The power of the people is what makes RAW a nationally-recognized program.
RAW is about the talent, integrity and commitment of our staff to fulfill our mission to "take the art to the kids and help them transform their lives!"

RAW's vision is supported and guided by our Board of Directors. Our staff is currently comprised of 14 regular staff, supported by our team of student & alumni employees.

Mary Flannery, M.A. - Artistic Director and Cofounder (1988)
Mary graduated with her masters in Expressive Art Therapy from Lesley College in 1984.  After graduation she spent eight years working with mentally ill adults at Danvers State Hospital, where she came to understand the importance of art for those who are struggling to be seen and heard. 

Having seen the power of creating and exhibiting artwork that allowed an extremely marginalized group of people to tell their own stories, Mary decided to focus on adolescents and founded Raw Art Works in 1988. 

RAW won a contract with the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services to design and implement the first statewide art therapy program for incarcerated youth.  For six years, she saw kids become repeat offenders because lock-up was the only place where they could gain a sense of belonging and safely have their needs met. 

In 1994 she and her dedicated team of art therapists opened RAW Space in Central Square, Lynn, so that kids would not have to commit crimes in order to find a place to belong.  Over the past 15 years, Mary has been a consistent mentor and guide to hundreds of teens, welcoming them to RAW in their first weeks of high school, celebrating with them at their graduations and helping them find their place in the world beyond. 

Currently, Mary leads the Women 2 Be and Adventures in Fine Arts groups and provides clinical and artistic guidance to the programming team.  She maintains a personal studio in Boston’s Ft. Point Channel and has a strong belief in the power of collaborative art-making.  Mary’s work is grounded in the belief that while it is important that kids create strong artistic products, “the true product is the kids exhibiting themselves for the rest of their lives.”  This spring, she and RAW’s Executive Director, Kit Jenkins, will be honored with the 2008 Distinguished Educators of the Year by Massachusetts College of Art. 

Kit Jenkins, M.A. - Executive Director (1989)
Kit is in charge of overseeing the "big picture" of life at RAW Space.  She is responsible for the fiscal management of the organization and the coordination all fundraising efforts, most recently RAW’s Believing is Building Capital Campaign, which raised over $1.2 million to complete the purchase and renovation of RAW’s 4-story building. 

She has over 20 years of experience working with teens and children as an art therapist, and has a background in photography, dance, and drama.  Kit has been active in regional, national and international professional organizations, serving in a variety of leadership roles.  She is in her eighteenth year on the faculty of Lesley University, and teaches in Cambridge and across the country. 

Along with Mary Flannery, Kit recently completed the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s "Achieving Excellence" program, an executive leadership program offered through Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government for high-performing nonprofit cultural organizations in Massachusetts.  Together, Kit and Mary have been unanimously voted as the 2008 Distinguished Educators of the Year by Massachusetts College of Art.

Program Staff

Jason Cruz, M.A. - Clinical Supervisor (1996)
Jason was born in Puerto Rico and immigrated to Florida with his family at the age of five.  He graduated from Jacksonville University specializing in studio art, photography, and film and went on to earn his Masters degree from Lesley College in Expressive Art Therapy where he received the Outstanding Achievement in Graduate Studies Award given by the faculty and the student body. 

Jason has presented lectures and workshops on art education, behavioral issues, learning differences, race and culture and young men’s issues at venues including the Lynn YMCA, Endicott College, Harvard University, and Lesley College. In 2005 Jason received the Isaac Monroe Award for Service to Youth in recognition of his dedication to the at-risk youth of Lynn.

At RAW, he currently leads three boys’ groups, co-leads RAW Chiefs, runs a court mandated program for male and female juvenile offenders and provides family outreach and crisis intervention as needed. As RAW’s Clinical Supervisor Jason provides guidance to all program staff on the therapeutic issues that arise in their groups and plays a major role in program development.  

Outside of RAW Jason has his own art and photography business, CRUZ ART.  He serves as a youth minister at St. Stephens Episcopal Church in Lynn and is cofounder of Build a New America (BANA) Fellowship that address racial and social issues through action.

Chris Gaines, B.F.A. - Director of the Real to Reel Film School (2000)
Chris is a professional filmmaker and photographer, whose work has screened nationally and internationally at film festivals and on television. In 2007 Chris was awarded a 'Moving Image Fund' grant from the LEF Foundation in support of his current film project,  Areno, a semi-autobiographical narrative exploring lonely souls, unattainable dreams, and comic tragedies of an Asian-American military family living in the Arizona desert. 

In 2000, his film, Direct Objects won Best in Show at the Arizona International Film Festival.  Since receiving the award he has served numerous times as a member of the festival’s jury.  Prior to joining the RAW staff, he worked closely with Emmy Award Winning Journalist Lori Cohen, as a Senior Editor and Assistant Producer on a nationally broadcast business show. He has worked professionally as the assistant director of a televised nightly news magazine, a weekly public television program on Latino interests and a motion graphics designer.  He has taught film at the high school and university levels. 

Chris leads the five groups that comprise the Real to Reel Film School and oversees the film school staff of four.

Susannah Horwitz, M.A. - Art Therapist (2004)
A singer/songwriter, visual artist, and expressive art therapist, Susannah received her BA from Kenyon College and her MA in Expressive Therapies from Lesley University.

At RAW Space, Susannah leads the Welcoming group for students at Lynn’s alternative middle school, Studio Time II, Project Launch!, and co-leads Art 4 Girlz and RAW Chiefs. 

