Scott Steder grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and received his Associates in Art from Harper College in 2009. It was during this time he was inspired to pursue a life as a ceramic artist and teacher. Shortly after, he finished a BFA in Ceramics from Northern Illinois University and continued on to a Post-Baccalaureate from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Following his time in Knoxville he was accepted as an artist in residence at the Cub Creek Foundation in Appomattox, Virginia. For ten months, he and fellow resident artists lived in an isolated environment where they built and fired wood kilns, processed clay, and developed bodies of work.

In the spring of 2014 he was accepted into the Wichita State University MFA program. During his time in Wichita he traveled Japan, Korea, Taiwan and to Paraguay to build a large wood fired kiln for the Annual Asuncion Biennial. He was also awarded a Graduate Student Fellowship from NCECA for his investigation of local ceramic material in Kansas. Since his time at Northern Illinois he has shown work all across the country including the NCECA National Student Juried Exhibition in Providence, RI and Beyond the Brickyard at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, MT.

Steder graduated in 2017 and is now living in Platteville, WI with his wife, son, and stepson. He is a lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville where Scott heads the ceramic and 3D art areas, teaches drawing, 3D design, sculpture, public art, and survey classes. In the fall of 2017 he initiated the first annual Platteville empty bowls project and has been working to create stronger bonds between the arts and the community.