'We meet the criteria for well-rounded and thoughtful lessons, but what students are going to remember isn't about what grade they got on a paper, but the feeling that their professors cared for them,' she said. Taking a road trip to deliver the boxes seemed like a 'natural extension of their art education philosophy,' she said.

But the idea for the road trip came later, when they were brainstorming how to reach students who couldn't make it to campus. Gatlin and Assistant Professor Brian Trimble needed to order supplies, split them up, pre-cut materials and& prepare lesson plans for their students. Planning for the boxes started in early July. Gatlin followed all social distancing guidelines: she updated students via text message when the boxes would be delivered, wore a mask and gloves, and delivered the boxes on the doorsteps of her students' homes. 'I wanted to create an 'art party in a box' kind of thing that made them excited about the class since we can't be together.'

'My biggest fear in this switch to digital learning is that I felt like my students were going to miss so much not being in a class doing this together,' Gatlin said.