Art and Sewing Instructors

Marianna Elrayes
Art
Marianna Elrayes is a muralist and art educator. She graduated from Penn State University with a BA in sculpture, and received her master’s equivalent in Art Education from Kutztown University. Trained by Mike Miller, an avid believer in the uplifting effect of murals in communities (Mike Miller, Art Evangelist), Marianna has led students in every step of creating a mural. She has helped create murals on 2-story buildings as part of the Mural Arts Philadelphia program, as well as on school walls and windows. She served as a studio artist, muralist, and art teacher at GoggleWorks Center for the Arts in Reading, Pennsylvania.
Marianna has also taught middle school and high school in Fort Worth, Texas. Her curriculum included Art I - Art III, and Advanced Placement Art, where students could earn college credits by submitting a portfolio to the college board.
After having her daughter she focused on community art. She founded an art collaboration group with three of her graduated standout art students called Juxtaposse. Juxtaposse created murals in public schools, banners for local theatre groups, hosted pop ups at open mic events, and designed and printed t-shirts for local bands and artists. She recently relocated with her family to the area and is excited to continue supporting her community through the arts.

Ruth Carmona-Murray
Cooking
Ruth grew up in Mexico and learned early on the finer skills of cooking. Her career took her around the world, ever-expanding her culinary skills. She developed her French cuisine skills under the tutelage of Papa and Maman Nivelle who owned a food truck that sold at the open markets in Tours. Traveling through Japan, Spain, and Germany, she continued to widen her range of culinary skills. In Germany, she met her current mentor, Chef Thomas Eckert, who owns a restaurant in Hohenstein, Germany. She now makes her home in Southern Maryland, where she is eager to share her passion for cooking, languages, and cultures through her teaching skills.
