MEET OUR NEW INTERN!
A Conversation with Melisa Vallovera, Intern
Melisa Vallovera is our new Development Intern
*At Creative Art Works, we are proud that all management and administrative staff have direct personal and professional experience in the arts, education and/or youth development in addition to nonprofit management. Most of us remain active as performers or artists in our spare time. This experience provides a direct connection to our mission — we want to bring art-making experiences to as many people as possible.*
The daughter of immigrants from Paraguay, Melissa was born in Queens, the cultural crossroads of the world, but grew up in Union Township, NJ. She studied editorial illustration at Montclair State University and is currently in her last semester at Baruch College pursuing a master’s in arts administration.
Why did you decide to go into Arts Administration? I was paying my way through art school by working at a physical therapy office and they offered me a management position. I realized I'm probably a lot better at administration than I am at illustration. When I found out there was a major in arts admin, I applied to Baruch College and got in.
What makes you the right person for your job? I feel like my strength has always been empathy. I’m always trying to understand where people are coming from and how I can use that empathy to be a member of the team. I know how to work with people, even difficult people.
Print by after-school student at PS/IS 278
What have you been doing for Creative Art Work so far? I’ve been looking at data and trying to draw conclusions from the numbers, which could help us demonstrate our impact in new ways. I've also been looking at past lesson plans. I particularly remember one on printmaking and another one based on Mexican muralists. We're very lucky that our Program department creates such great lessons plans. I wish I could take some of these classes!
How do your parents feel about you being in the arts? They were always very encouraging. My mom loves to do crafts. She taught me how to knit, crochet, paint. My Dad’s mother was a piano teacher. And my sister is a writer. My parents keep telling us we should make a book together.
Tell us about a truly memorable experience you’ve had? I went to Columbia, South Carolina, to see the solar eclipse a couple of years ago. That was an experience I wish everyone could have, because it's almost like magic. It's like you enter the Twilight zone and everything is just so weird and unnatural for a few seconds and then everything goes back to normal. That was an incredible experience.