Laura Menucci, M.P.S.-A.T.R. - Art Therapist & Outreach Coordinator (2007)
Laura is a visual artist. Since 2002, she has worked as an art therapist and art teacher for children, adults and the elderly in hospital, residential and community settings. 

Laura received her B.A. in studio art from the University of Vermont and a Master of Professional Studies in Art Therapy and Creativity Development from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY.  She has recently begun to work with metals to make jewelry.

As an Art Therapist, Laura leads POP Art, Studio Time 1, Art Tag, and co-leads Raw Chiefs.

As the Outreach Coordinator, Laura helps parents & kids sign up for groups and helps to maintain RAW's presence within the community.

Silvia López Chávez, B.F.A. - RAW Space Teaching Artist (2008)
Silvia López Chávez has her roots in Dominican Republic, where she received her artistic foundation at Altos de Chavon the School of Design, in La Romana. She moved to Boston, and completed her BFA at the Massachusetts College of Art in 1999. For the last 10 years, Silvia worked at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston as graphic and product designer, and starting in the Fall of 2008 she joined the program team at RAW Art Works as Teaching Artist, being also responsible for the design of RAW’s publication materials.

Silva has exhibited her paintings nationally and internationally in different exhibitions and private collections. She has been actively participating in community art programs, painting murals and leading summer art workshops in the Boston area. Her design has been recognized by HOW magazine’s In-HOWse design awards and the AIGA’s Best of New England Design Awards.

At RAW Silvia leads the RAW Energy & START groups, as well as one of RAW's oustide service programs.

Kathe Swaback, M.A. - Program Consultant (1994)
One of the founding members of RAW Space, Kathe served as the Program Director for many years and helped develop RAW’s vision and design.

In 2002, Kathe relocated to Portland, Oregon and has continued to work with RAW staff to build and implement effective systems for planning, evaluation, and visioning.  She also helps to tell the story of RAW thorough the co-creation of brochures, booklets, and other print materials.

Kathe is unabashedly passionate about program evaluation.   She has spoken at conferences on the subject of program evaluation and is currently working with Bill Bulick on a monograph for Americans for the Arts on the history of the youth arts sector. 

Outside of RAW, she has recently founded her own youth arts organization, Art Up, LLC and became a foster parent to twin toddlers. 

Development Staff

Marcia Felth, M.Ed - Foundations & Corporations Specialist (2005)
Marcia’s primary focus is grant writing. Marcia graduated with a BA from Barnard College and received her M.Ed in Counseling from the University of Vermont. Prior to grant writing, Marcia had a career in corporate training and development.  Marcia is a published poet. 

Suzanne Lenz, M.A. - Director of Development (2008)
Suzanne works with Marcia and Alex to raise RAW’s annual operating support, with particular emphasis on building board, major donor and corporate relationships. Previously, Suzanne was the director of development for the Children’s Museum of Portsmouth, where she oversaw the museum’s $3.6 million capital campaign to build the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire. Suzanne has been in fundraising for 10 years and is also a mixed media artist.

Administrative Staff

Shelby Morrison, B.S. - Office Manager (2007)
As the Office Manager, Shelby is often the first face to greet visitors to RAW. Shelby is a Lynn native and a graduate of Salem State College, where she received her Bachelor's in Business Administration.  She is a volunteer mentor for RAW’s Project Launch program, which helps students achieve their goals for life after high school. 

Matt Feener, Film School Teaching Assistant (2007)
Matt participated in Real to Reel for three years where he made films and participated in the Boston 48 Hour Film Project. He is currently attending Massachusetts College of Art, and in his second year as an alumni Staff member of RAW.

Desiree McMahon, Film School Assistant (2008)
Desiree (Dez) participated in Real to Reel for three years where she made films and participated in the Boston 48 Hour Film Project. She is currently attending Salem State pursuing a degree in Communications.

RAW Chief Program @ RAW
Teen Mentors (program founded in 1996)

Up to 16 Chiefs are hired each year to participate in this paid leadership development program.  With substantial training and support from the art therapists, they co-lead art therapy groups for younger children and their own peers.  They set goals for personal growth, build communication and conflict resolution skills, learn practical applications of art, and gain multicultural perspectives and discuss emotional issues.

SUCCESS OF RAW CHIEFS
Part of the success of our Chiefs is due to collaboration. RAW makes phone calls, meets with families, DSS, churches or any other "players" in the worlds of our kids. We help to repair bridges that have been broken and make new connections that kids may not have previously utilized.

• All RAW Chiefs have stayed in school (dropout rate in Lynn is twice the state average) and over 80% of the seniors in the program have applied and been accepted into college
• The Whitney Museum of American Art, for its exhibit entitled "Childhood Revealed," selected two artworks by a RAW Chief. There were 600 submissions. The exhibit opened at the Whitney and susequently toured the country
• This program received the President's "Coming Up Taller" Award 

CONNECTED TO THE COMMUNITY
RAW provides Chiefs with multiple opportunities to be seen as important contributors to their communities:

• ART SLAM
  RAW Chiefs are active in planning, practicing, and producing an ART SLAM. Family members, friends, and collaborators are invited to an evening of RAW talent where Chiefs read poetry, showcase their own artwork, write and perform songs, and show videos that they have produced.
• SUMMER ART PROGRAMS