Leadership

Alex Wasalinko

Alex Wasalinko is a poet, artist, and educator. As ArtistYear’s Marketing and Communications Manager, she is responsible for managing ArtistYear’s marketing and media presence.

Alex received her B.A. in English literature and philosophy with minors in art history and French from the University of Scranton. She also holds an MRes in creative writing with a concentration in ekphrastic poetry from the University of Strathclyde. As a writer, she often uses visual art, the natural world, and urban landscapes to explore themes of selfhood. She also enjoys experimenting with found language and imagery as a medium for expression. 

Prior to starting her role as Marketing and Communications Manager at ArtistYear, Alex served as an ArtistYear AmeriCorps Creative Writing Resident Teaching Artist for two years at Alexander Adaire Elementary School in Philadelphia.

She has taught children’s after school arts classes and managed organizations’ social media in Scranton and Philadelphia, PA.  In 2019, Alex was a research assistant and guest alumni playwright for the University of Scranton’s original oral history play, The Porches Project, which presented the history and evolution of Scranton’s historic Hill Section via community members’ stories.  

In her spare time, alongside continuing her artistic practice, Alex enjoys practicing photography, cooking, and hiking. 

Betsaleel (Bets) Charmelus

A facilitator, community advocate, musician and an auditory story-teller, Betsaleel (Bets) Charmelus is the National Program Director of ArtistYear. Previously, he served as ArtistYear’s Philadelphia Lead, managing and providing professional development to Philadelphia AmeriCorps Resident Teaching Artists, and serving as program liaison to the School District of Philadelphia.

Bets brings a Trauma-Informed approach to his work as National Program Director. He has served as a lead instructor for the Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation’s Trauma Informed Practice for Teaching Artists course in Philadelphia, and as program director for the anti-violence, music non-profit Beyond the Bars. As the primary architect and leader of the Professional Development Training Program at ArtistYear, Bets integrates arts learning with Trauma-Informed principles to support Resident Teaching Artists in creating safe, inclusive, creative spaces for students.

Previously, Bets was a music instructor for survivors of sexual trauma with Joseph J. Peters Institute’s B.O.S.S. Program (Boys Overcoming Stigma and Shame) and was a coordinator for men’s mental health support groups. As a performer, he is an aural storyteller in the acclaimed, all-black rock band ill Fated Natives. In all facets, Bets is passionate about finding and claiming new spaces, building strong, inter-connected communities, and exploring the difference between questioning oneself and asking oneself questions.

Bets is a graduate of Temple University where he received a bachelor’s degree in Information Science and Technology. 

Eugene Cottrell

Before joining ArtistYear as the North Carolina Lead, Eugene Cottrell was a decorated educator and band director in North Carolina public schools.

He began his 25 year teaching career as an assistant director of bands at West Point Middle and High Schools in West Point, Mississippi.  In 1999 he moved to Northwood High School and Horton Middle School in Pittsboro, NC where he  was challenged with rebuilding a program that had been neglected and fallen to only 28 enrolled students.  Within 3 years the total number of students at Horton and Northwood grew exponentially to over 130 enrolled in the band program. After 6 years the program at Northwood had grown large enough to allow for full time high school duties.  Under Eugene’s leadership, both schools’ bands garnered superior ratings, with the Marching Chargers of Northwood racking up 1st places awards at local, regional and national competitions. More than one administrator commented that “the Marching Chargers are giant slayers” because they had defeated so many bands larger than them for overall grand championship honors.

After 15 years at Northwood, Eugene moved to a new high school in the Sandhills region. Before retiring in 2021 his wind ensembles, jazz bands and chamber ensembles racked up superior ratings in state competitions while playing college level literature from the grade V and VI  NC state lists.  During his time at there, Eugene saw the band almost double in size and receive countless 1st place caption awards and numerous grand championships for best band of the day.

In 2005 Eugene was awarded the Mr. Holland’s Opus Award which recognizes music teachers who best demonstrate the spirit and dedication of “Mr. Holland” portrayed by Richard Dreyfuss in the 1995 hit movie, Mr. Holland’s Opus.  In 2011 Eugene was awarded the Jackson Parkhurst for Special Achievement by the North Carolina Symphony.  This award recognizes NC teachers “that make a lasting difference in the lives of students of all abilities and backgrounds, serve the community in an exemplary manner as a role model in music education, instill a love for music in children and inspire students to reach appropriately high musical standards.”

Eugene graduated from Concord College in Athens, WV. In addition to his music and teaching practices, Eugene is a published photographer with his photos appearing in North Carolina galleries. He also loves golf…more than it loves him back.

