Co-Presidents
Becca McHale (she/her)
Becca has been living and working in Vermont since 2001. Originally from Maryland, she took many art classes at Maryland Institute College of Art, attended Carver Center, a magnet high school for the arts, then earned her BA in Fine Arts from St. Mary’s College of MD in 2000. She worked as a graphic designer for over 10 years, but is thrilled to be painting, getting involved with the local community, and working with other artists again. Becca lives in Burlington and (besides artistic endeavors), enjoys camping, hiking, yoga, meditation, and spending time with her family. Becca has a daughter in 11th grade at Burlington High School and a 5th grader at the Sustainability Academy.
Margaret Coleman (she/her)
Margaret finished her BFA from the University of MN in 2005 and her MFA from Pratt Institute in 2009. She has had a broad range of experience in the arts from curating and teaching at the University level to developing children’s art curriculum and teaching community education. Many of the awards she has received for her community driven art have included involving the community, working with people of all ages and abilities. She travels frequently giving arts education workshops, curating art shows, and artist talks.
Director
Mikayla Messier (she/her)
Mikayla was born and raised in Vermont and has been teaching art to elementary school aged kids for five years now. She earned a BFA degree in Studio Arts at Johnson State College in 2018 and received a MFA degree in Painting at NVU-Johnson in 2020. Mikayla loves to paint and find new ways to incorporate sculptures in her art. She has been showing many of her paintings around Chittenden County, so keep an eye out and you might see one of her pieces! You can also check out her website at mikaylamessierpainting.com. Besides being an artist, she also loves to read, swim, and travel. Mikayla believes that art is just as much about the process as the finished product and with that in mind everyone can be an artist as long as they have fun making it!
Assistant Director
Cody Fuller (he/him)
Cody is a recent graduate of Saint Michael’s College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Education Studies with a minor in Art and Design. He has a passion for Craft and the Arts. In the Studio, his work is painting, drawing, and writing with a goal to constantly learn and do new things. He’s a folk musician and enjoys outdoor activities like slacklining, biking, and frisbee. His first calling is working in education, and he has worked with kids his whole life in a variety of environments. He aims to make the Arts and the personal interests of students more accessible throughout our community.
Teachers
Yishay Mercy (she/her)
Yishay Mercy is an artist from Des Moines Iowa. She is a costume designer, marionettist, mask maker, and performance artist. Yishay has a love for historical costume, Victorian era history and culture, shadow puppetry, and the circus. She has worked previously in Washington state as an art teacher for afterschool programs, as well as leading a nature education program in the state of Iowa. In Vermont, she worked with a local children’s theatre, designing costumes and directing plays. In her free time, she likes to sing, play music, and create theatrical performances with her friends. She can often be found working on various art projects, with her cat Alamere, and two rabbits, Jacques and Poiret, snuggled near her.
Ashley Fogg (she/her)
Ashley earned her BFA degree in 2018 at Johnson State College and recently earned her MAT degree in Art Education at Saint Michael’s College. Ashley has worked as an early educator for three years. Her favorite part of her role in education is building strong relationships with the children she teaches and getting to know the qualities and characteristics that make them who they are. She loves building her passion for art into the curriculum she creates. In her free time she enjoys working on her personal artwork, which consists of acrylic painting and photography. Aside from working on art she loves paddle boarding on the lake, spending time with my friends, running and especially snuggling with her cat Mocha.
Heather Garland (she/her)
Heather was born and raised in the Midwest and recently moved to Vermont by way of California. She is a practicing artist and outdoors enthusiast who has shown her work in NY, CA and throughout the U.S. She holds a BFA from Indiana University, and an MFA in painting from Pratt Institute. Her journey in education began in NYC in 2013 teaching after school art, science, athletics, and private portfolio development lessons. She has since continued this work and began substitute teaching in general and special education classrooms in northern CA. Heather loves teaching and working with the kids of all ages. When she’s not teaching or creating in the studio, Heather enjoys exploring the wilds of Vermont with her family.
Lillian Read (she/her)
Lillian Read is currently a Senior at the University of Vermont and is double majoring in Studio Art and Art History. Her art medium of choice is a tie between pencil and paper drawing and acrylic paints. In her free time, Lillian enjoys spending time with friends and family, making art (of course), and immersing herself in stories. Whether it be written words, music, or video games, give her a story and she’ll enjoy it greatly!
Olivia Santamauro (she/her)
Olivia is currently a Senior at Champlain College, where she is pursuing a Game Art Major with a Game Programming minor. Her passion for movement and art brought her to a natural inclination towards animation, which she aspires to build her education and eventual career towards. You can find her work on her website, which she updates consistently alongside her education. Her love of movement blends into her daily life as well, as outside of her education Olivia participates in several activities such as dance and rock climbing. Her dynamic blend of interests allows her to keep pace with energetic children, as well as help spark their creativity.
ONE Arts Center 