Champlin Park’s Kathryn Adler Excels in Volleyball and Art
Anyone familiar with Champlin Park High School’s volleyball team knows about Kathryn Adler.
The 6’1″ senior is considered as one of the top volleyball players in the state. But her skills go well beyond what you see on the court. She’s also a talented artist.
“I just sort of grew up with it, and then about five years ago, I discovered painting and I found that’s something I love to do,” said Adler. “And I’ve always been interested in art history as well, so that sort of sparked everything so far.”
Anyone who’s been to Champlin Park for a game has probably seen Adler’s work without even knowing it. She is the artist responsible for the mural of the big Champlin Park logo near the gym doors.
“It’s the first thing the athletes see when they walk in for their match or their game, and I think that’s really cool,” Adler said.
It’s a piece that school staff members asked her to do during her sophomore year.
Champlin Park senior Kathryn Adler stands next to a mural of the Rebels’ logo she painted her sophomore year.
“She’s just an outstanding student, and then her artwork is a whole other dimension of her, and it’s just so cool to see,” said Al Axness, a physical education teacher at Champlin Park who helped recruit Adler for the mural project.
Adler’s murals were done freehand, using only a projector as a guide.
“I had my drawings, and then used that projector to put them up on the wall,” Adler said, explaining her artistic process. “And then I would sketch that [piece] and then I would go in with paint.”
She used the same process on a series of murals located just outside of Champlin Park’s wrestling room.
“Doing this process, I learned a lot about anatomy and also wrestling itself,” she said. “I got to learn about all of the different moves and what moves are legal and, what high school wrestling is.”
One of the pieces done by Kathryn Adler, located in the hallway leading to Champlin Park’s wrestling room.
Her art is just one reason why Champlin Park staff members call her a standout student.
“She just does everything with the highest integrity. She works so hard at whatever she does,” Axness added. “She’s not going to cut corners, she’s going to do everything to the best of her ability.”
While Adler is recognized for volleyball, she carries a GPA of 3.86, and she’s in the beginning stages of selling art on Instagram.
For Adler, it’s important for folks to know that she’s more than a skilled volleyball player.
“I think it’s very important to recognize multiple talents and multiple interests, just to show the depth of my personality and who I am as a person,” she said. “It stretches much further than volleyball or just academics, and I think that goes for everybody.”
In the fall, Adler will go to school at Jacksonville University on a volleyball scholarship. She hopes to major in business and minor in art.
Related: CCX Sports Spotlight: Kathryn Adler, Champlin Park Volleyball
