedin Highland Middle School, where Truby teaches, serves 842 students in grades 6–8.

All four PAEA winners teach in Pinellas County.

Two other educators also earned honors. Shannon Livingston of Brooker Creek Elementary School was named Elementary Art Teacher of the Year. Livingston also won first place in the Kids Tag Art Pinellas teacher contest in 2024. Nate Greenwood of East Lake High School took the 3-D Art Teacher of the Year award.

The PAEA also gave its Arts in Our Community Award to Kids Tag Art Pinellas, a partnership between Pinellas County Schools and the Pinellas County Tax Collector's office. The program lets fifth-grade students design vanity license plates sold through an online store, with all proceeds going back to participating schools for art supplies. Since 2015, Kids Tag Art has raised more than $500,000 for elementary art classrooms and involved nearly 30,000 students, according to the tax collector's office.

"Every tag purchased is more than a keepsake; it's an investment in the art classrooms and students who make Pinellas County more vibrant," Pinellas County Tax Collector Adam Ross said in an Aug. 5 statement when the program received the award.

The program's 12th year kicked off Aug. 11. The online store at kidstagartpinellas.org is slated to open in mid-November, with an estimated 2,500 students participating.