As a socially engaged artist, educator, and researcher, I create participatory experiences that ignite ideas and connect people and communities. I design programs that synthesize knowledge across disciplines by putting my expertise as a teacher and artist into conversation with other experts from STEM, Arts, and Cultural practice in order to delight both the young and young-at-heart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Design and build out of school time programming to serve students and their families following a schedule change at the school. Programs include a partnership with the YMCA of Greater Boston, tutoring, athletics, and a brand new arts enrichment program called the Make Move and Jam Clubs. <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Starting from scratch during the 2020-21 school year the program grew a culture of participation in extracurricular activities. By March, 215 students (48%) participated in Out of School Time (OST) activities every week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Arts enrichment content in the first year of the program included Dance<\/a>, Media Arts and Photography<\/a>, Fashion, Poetry, Gardening, and Street Art. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Programs slated for Year Two so far include gardening, Tae Kwon Do, Dance, and a pilot artist residency program funded by a grant directly to Visiting Artist, Nora Valdez. By the winter we hope to include Elementary School Coding and Capoeira. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The school\u2019s population includes over 90% black and brown students with 48% Black, 41% Latin@, 2% Asian, and 2% who identify as more than one race. There are about 15% students who receive special education services, and 16% who are learning English as an Additional Language.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n Created systematic development and communications calendar to document and share the work of the school so that donors and other constituents understand the work that teachers<\/a> and students<\/a> do every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Managed donor and foundation relationships to steward the positive impact of the school through data management and consistent outreach through a variety of channels, from social media to in person relationships; and donor letters to volunteer and board driven telephone campaigns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Analyze qualitative survey data from teacher professional development platform to find trends and connect to the narrative of Project Zero in impact stories and other analyses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Co-author a white paper about micro-credentials (Teacher Professional Development). Develop tool to orient teachers to the cognitive demands on Learners of EAL, and compile resources for EL and K-5 Quality Performance Assessments team to use in coaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Develop, teach, and curate interdisciplinary student-centered curriculum in an innovative multi-modal arts outreach program. FLY has since been adopted by the Riverside Art Center where the programs team continues to provide OOST programming, summer and weekend classes, and community events in collaboration with other CBO\u2019s. Manage teaching staff, and operations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Teach speaking and writing skills for English as a Foreign Language instruction for the equivalents of Kindergarten, 7th grade, 9th grade, and 11th grade. Used art and design as a medium of motivation and instruction. Give assessments of speaking and writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Design curriculum for PreK and Kindergarten , art classes, and some science classes. Teach Pre-K-5th grade. Receive training and certification for TEFL, CLIL, and Bilingualism via the MEC of Madrid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Manage up to 10 employees day to day tasks. Control inventory and purchasing for upwards of 100k SKU’s for a department with $1 million annual gross. Manage relationships with corporate office, other stores, and vendors during transition to central inventory control.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n Provide technical assistance and on-boarding support for Development team at Conservatory Lab in order to create institutional continuity for new staff and consultants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wrote pilot tour curriculum which received local and national press coverage for Middle<\/a> School<\/a> Tour<\/a> program focused on Lynn Public Schools strategic plan. Contributed to larger education and curatorial strategy as Beyond Walls deepens and scales their programming.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Wrote curriculum materials and adapted a traditional Chinese children’s story to scaffold TESOL, SEL, and STEAM learning goals through a cross-disciplinary visual and dramatic arts framework.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Contribute to start-up team to develop content and processes for a new app that connects parents using examples in children’s media to promote and model SEL skills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Assess spoken and written English. Develop test-items for speaking tests. Monitor other speaking-test examiners and raters for Quality Control and inter-rater reliability. Participate in linking studies and piloting of tests and test items.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Deliver design-learning and character analysis in the context of the Technical Theatre class and serve as a long-term substitute during a prolonged absence by the TD, including supervision of the shop, set-construction, and running the boards during weekly assemblies. Design and coordinate volunteers for costumes. (see Theatrical Productions<\/a> below)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Manage product websites for importers of Art Materials using skills in product photography, graphic layouts, Spreadsheets, HTML, CSS, WordPress and transfer to print catalogs and product headers, as needed. Assist at trade shows and create product demos. Launch social media efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Perfect and reduce time on hand-folding production process by 40% and train new production team to hand it off. Streamline person-run magazine photo-layout process and set design guidelines in collaboration with COO and other design-team members using Adobe CS (Photoshop, Bridge, InDesign, Illustrator). Track and fill social media and orders using CMS (Salesforce, HootSuite).