Hayley Krichels

Hayley Krichels is an artist and educator. She received her BA in Photography from Bard College, and has been working in art education for the past seven years– first in the non-profit realm at RedLine Contemporary Art Center and the Clyfford Still Museum, then as a teacher with Denver Public Schools. As an artist, she is primarily interested in humor and play, which she explores through photography and sculpture.

Julia Durkin

Philadelphia-suburb native Julia Durkin grew up surrounded by the arts as a musician and visual artist where she gained a deep appreciation for the impact of arts education. She brings this perspective and passion to her role as Chief Finance Officer and Director of Human Resources at ArtistYear. Julia leads finance, compliance, and human resource planning and implementation in addition to supporting ArtistYear’s operations, strategy, and realization.

Prior to ArtistYear Julia served as Operations Director for Play On Philly, where she created the Human Resources department, guided the organization through six years of successful financial audits, and managed the budget growth from $1.2 million in 2013 to $2.4 million in 2018.

She has also served as Operations Director and Director of Compliance for Senator Bob Casey’s successful 2012 reelection campaign.

Julia received a Bachelor of the Arts with a double major in Performance Studies and Political Science at Northwestern University. She also holds a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania, and a certification in Human Resources from the Society for Human Resources.

As a lifelong musician, she studied bassoon with Shirley Curtiss, performed in chamber ensembles at Philadelphia’s Settlement Music School, performed in the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association All-State Orchestra under the direction of Rossen Milanov, and participated in numerous musical theatre productions over the years. She also enjoys painting and using chalk pastels in her spare time.

Maggie Phillips

Maggie Phillips is an educator and movement artist who uses performance, digital media, and experimentation to explore connection and storytelling. She has extensive training in contemporary dance and dance improvisation. As Philadelphia Lead, Maggie mentors a large cohort of Resident Teaching Artists (RTAs) and through that hopes to cultivate courageous, thoughtful, and innovative leaders in the teaching artistry field.

Maggie previously supported our onboarding and program coordination, and served as ArtistYear’s ACCESS (Artists Connecting Creatively to Enrich and Support Schools) Lead. Maggie managed RTAs as they served in Philadelphia schools and as content creators in partnership with YouTube Kids. Maggie also served for two years as an ArtistYear AmeriCorps RTA — as a member of the Class of 2020 at F. Amedee Bregy School in Philadelphia, and as a Senior member of the Class of 2021 with ArtistYear ACCESS.

Maggie Phillips is originally from Eau Claire, WI and grew up immersed in dance, music, and competitive figure skating. Maggie is a graduate of Middlebury College where she received a dual bachelor’s degree in chemistry and dance.

Stephanie Markman Mayén

As ArtistYear’s Chief Development Officer, Stephanie Mayen is responsible for the full range of funding development activities for ArtistYear, ensuring stability and responsible growth for the organization over the short- and long-term.

Stephanie has been committed to public education since the beginning of her career, spending the first portion of her professional life in the classroom. She taught middle school English as a Teach For America Corps Member in St. Louis and went on to teach in a high-performing charter school. She parlayed her experience in the classroom into her work with the National Math and Science Initiative (NMSI).

Stephanie joined NMSI in 2014 as Grants Manager and held a number of positions during her seven years with the organization, rising to Director of Fundraising and Operations by the end of her tenure. During her time at NMSI, she developed and supported NMSI’s strategic growth strategy, led NMSI’s federal fundraising efforts, raised over $30 million dollars from public and private sources, developed processes and procedures for the organization, and developed fundraising strategies to diversify funding for the organization, all with the goal of maximizing impact and student success.

Stephanie earned a Master’s degree in secondary education from the University of Missouri – St. Louis and Bachelors’ degrees in English and communications from Southern Methodist University.

Stu Warshawer

An experienced educator, school leader, and builder, Stu Warshawer is CEO of ArtistYear. He previously served as ArtistYear’s Chief Program Officer, developing, managing, and evaluating ArtistYear programming, ensuring the program yields our vision of positive outcomes for students, schools, and AmeriCorps Resident Teaching Artists.

Stu began his career in education in 2003 and brings extensive experience working in New York City, Philadelphia, and Camden Title I Schools. In 2019, he became a KIPP Fisher Fellow and founded a High School in Camden, NJ. Prior to launching a school with KIPP, Stu served as a Principal for 5 years with Mastery Charter Schools, leading the team at Harrity Upper School in West Philadelphia to breakthrough student achievement results. Stu hosted several ArtistYear Resident Teaching Artists during his tenure at Harrity. In 2019, Harrity was recognized by the School District of Philadelphia for advancing two categories on the city’s School Progress Report between 2014 – 2018.

