Kristina N. Wyatt is the Dean of Continuing Studies. Before SAIC, she was an institutional research coordinator at York County Community College, Associate Dean of Continuing Studies at the University of the Arts, Director of Curriculum and Assessment at Berkshire Arts & Technology Charter Public School, and Program Director at the Prospect Foundation. Kristina taught studio courses and seminars for 18 years at multiple institutions and was a course developer for Saint Joseph’s College of Maine. She has degrees in art education from the University of the Arts and broadcasting & film from Boston University.

Maddie May is a Chicago-based artist, educator, curator, and Assistant Dean. Their multi-sensory artworks investigate Midwestern class and turbulent histories, spanning textile, sculpture, print, scent, and sound. May holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a BFA from Kendall College of Art and Design. They have worked in continuing studies across institutions including Chicago Printmakers Collaborative and Kendall College of Art and Design, among others. They were also an executive pastry chef in Michigan before moving to Chicago and would love to talk to you about your favorite restaurants and bakeries!

Ashley Lamb is a Chicago-based artist, educator, and Assistant Dean. Before joining Continuing Studies she taught college students how to turn their ideas into 3D objects through wood and metalworking techniques, and has worked in instructional fabrication for over a decade. She holds an MA in Art Education from SAIC, and BA in both Fine Art and English Literature from Kenyon College. She is passionate about creating welcoming, nurturing environments for people of all ages to learn and grow in. 

Carly Newman is a Chicago-based artist and Administrator. She holds degrees from Beloit College and SAIC, and has worked for several galleries, design studios, and non-profits across Chicago, including Comfort Station, Kavi Gutpa, Crucial Detail, and SAIC’s own SITE Galleries. While a student at SAIC, Carly was first introduced to Continuing Studies through her roles as an ECP Teaching Assistant and ECPSI Exhibition Assistant. 

Her current art practice consists almost entirely of collaborative work. Recontextualizing ‘needing help’ as a position of power, her work disrupts an individual-centered discourse, highlighting its limits and restrictions through radical disability visibility and activism.

Riley J Riley is a filmmaker and educator originally from Holland, Michigan, now based in Chicago. They graduated from Grand Valley State University with a B.S in Film and Video Production and a minor in Sociology in 2022. Within filmmaking, they specialize in screenwriting, directing, and producing. Prior to coming to SAIC, they taught screenwriting at Compass College of Film and Media and worked as Assistant Director of the National High School Institute of Film at Northwestern University.

Tifanny Santana Salazar is the Continuing Studies Student Advocate. Prior to working at SAIC, she was a Student Worker and Administrative Support at the Office of the Registrar at Arcadia University for over three years and has also worked as a conversational Spanish and academics tutor. Tifanny received a BA in English Literature from Arcadia University. She was also awarded the ’Johns Hopkins Book Award’ in 2013, and her passion for literature and writing continues to grow.

Jamie Seney is a Chicago-based artist and arts administrator. Their art practice investigates race and class, with an emphasis on ancestral relationships, veneration practices, and dispossession. Jamie holds a Bachelor’s degree in Art Practice from Stanford University. Prior to joining the staff at SAIC, Jamie was the Development Assistant at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha, Nebraska. In their free time, they can be found designing tattoos or catching up on the latest episodes of One Piece.