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Designed garments based on description and\/or by patterning and modifying from existing vintage pieces. Trained and managed 2 interns and gave pattern-making and drawing lessons to owner. Maintained industrial Merrow and Zig-zag machines as well as 2 heavy-duty home machines. Run productions of 5-7 items, and make patterns to source larger runs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Give visual arts and digital photography instruction to young learners. Contribute to story-telling during ideation and rehearsal and back-stage work during performances. Design paper-bag-based flower costumes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Teach English as a Foreign language to people from 3 years old to adult. Use art directly with young learners to foster language acquisition in visually and kinesthetically rich environments that reflect authentic American culture. Select mostly art-industry adult clients, including people in the graphic design, curatorial, and fine arts professions and help them to improve their linguistic range and control of industry specific language via radio, magazines, and journals focused on the arts.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n Ubiquiotous Obsolescence was inspired by a call for entry of things that we use once and throw away. Thinking about the coffee bags that my friend saves in his coffee shop, I decided to try making something from them, and the result was a Dandelion Light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mahtava means Spectacular in Finnish, and this enormous breathing inflatable creature inspired by supernovas and sweet-gum pods took up residence at the 2023 FOOLmoon in the Ann Arbor Farmer\u2019s Market. It has since been installed in a few other locations including private parties in Brookline and JP. If you are interested in having Mahtava visit you, drop me a line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A participatory shadow play that combined a place-based media project focused on bugs, caterpillars and flowers with puppets created by visitors to Alice in WonderFOOLs. Taking the perspective of odd scales experienced by both Alice and the Caterpillar from Alice in Wonderland, visitors got to see their own works at ten times the size! In addition, a second perspective from the Caterpillar<\/a> was featured in GLOW TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Host a preview and test for the final installation of Emerging Wonder, and share a screening of other process and place based drawings with live flute music and shadow-puppet maker workshop for adults. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Design and facilitate a site specific installation in the gazebo at Riverside Park that connected people across our shared experiences in coping with and breathing through the height of the pandemic caused by COVID-19. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Create video short for GLOW TV while the YpsiGLOW festival was remote in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Facilitate a participatory digital project focused on urban ecology to honor the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Inspired by the work of Finnish composer Ainojuhani Rautavaara, the work combines digital animation, sound, and participatory elements, and was modified to include at-home workshops so that people could participate while observing public health physical distancing measures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An invitational open-studio showing of current digital installation work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Participate in a community photo-association project<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Cathedral of M-14 selected Photos, and Lake Superior Rocks digitally printed quilt wall-hanging<\/p>\n\n\n\n Installation in collaboration with colleagues from FLY Creativity Lab to document our work with youth and raise local awareness of Marie Tharp, a pioneering woman cartographer from Ypsilanti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Curator for the show and display Walk-in Honeycomb installation<\/p>\n\n\n\n Interactive fiber installation to celebrate the diversity of people and choices as it makes Ypsilanti a stronger community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Curator and showed Prints, Drawings, and Fiber Works in Progress<\/p>\n\n\n\n Added paintings and collaborative mobile from FLY project to the permanent collection of the community center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Handmade Book and Documentary Project<\/p>\n\n\n\n Video documentation project in collaboration with Spanish Artist, Curra Rueda<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prints drawings paintings (one-man show)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prints, drawings, paintings (one-man show)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Drawings of leaves and flowers in group show<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prints based on leaves in group show<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n 2019, 2021, Curated and printed a magazine featuring the impact of Environmental Education at Conservatory Lab sponsored by a grant from The Cedar Tree Foundation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 2018-2021 Production Editor and Author for Conservatory Lab’s blog <\/a>content designed to feature unique aspects of the school’s educational model. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kuriacose, C. , Warn, A. (2018) A Movement Towards Personalized Professional Learning: An Exploration of Six Educator Micro-credential Programs. Boston, MA. Center for Collaborative Education. accessible on: http:\/\/cce.org\/files\/CCE-Micro-credentials-White-Pape.pdf<\/a> We brought our transportable mural, a foldable Agamograph to share with HGSE AOCC attendees. Building on the previous year students presented what they have learned about Design Thinking. Students and Mr. Santiago then helped lead a maker project where session attendees got to make a mini-Agamograph out of paper to take home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Representing Conservatory Lab in collaboration with students and Art Teacher Jos\u00e9 Santiago, and visiting artist Nora Valdez, we presented a work of art and a method of designing a student-centered arts-driven project for other teachers and schools. