SFCAC Staff

** Click on each staff member's name that has a link (indicated in underlined blue) to expand their full bio.

OPERATIONS MANAGER

Molly Campbell, Operations Manager, Assistant Teacher
Close Molly Campbell, Operations Manager, Assistant Teacher
Molly joined SFCAC in January 2007. She holds a BFA in painting from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, and has been a San Francisco resident since 2004. She is a practicing mixed-media artist with a professional background in such Bay Area youth programs as The Marsh Youth Theater, Aim High Academy, and the Exploratorium. In addition to the Art Center, she also works at Presidio Hill School, teaching after school classes.

LEAD TEACHERS

Gail Tarantino, Lead Teacher
Close Gail Tarantino, Lead Teacher
Gail Tarantino holds a B.A. from the University of Massachusetts, Boston and has been engaging children in the creative process at SFCAC since 1989. Gail is a painter and video artist whose work has been shown at the SFMOMA Artists Gallery, Linc Art, and other venues. Her work is also included in a number of Bay Area private collections.

"Being an active participant in witnessing the creative spark that children emit is an experience that I treasure. After a decade of supporting children's creative ideas, I continue to be smitten with their poignancy of language, the visual impact of children's representations and the associations they make while looking at each others project work. Each child's aesthetic choices are so particular to their own unique way of absorbing the world around them. Being an observer of the multiple possibilities for invention that children utilize is an endlessly enriching time spent in the studio."

Thanks to the generosity of an art center supporter, Gail traveled to Italy to attend Reggio Emilia study tours in 2001 and 2003. Thanks to the support of the SFCAC Board and SFCAC parents, Gail was able to particpate in a conference hosted by the North American Reggio Emilia Alliance in 2006.

Erik Parra, Lead Teacher, Assistant Teacher
Close Erik Parra, Lead Teacher, Assistant Teacher
Erik Richard Parra was born and raised in Texas. He attended The University of Texas at Austin where he studied painting with Peter Saul and Michael Ray Charles. After graduation he moved to San Francisco, where he taught at the San Francisco Children’s Art Center. One year later he was accepted into the graduate painting department of the University of Wisconsin—Madison on a fellowship. Upon completion of his MFA he moved to Brooklyn, NY where he maintained a studio, taught art and exhibited his artwork. Erik has been actively engaged with his studio practice about as long as he has been teaching, for over nine years. In his relatively young career he has exhibited in numerous places, including New York, Chicago, and Brazil. He has also lectured, garnered residencies and awards. Currently he is back in San Francisco to open Fivepoints Arthouse which is an artist run alternative exhibition space.

Kristen Foskett, Lead Teacher, Assistant Teacher
Close Kristen Foskett, Lead Teacher, Assistant Teacher
Kristen Foskett was born in 1981 in Cleveland, Ohio, where she dreamed of being a "real artist" until the day when she moved to New York City to attend The School of Visual Arts. She attained her BFA in Illustration and tutored kids in art, and worked in an art gallery on the side. During her impressionable visit to San Francisco she decided never to return to NYC and begin making a life in SF. In addition to being part of The San Francisco Children't Art Center, she currently works for Precita Eyes Muralists doing mural painting and teaching, freelance illustration work, and working in her studio on personal projects.

ASSISTANT TEACHERS and ART PARTY TEACHERS

Katherine Merritt, Assistant Teacher, Art Party Teacher

Laura Simon, Assistant Teacher, Art Party Teacher

Laura Lucchesi, Assistant Teacher
Close Laura Lucchesi, Assistant Teacher
Laura received her B.A. in Visual Arts from the University of San Francisco, where she focused on fine arts with a concentration in photography. During her third year at USF, Laura attended the Accademia Italiana in Florence, Italy, studying photography, art history and Italian language. Laura is currently sharing her time as a nanny for a San Francisco family and dancing ballet at the South San Francisco Civic Ballet, where she has enjoyed the art of ballet since 1989. Laura has also worked as a head children’s camp counselor at Camp Konocti for five wonderful summers in Clear Lake.

Terry Oestreicher, Art Party Teacher
Close Terry Oestreicher, Art Party Teacher
Terry, who has been with the Art Center since 1994, started out as a volunteer. Since then, she has taught in the classroom and at family events and is currently a Sunday Birthday Party Teacher. She received her B.F.A. from the San Francisco Art Institute where she majored in Painting/Sculpture. She works as an art director and works with children of all ages as an Art Specialist in both private and public schools in and around San Francisco.

Amy Fung-yi Lee, Art Party Teacher
Close Amy Fung-yi Lee, Art Party Teacher
Amy Fung-yi Lee received her B.A. in Studio Art from Stanford University in 2006. Since then she has been teaching art and working with kids at several organizations and schools throughout the Bay Area, as well as showing her work in various cozy venues nearby. Though Amy started out mostly painting, she has developed a liking for cross-medium exploration. Most recently she has been focusing on video, performance, and mixed 2-D/3-D installations.

Melissa Karam, Family Workshop Teacher
Close Melissa Karam, Family Workshop Teacher
Melissa is a freelance artist, designer, and children's book writer. She works with both adults and children to teach, empower, and help them recognize and develop their creative potential. At SFCAC, she is involved with Craft Workshops and Art Birthday Parties, in addition to ongoing classes. Melissa holds a B.S. from the University of New Hampshire, and has experience in mixed media, textile and graphic design. Melissa currently teaches evening workshops for adults at the artscenter.

Elena Valencia

Patricia Solis

Emma Fischer

Alli Patch

Kaari Diefenbacher