Our Year Round Staff
This summer, we launched Usdan Online: Usdan's first online arts education program. The program was a great success and we will be announcing our Fall 2020 season on September 14. Learn more about Usdan Online --> HERE.
Kerry Barnhart
Full Time Faculty
Senior Director of Student Affairs
Administration
Oscar Amaya
Full Time Faculty
Facilities Manager
Administration
Anthony Amico
Full Time Faculty
Caretaker
Administration
Courtney Kassinger
Full Time Faculty
Transportation Manager
Administration
Courtney Kassinger has spent her summers at Usdan since 2002 when she first attended as a student. She has served as Discovery counselor, transportation staff, and is now Transportation Manager. Courtney is a teacher (and proud alum!) at Harborfields Central School District, teaching band, chorus, and music, as well as director of the annual Variety Show. She is a member of SCMEA and NAfME.
Julio Garcia
Full Time Faculty
Senior Groundskeeper
Administration
Jillian Greenberg
Full Time Faculty
Director of Education
Administration
Jillian Greenberg is an artist and educator, and Usdan’s Director of Education. Prior to joining Usdan, Jillian managed Studio In A School’s Artist Residency Program. She has taught visual art in schools, organizations, and museums across New York City. Jillian holds a Master’s in Art Education from Teachers College at Columbia University and an MFA from the Chelsea College of Art and Design in London.
David Schecher
Full Time Faculty
Dean of Students
Administration
Dave Schecher returns to Usdan this summer for his 31st season. He is a trombonist, private music instructor and retired public school teacher who has also been the Director of The Long Island Brass Guild for many years.
Olivia Wise
Full Time Faculty
Manager of Marketing & Communications
Administration
Olivia Wise is in her third year and is Usdan’s Manager of Marketing & Communications. For the last eight years, Olivia has worked for arts and culture organizations, and enjoys being surrounded by young people experiencing the creative process all summer.
Motaz Elzalata
Full Time Faculty
Assistant Controller
Administration
Marcos Flores
Full Time Faculty
Junior Groundskeeper
Administration
Al Chiavaro
Full Time Faculty
Facilities Maintenance, Technician
Administration
Stella Shepherd
Full Time Faculty
Donor Relations Coordinator
Administration
Meryl Weinsaft Cooper
Full Time Faculty
Public Relations and Social Media, Consultant
Administration
Lauren Kinane
Full Time Faculty
Enrollment Coordinator
Administration
Stephen Trombetta II
Full Time Faculty
Director of Facilities
Administration
Lorna Dolci
Full Time Faculty
Interim Director of Finance & HR
Administration
Lauren Brandt Schloss
Full Time Faculty
Executive Director
Administration
Lauren Brandt Schloss joined Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts in 2015. With her appointment, she became Usdan’s third leader in a half century and the first woman to hold the position. Bringing 20+ years experience in arts education, at the Queens Museum, MoMA, and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Lauren is committed to ensuring that Usdan is at the forefront of educational and artistic practices. Ms. Schloss earned a B.A. in art history from Princeton University and an M.A. in arts administration from Columbia University.
Lindsay Smilow
Full Time Faculty
Donor Relations Officer
Administration
Lafiya Watson Ramirez
Full Time Faculty
Marketing and Communications, Consultant
Administration
Jodie Embelton
Full Time Faculty
Art, Department Co-Chair
Art
Jodie Embleton is a visual arts educator who has dedicated her career to bringing art education back to inner-city students. Beginning as a ceramics assistant and kiln technician at Usdan, to teacher, and now co-chair, she has a true passion for inspiring young people. Following work at the Neuberger Museum of Art, Jodie currently teaches a visual arts in the Copiague School District and co-chairs Usdan’s art department.
Hawley Hussey
Full Time Faculty, Seasonal Faculty
Curriculum Specialist
Art
Hawley Hussey is an artist who is working between the visual, the written word, and the performing arts. Throughout her career she has engaged in diverse mediums including painting, printmaking, small press publications, artists books, sculpture and installation. Hawley got her BFA from The University of Massachusetts in Amherst and her MFA from Vermont College of Fine Art where she has presented as Workshop Faculty for the Masters Program in Art and Design Education. Hawley served as Education Coordinator and Director of Contemporary Art Education at BRIC Arts Media and as an Art Education Mentor for the New York State Council on the Arts. Hawley is proudly a co-founder of the arts integrated high school, Bronx Envision Academy and she is also a founding member of the Park Avenue Armory Artists Corps where she remains active as a Teaching Artist. Hawley is a contemporary art education activist engaging recent immigrants and special needs students in immersive art laboratories that she builds and calls the HH:ArtLab.
Hawley has been working as Usdan's Curriculum Specialist since the beginning 2020 and has played an integral role in the development of Usdan Online.
Javan Howard
Full Time Faculty, Seasonal Faculty
Writing, Coordinator
Creative Writing
Javan Howard is a poet and writer from the Bronx. He believes that the lived experience is the ultimate teaching tool and uses poetry as a social forum to foster discourse about love, culture, and identity. He currently is the Tap lead mentor for Teaching Artist Project at Community-Word Project. He is also a Teaching Artist for Usdan Summer Camp for The Arts and Teachers & Writers Collaborative. He has also facilitated for The New York State Office of Children and Family Services, Voices UnBroken, The GO Project, and others. Howard participates in open mic events under the moniker "@RighteousTPoet." His work has been featured online at Black Heart Magazine and Brooklyn Stories Vol. 13. He has read his work at The HBO Shop, The Inspired Word Reading Series, Lamprophonic, The Dead Rabbits Reading Series, and more. For more: www.Javanjhoward.com
Diana Crum
Full Time Faculty, Seasonal Faculty
Dance, Department Chair
Dance
Diana Crum works at the intersection of dance and education. She currently serves as Program Director for Movement Research’s Dance Makers in the Schools and teaches dance in NYC and NJ public schools with ArtsConnection, Brooklyn Arts Council and New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Her choreography has been presented in New York, Atlanta, Mexico, and across Europe. Recent honors and awards include Brooklyn Studios for Dance Artist in Residence position (2018), Su-CASA artist residency (2017), and Foundation for Contemporary Art Emergency Grant (2015). 2020 marks her third year at Usdan, where she enjoys dancing in the woods with young people.
Mark Bligh
Full Time Faculty, Seasonal Faculty
Music, Department Chair
Music
Mark Bligh is the director of the Denton Ave Elementary Band (Herricks UFSD, New Hyde Park, NY) where he teaches winds, brass and percussion for grades 3-5. The Denton Ave Band regularly attends NYSSMA Majors and consistently earns Gold and Gold with Distinction honors.
Mark Bligh is a graduate of the Esther Boyer College of Music at Temple University where he received a Bachelor of Music in Music Education with Honors. He received a Master of Arts from Stony Brook University. Mr. Bligh was published in Scholastic for his contributions in an article entitled, “10 Best Musical Apps for Kids”. Mark has been honored to conduct the Winds, Brass and Percussion sectional for the NYSSMA All-State Symphonic Orchestra. Mark was privileged to conduct the 2018 SCMEA Division 1 Central All-County Band and the 2019 WCSMA All-County Elementary Band. Mr. Bligh has performed with the Long Island Wind Ensemble, Atlantic Wind Symphony, Northwinds Symphonic Band as well as various chamber ensembles. Mark is the current Music Department Chair at Usdan Summer Camp for the Arts where he has worked for the past 15 summers.