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Design and facilitate a webinar to feature some of the practices that built a strong community for students at Conservatory Lab during the period of remote learning due to the pandemic caused by COVID-19 and how they will inform future practice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Facilitate live and asynchronous workshops<\/a> to raise awareness about Amphibians in the United States and around the world. PARC stands for Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and each year they coordinate a nationwide campaign called Amphibian Week<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Collaborate with WonderFOOL Productions Executive Director and staff to launch a social media workshop designed to create community through drawing and workshops to create drawings, lanterns,<\/a> and other do-it-at-home projects during isolation. <\/p>\n\n\n\nDetails<\/h5>
2018-2021 Senior Manager of Development and Communications
Conservatory Lab Foundation, Dorchester MA<\/h3>\n\n\n\nNotable Grants and Accomplishments<\/h5>
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2018 Research Assistant
Project Zero; Cambridge, MA <\/h3>\n\n\n\n2017-18 Quality Performance Assessment Intern
Center for Collaborative Education; Boston, MA <\/h3>\n\n\n\n2013-17 Program Director, FLY Creativity Lab, Ypsilanti, MI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Notable Grants and Accomplishments<\/h5>
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2007-09 Conversation Teaching Fellow
Colegio San AgustinMadrid Spain<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2005-07 Conversation Teaching Fellow,
CEIP Valderrey; Algete, Madrid, Spain <\/h3>\n\n\n\n1999-2005 Craft Department Manager
Pearl Art & Craft; Chicago, IL<\/h3>\n\n\n\nConsulting Projects<\/h1>
2021-22 Development and Communications Consultant, Conservatory Lab Foundation, Dorcheter MA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2019 Education and Non-Profit Consultant
Beyond Walls, Lynn MA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2018- 19 Curriculum Designer
Reflection Theatre Company, Cambridge MA and China (remote)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2018-19 UI-UX and Education Consultant
KindScreen, Allston MA <\/h3>\n\n\n\n2013-17 English Langauge Assessment Consultant
Michigan Language Assessments; Ann Arbor, MI <\/h3>\n\n\n\n2013-17 Guest Lecturer and Costume Designer
Greenhills School, Ann Arbor MI<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2011-20 Digital and Graphic designer
SCP and Kunst & Papier; Palo Alto CA (remote)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2010-13 Production Consultant; Photozini Inc; Menlo Park CA <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2011-12 Fashion Design and Production; Weltenbuerger LA
Los Angeles CA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2012 Guest Instructor
Drama Bee Summer Camps; Los Angeles, CA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n2006-09 Curriculum Designer and Instructor
Studio in a Backpack Independent Art and English, Madrid, Spain <\/h3>\n\n\n\nArt Showings<\/h1>
Ubiquitous Obsolescence Dandelion Light<\/a>: Summer 2024
Unbound Visual Arts Overlook Gallery, Brighton MA<\/h5>\n\n\n\nMahtava: Spectactular Space Creature<\/a>: FoolMoon, April 8, 2023
Wonderfool Productions, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nEmerging Wonder Shadow Ballet<\/a>: FoolMoon, April 1, 2022
Wonderfool Productions, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nOpen Studio: Emerging Wonder and other Films, March 25, 2022
Jamaica Plain MA<\/h5>\n\n\n\nBREATHE: <\/a>Ypsi Glow, October 29, 2021
Wonderfool Productions, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nYpsi Glow and Glow TV, October 30, 2020
Wonderfool Productions, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nJamaicaWay Matins:<\/a> Fossil-Fools, April 3, 2020,
Wonderfool Productions, Kerry Town, Ann Arbor, MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nIn-Between THoughts, September 2019
Invitational Showing, Jamaica Plain, MA<\/h5>\n\n\n\nPhotoRelay, April-May 2018
Peabody Terrace and Petsi Pies, Cambridge MA<\/h5>\n\n\n\nIn the Midst of Our Portraits April 2018
Gutman Library, Cambridge MA<\/h5>\n\n\n\nPopX: Marie Tharp, October 2016
The Ann Arbor Art Center, Ann Arbor, MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nFLY Teacher Feature: Honeybee Festival, September 2016
The Off-Center Gallery\/FLY Creativity Lab<\/h5>\n\n\n\nUNTIED-UNITED, December 2016
DIYpsi\/Riverside Arts Center, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nFLY Teacher Show, October 2015
FLY Creativity Lab, Ypsilanti MI<\/h5>\n\n\n\nThe Circle Show, Spring 2015
FLY Creativity Lab\/Full Circle Community Center, Ypsilanti Michigan<\/h5>\n\n\n\n“El Torrejon” 2007
Segovia and Madrid, Spain<\/h5>\n\n\n\n“Candidam Nubem” 2006
Madrid, Spain<\/h5>\n\n\n\nBlossoming, Summer 2005
River North Gallery District Starbucks, Chicago, IL<\/h5>\n\n\n\nUrban Flowers, Fall 2004
Anna’s Bar*, Chicago, Chicago IL<\/h5>\n\n\n\nFall: Group Show, Fall 2003
Monkey Business, Chicago, IL
“Forest” textile piece in window, assorted prints, mask and jewelry<\/h5>\n\n\n\nTurning, Fall 2002
Gallery B, Chicago, IL<\/h5>\n\n\n\nFall, October 2001
Gallery B, Chicago, IL<\/h5>\n\n\n\nPublications, Editorial, and Essays<\/h1>
[and Blog: http:\/\/cce.org\/thought-leadership\/blog\/post\/whats-a-microcredential<\/a> ]<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\nConferences and Selected Workshops<\/h1>
Harvard Alumni of Color Conference 2024: Mural Illusions Club Agamograph<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Harvard Alumni of Color Conference 2023: Building Empathy<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Conservatory Lab Foundation in Collaboration with Conservatory Lab Charter School
2021 Webinar: Carry On, Carry Forward<\/h5>\n\n\n\nPARC Amphiban Week, June 2020, June 2021<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Make it out of the Ordinary: Wonderfool Productions Fool Moon Community Spring 2020<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Songs To Urban Ecology: Wonderfool Productions and Harvard Graduate School of Education <\/h5>\n\n\n\n