I am very excited to lead the vibrant visual and performing arts program here at RE. As the director of arts, I oversee all of the visual and performing arts programming at the school and endeavor every day to elevate the stature, breadth and depth of these programs within Miami and around the country. I work alongside the other administrators of the school to focus on the 3 As: Arts, Academics and Athletics. I believe that when all of these things work seamlessly together, a school like Ransom Everglades truly becomes its best self. As a seasoned recording artist and professional saxophonist, I bring my love for jazz and commercial music to the students in the classroom. I work with all of the bands at the school in various ways and have enjoyed getting to know all of the amazing musicians. Outside of school, I love watching football and playing golf as well as spending time with my wife, daughter and two amazing dogs.

Since arriving to RE in 1995, I have had an amazing time watching students grow as artists designers and citizens. I teach four levels of studio art and architectural design, orchestrate the ever-joyful Mirthfest and help organize the annual Thanksgiving drive for Miami Rescue Mission at the upper school. My BA is in art from the University of Alabama at Huntsville, my MFA is from the University of Miami (thesis on aquatint etching), and I have a Master of Art in Religion from Trinity International University. I taught 10 years before I came to RE: painting, figure drawing, printmaking, art history and even history of furniture and architecture (sometimes several places in one day) at the University of Miami, Florida International University, Miami Dade Community College, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, International Fine Arts College and Design and Architecture Senior High. My love of teaching art was a happy accident while teaching the one class that was a part of my tuition remission at UM. My father wanted me to go to law school. In my spare time, I go to the Bahamas.

Now in my 36th year of teaching art to middle school, high school and college students, and in my 29th year at RE, I continue to be excited about teaching drawing, painting, 3-D design, sculpture and jewelry-making. The same excitement inspires my work as a practicing artist. After earning a BFA from the University of New Hampshire and an MFA in painting from Brooklyn College, CUNY, I taught art at Choate Rosemary Hall in Connecticut, Churchill School in New York City, the University of Wisconsin and the New World School of the Arts in Miami. While I have lived in Miami for 30 years, I grew up in Washington, D.C., New England and Southeast Asia as the daughter of a Foreign Service family. My children are both RE alums (Classes of 2011 and ’14), and my spouse is a professor at the University of Miami Law School.

I joined Ransom Everglades in 2007. I am a visual arts instructor, specializing in ceramic art. I teach three levels of ceramics with a goal of helping students find and develop an independent style. I also am a sponsor for the Student Government Association and the senior class, working closely with student leaders and helping them coordinate and execute initiatives that benefit the RE community. I hold a BA from the University of Florida and an MS from Florida International University. I love the outdoors, golfing, cycling, surfing and fishing. I am also the proud father of three children, and my wife is an art therapist.

At Ransom Everglades, I instruct and encourage middle school students to become self-directed learners, resilient and creative problem-solvers and skilled craftspeople within the visual arts. I am a longtime resident of Coconut Grove who has worked at RE for 25 years. I received a BFA from the original Miami – Miami University in Oxford, Ohio –  and an MFA from the other Miami –  the University of Miami in Coral Gables. I am primarily a two-dimensional artist who enjoys experimenting with materials and pushing the boundaries of printing and painting. I am the proud parent of three RE alumni and the wife of a sports columnist.

Once I completed a bachelor’s degree in psychology, I changed direction and followed my lifelong passion to earn a master’s degree in art education. I have since taught studio art courses at RE for 20 years, and I am honored and fortunate to work at such an amazing place. Not many people in life can say they love what they do for a living, but I do! I am the Visual Arts Department Coordinator at the middle school, and I teach digital art and design and photography classes. My goal for my middle school students is for them to see that having a creative outlet in life enriches the soul. I was born in Santiago, Chile, and I am the proud parent of two boys. Outside school, I love to make art, read, spend time outdoors and hang out with friends and family.

This is my first year teaching at Ransom Everglades and I am excited to share my passion of the arts with my students. I am a visual artist born and raised in Miami who explores the evolution of graffiti and calligraphy through an abstract lens. I'm a Gulliver Prep alum who earned my BFA in Drawing and Painting with a minor in Art History from Florida International University. I'm a former museum educator from Museum of Contemporary Art North Miami and Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami. I've been happily married for 19 years to my husband who’s a pediatric nurse, and just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl named Anaïs this summer. I currently have a web shop where I sell my artwork via print, streetwear and fashion accessories.

This is my 15th year teaching visual arts at Ransom Everglades. This year I teach Natural Light, Portraiture, Photography 1 and the new interdisciplinary art/science course, Art Design and Technology. I have been a practicing artist throughout my tenure at RE, and I love to share my passion for conservation and landscape photography with students. By night, I photograph in the wilds of the Everglades and beyond. I then bring these images to a wider audience through art fairs, exhibitions and festivals throughout Florida. My work is collected nationally and is in the permanent collection of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and Biscayne National Park. My undergraduate degree is from the University of Miami, and I am pursuing my MFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design.