Meet Our Team
Hartsdale Leadership Team
Maria Caban Valenzuela | Director
Maria Caban Valenzuela graduated from Manhattanville University with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication/Media and Marketing. For over 2 years, Maria has dedicated her career to providing and developing interpersonal connections and community building. She’s passionate about One River’s values on higher education in contemporary art for upcoming artists of all ages. Together, her mission is to enhance students’ new and existing skills for everlasting growth.
Julia Bertussi | Director of Education
Julia Bertussi (she/her) is a multimedia artist and educator interested in learning new ways to engage with art and share her love of art with others. Julia is a graduate of Ithaca College where she got her BA in Art Education. She found her passion for abstract, organic multimedia art in Ithaca and continues to find inspiration for this subject in her own art and in the artists with whom she surrounds herself. Julia is thrilled to be a part of One River School–a transformative art space that allows her to continue to grow as an artist while engaging in exciting art practices with others.
Eileen Guerrero Mateus | Assistant Director of Member Services
Eileen Guerrero Mateus is a Colombian Illustrator based in New York. She obtained her BFA in Illustration from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 2022. She is heavily influenced by her memories from early childhood in Colombia, fairy tales, space, nature, and the odd, so she tells various personal and unique messages in her art. Eileen channels her love for nurturing creativity into her classroom and surrounds herself with fellow creatives. Drawing from her own childhood experiences, she is committed to plant seeds of imagination and expression in the lives of students. Her dedication to inspiring the next generation of artists is rooted in the joy and freedom she discovered as a young creator. Eileen believes creativity and self expression are very important to the human experience and she is committed to making sure everyone keeps their creative flame alive, from kids all the way to adults.
In-Studio Educators
Zinah Ruff
Zinah is a multidisciplinary artist from New York City. She enjoys traditional and textile mediums such as colored pencil and crocheting, and is on an artistic quest for experimentation and a journey of self-discovery through her work. Zinah finds great inspiration from horror media and novels, life experience, familial bonds, relationships, and her cat, Chanel. Introspective by nature, each piece they make is an experiment that allows her to explore her emotions, identity, and sense of self. She is pursuing a BFA in Painting and Drawing at Purchase College and hopes to continue sharing her art, stories, and her truth with the world.
Casey Stewart
Casey Stewart graduated from the University of Rhode Island in 2024 with a degree in Art and Criminology. Casey loves mixed media, though painting and crocheting are her favorites; she tries to incorporate both. Casey’s goal as an art instructor is to inspire students through creative expression, whether positive or negative. She expresses how art teaches us patience and acceptance with a diverse view on “beauty". Casey admires the One River’s classroom setting, where, although One River’s projects are lesson-based, outcomes are drastically unique and tailored to each artist. When Casey is not teaching or working on their artwork, you will find them reading a fantasy or thriller novel.
Jaime Morrow
Jaime Morrow is a dynamic artist and educator. She earned her BFA in Illustration from University of Hartford before diving headfirst into the world of children's book illustration. With over a decade of experience teaching art, Jaime brings creativity and passion to all her projects, making art engaging and enjoyable for audiences of all ages. Her personal work showcases a unique blend of mixed media, acrylics, and watercolors, resulting in captivating and thought-provoking pieces. When she's not immersed in the art world, Jaime can be found tending to her beloved plants or diving into the world of anime.
Mike Koloski
Mike Koloski has been studying digital graphics for over 25 years. He earned a BFA in Animation from Savannah College of Art + Design with a focus on 3D character animation/design and technical direction. He has worked professionally as a graphic designer and illustrator. Mike has worked closely in education both in special education and mainstream classrooms. He is enthused to continue the integration of art and technology. Mike is excited to introduce the next generation of digital artists to the medium.
Sydney Finkelberg
Sydney Finkelberg is a recent graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where she earned a dual degree in Game Design and Electronic Arts. She has a strong background in 2D and 3D game art, animation, graphic design, and digital illustration, working across a variety of creative programs. After graduating, she is looking to get more experience in teaching so she can get her masters in art education and teach art full time. She wants to bring her
passion for games and digital art to the classroom to inspire others to find their own unique artistic voice.
Veronica Romano
Veronica Romano is an Alumna and Adjunct Professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology in the School of Art & Design Design in NYC. She is dedicated to inspiring a passion for design by implementing innovative critical thinking skills to create rewarding works of self-expression. She is our go to person for exhibition planning and art installments for events.
Claire Roane
Claire is a current graduate student at Pace University, getting her masters in Art Education. She graduated from Salve Regina University with a BA in Illustration with minors in secondary education and French. She knew from a young age that she was very creative and wanted to pursue creativity during her schooling. She draws inspiration from all around her and hopes to one day be an author and illustrator for children’s books. Mainly utilizing watercolor, she also works with acrylic and colored pencils. She enjoys anything outside, animals and traveling! Her hobbies include golfing, singing and playing video games. A fun fact about Claire is that in both kindergarten and 4th grade, she wrote that when she grew up she wanted to be an art teacher!
Dora Tomulic
Dora Tomulic is a graduate from the Academy of Fine Art of University of Zagreb, Croatia with a MA in Fine Art. Following graduation, Dora spent a decade in Sri Lanka where she first worked as an art director in advertising before transitioning into teaching. Together with a group of like-minded artists and designers, she founded a design school (Academy of Design, AoD). She was fully involved in setting up the programs and writing course curriculum. Additionally, she was the editor of a monograph about the archaeoastronomy of the Diocletian’s Palace in Split, Croatia. She also contributed a chapter to a book on the poetic and theoretical ideas in visual art. In addition to theoretical research and teaching, she is a practicing artist as well. She has participated in many shows both locally and abroad, as well as having a solo museum exhibition. In her free time, Dora enjoys hiking, gardening, and landscape design. She is excited to share her knowledge and passion for art with the students of One River.
Olivia Kavanaugh
When she is not in the classroom, Olivia’s artistic focus is in oil painting but has experience with many other mediums as well.
AJ Tignonsisi
AJ Tignonsini received his BFA in Design + Animation with a concentration in 3D Modeling at Mercy College in 2020. He's pursuing a Certificate in 3D Animation at WCC (2022-2023). His passion for teaching is rooted in the creative process. Aj's teaching philosophy contains both technical and imaginative perspectives which assist students at any skill level. He believes that to be a great artist, determination is needed to execute creativity. Students will then develop a critical eye and become more inclined to learning new techniques or softwares. Aj is experienced in the animation pipeline from Storyboarding, painting, modeling, animating, all the way to the final render.
Damien Torres
Damien Torres is a New York-based artist who has worked on various art projects, from trading cards to comics. Before graduating from The Kubert School in 2014, he got his first professional art job working with Cryptozoic on the card set for “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey.” Ever since, he’s worked with publishers like SomosArte, Aspen, Dynamite, and several others. Damien also has credits on Netflix docuseries, “The Family,” as well as HBO Max docuseries, “Generation Hustle.” Damien is the current artist on “The Winchester Mystery House” for Source Point Press, and is an artist for Atomic Mass Games’ “Marvel Crisis Protocol.” Damien enjoys teaching at the Hartsdale location of One River School of Art and Design.
Join Our Team
Career opportunities at One River School allow passionate artists, educators and lovers of art to share their love and knowledge of art and enhance the lives of people they connect with everyday.