Prior to serving as a principal, Stu served as a middle school teacher in New York City public schools, and as a Dean of Students for Achievement First Charter Schools in Brooklyn. In addition to being a career educator and school leader, Stu is a father, husband, an avid rock climber and competitive athlete who was featured with his students on season 10 of NBC’s “American Ninja Warrior.”

Stu grew up in Media, PA and graduated from Williams College with a Bachelor of Arts in Religion.

Utsa Hazarika

Utsa Hazarika is an artist and writer. Her research-based practice ranges across video, installation and photography, and explores how an interdisciplinary dialogue can push us to think about power, memory and resistance. Her work has been exhibited in India and the United States, and she has been awarded residencies and fellowships internationally, including by the Queens Museum, Asian Cultural Council, and the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in the United States; Lijiang Studio in China; and Khoj International Artists’ Association in India.

Through her work on Artreach India’s innovative arts programs, Utsa managed art education projects focused on women and children in low-income communities and shelters for the homeless in Delhi. She has since worked on educational initiatives in the arts at The New School Art Collection, and the CASA Teaching Residency at the Queens Museum, which engages K-12 students in the NYC Borough of Queens public schools.

Through both independent projects, and work with local and international organizations, Utsa has over a decade of engagement with community-based research, advocacy and education. Her work has focused on indigenous communities and marginalized urban communities in South and South East Asia, and immigrant communities in Britain and the United States. Her art and academic research has been published internationally including in Ethnos: Journal of Anthropology (UK), Trans Asia Photography Review (US) and The Caravan (India). She holds an MFA in Fine Arts from The New School and an MPhil in Social Anthropology from the University of Cambridge.

Margo Drakos

Committed to a life of service that harnesses the innovative power of technology and the transformative potential of the arts, Founder and Trustee Chair of ArtistYear, Margo Drakos is a concert cellist, founder of tech companies, impact investor, and proud active duty Military spouse. Margo served as CEO of ArtistYear from its inception in 2016 to 2021.

 Margo is Managing Director of Draper Richards Kaplan Fdt. (DRK), a global venture philanthropy firm supporting early stage, high-impact social enterprises. In this role, she serves on the Boards of Ameelio, Public Rights Project, and Rocket Learning. Margo has spent the past decade working with private and public sector institutions leveraging technology and strategic alignment to realize scale, revenue generation, and sustainability. In this capacity, Margo served as Partner and Chief Technology Officer at McChrystal Group LLC.

Margo has spent the past decade working with private and public sector institutions leveraging technology and strategic alignment to realize scale, revenue generation, and sustainability. She has recruited, led, and motivated matrix and dispersed organizations of engineering, product, marketing, and growth teams in the non-profit and commercial spaces while maintaining high-quality standards.  Until 2017, Margo spent four years as Chief Technology Officer and at McChrystal Group LLC, a software and service company designed to optimize organizational performance.

Margo began working as a professional musician at age four, performing on national radio and television commercials.  Over the course of her career as a cellist she performed as a soloist, chamber, and orchestral musician on the world’s preeminent stages on five continents. Margo entered music conservatory at fifteen as a double major in cello and composition and graduated from Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia in 1999. She served as Artist-in-Residence and Cello and Chamber Music faculty member at the Aspen Music Festival and Manhattan School of Music from 2002-2008. Margo’s positions included cellist of the American String Quartet, Principal Cellist of the Oregon, San Diego, and Seattle Symphonies, and Associate Principal of Pittsburgh Symphony.  She toured regularly with “Musicians from Marlboro” and has recorded and produced for Sony Classical, Naxos, Arabesque, and Longhorn Records.

In 2007, embracing the power of technology to democratize access to the arts, Margo co-founded and led her first start-up, InstantEncore.com, the world’s leading provider of web and mobile technology to the performing arts. In that role, Margo executed strategic partnerships to enable some of the first live web and mobile concert streaming and download events from Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House.  In 2011, she was made a Partner at the SwitchCase Group, the lead investor in InstantEncore.

In 2010, Margo was honored as a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum, a community of extraordinary global leaders under forty. Margo has been invited to speak on technology, entrepreneurship, and the arts at institutions and events including Americans for the Arts, Carnegie Mellon University, the Global Competitiveness Forum of Saudi Arabia, TechVenture in Singapore and the World Economic Forum at Davos.

Margo received a Masters in Human Rights from Columbia University and holds Executive Degrees in Global Leadership and Public Policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School and Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Her publications have appeared in the Aspen Institute Magazine, The International Affairs Review, The Stanford Social Innovation Review, and The Cornell International Law Journal.

ArtistYear Trustees

Margo Drakos, ArtistYear Founder & Chair of the Board

Eric Booth

Robert Carpenter, PhD.

Polly Kahn