Meet Our Team
Woodbury Leadership Team
Clark Ruggeri
Director
Clark (he/him) has been a creator his whole life. He loves seeing something develop from nothing. His passion for creativity and love for contemporary art led him to earning his BFA in Cartooning from The School of Visual Arts. After a few years managing an entertainment center, he began his art education career teaching in Westchester, NY. Shortly after relocating to Long Island to raise his family, Clark and his wife opened two successful small businesses, including an art studio of his own. He is confident that these experiences were all stepping stones to the director role at One River School in Woodbury, and looks forward to a bright and successful future for all involved.
Alyssa Nuzio
Assistant Director of Member Services
Alyssa (she/her) studied Art History at the Catholic University of America. After getting a chance to teach art classes at the Long Island Children's Museum , she realized she wanted work that was more focused on art education, which is what led Alyssa to One River. She loves our mission of transforming art education and making it more accessible for everyone! Ever since getting her first colored pencil set, Alyssa has always wanted to be surrounded by the arts, and feels One River is a great place to see so much talent amongst the Long Island Community. Alyssa loves working with oil paint, chalk pastels, and colored pencils to create landscapes she has seen and give some new life to old family photos.
Sam Reali
Assistant Director of Education
Sam (she / her) was born and raised in Staten Island, New York, where she grew up consistently interested in the magic of creating. Her enthusiasm for learning through a creative lens led her to complete her BFA in Studio Art at SUNY Cortland, where she was first introduced to teaching in the arts. Prior to relocating to Long Island, Sam had earned her MFA in Studio Art at the University of South Carolina. She found joy through teaching, working in art galleries, and leading independent curatorial projects. Her artistic practice and personal life are fueled by the beauty and growth that comes from community and curiosity, and feels that One River is the perfect place to cultivate these values!
In-Studio Educators
Victoria Pizzarelli
Victoria (she/her) is a well rounded artist who enjoys drawing, painting, sculpting, and digital art. She graduated from the University of Hartford Art School with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. She specialized in photography, along with a double minor in art history and ceramics. Currently, Victoria is attending Queens College to earn her masters degree in visual art education. She grew up surrounded by artists in her family and developed a love for art from a young age. She wants to help children find their own creative outlet just as she found photography for herself.
Shakira Renee
Shakira (they/them) is a studio artist with an associates from Suffolk County Community College in Visual Art, and a BFA from SUNY Oneonta in Studio Art. They are a multifaceted artist with knowledge ranging from traditional to digital art, but specialize in drawing & painting. Shakira is passionate about teaching all ages and abilities, as well as dedicated to creating a safe space for everyone they work with.
Poulomi Mukherji
Poulomi (she/her) is an Animator, Designer, and Director. She holds a BFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and has directed animated content for various ad agencies, TV shows, and educational institutions. She is passionate about mentoring others and loves working at One River, where she can help students of all ages foster their passion in the arts.
Kathleen O'Brien
Kathleen (they/them) is a classically trained animator and illustrator, who specializes in the digital medium. They have a BFA degree from San Jose State University in Animation/ Illustration, and a BA degree in Studio Art with a focus in Digital Media. Kathleen has worked as a professional animator and illustrator for various studios and as a freelancer. They are also a hobbyist cosplay EVA foamsmith. Kathleen likes cartoons, comic books, science fiction, DND, and video games. They take great pride in providing the next generation of animators with a strong understanding of the fundamentals of animation.
Emily Torres
Emily (she/her) majored in Visual Arts and is a fine artist, specializing in figure drawing. Her favorite medium is charcoal. Emily especially loves working at One River because she gets the chance to teach children of all ages and spend time with individuals who share her passion for art and education.
Sarah Astegher
Sarah (she/her) studied Illustration at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She specializes in traditional mixed media but also loves digital art and uses similar techniques as traditional mediums to create a layered hand painted storybook look. Sarah adores all things fairytale and has a love for illustrated and animated storytelling. Because of her large family and background she loves children, and after being taught by amazing teachers and professors Sarah hopes to challenge, inspire and nurture children of all ages to express themselves and strengthen their abilities and their love for art!
David Shear
David (He/Him) is a passionate art teacher with a BFA in Cartooning from the School of Visual Arts (SVA) and a Masters in Art Education from Long Island University (LIU). He has been a creator his whole life whether that be creating comics in college and whimsical illustrations of Locations in New York City and even working as a Game Developer working on 2D game graphics. David has been teaching online classes on how to draw anime characters for years, and has even been hired by Putney Student Travel to teach courses on Anime Illustration in Japan. His interests include Anime/Manga, Pokémon, Video Games, Dinosaurs, and Art Museums. As a self proclaimed “Art Nerd“, his passion is contagious and goal is to get others as excited to learn as he is to teach.
Bill Donovan
Bill Donovan (he/him) is a Long Island-based artist whose work blends abstract and representational images within intricate geometric and isometric compositions. He holds a BFA in painting from the University of Massachusetts, an MFA in painting from the University of Iowa (where he was awarded the Iowa Arts Fellowship), and an MA in Art History and Criticism from Stony Brook University. Bill's writing, which includes catalog essays and press releases, has been featured in print and on popular art websites; he has interviewed and written about notable contemporary artists such as Eddie Martinez, Amir H. Fallah, and Anoka Faruqee. His art has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including a two-year solo exhibition, An Education by Hand, at the Suffolk and Nassau Memorial Sloan Kettering centers.
Ethan Locke
Ethan (he/him) graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a BFA in Illustration and a concentration on Concept Art for Video Games and Entertainment. He is predominantly a digital artist with experience in all mediums and loves designing creatures to make people laugh, cry, and scream while grounding these designs in the worlds in which they exist. He loves narrative storytelling and also adores video games, epic fantasy books, and cool stuff in general! One River is his first experience teaching, but he is very excited to be surrounded by such a great staff to help guide our students to make and create anything they want!
Student Services Coordinators
Veronica Agarwal
Veronica (she/her) is a working graphic novelist who loves sunflowers, summertime, and animals! She has a BFA in Cartooning from the School of Visual Arts, and currently publishes books with her writing partner and husband. She's half-Italian, half-Indian, and her comics reflect the diversity she grew up with.
Haley Keener
Haley (she/her) is a mixed-media artist and designer who graduated from Binghamton University with a BFA in Graphic Design. Through her paintings and mixed-media pieces, she captures the enduring memory of her summer house, a place woven into the fabric of her identity. Her art merges found objects—scrap metal, tools from her grandfather’s shed, and fabric from her grandmother—with techniques like oil painting, crocheting, sewing, and photo transfers to reflect the fragmented nature of memory. She also has over a decade of experience working as a special needs caretaker and has always had a passion for working with children!
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.