SMARTS
Summer 2022 SMARTS Staff
ADMINISTRATION
Sherye Weisz (she/her) - Executive/Artistic Director: Sherye has been involved in the arts and education for over thirty-five years. Growing up in Providence, RI, Sherye took classes at Rhode Island School of Design, was a company member of the nationally known Looking Glass Theatre Company, played flute in state-wide groups and continued her creative pursuits at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts, New York; Emerson College, Boston; and University of Calgary, Alberta. Sherye has been executive/artistic director of SMARTS since 1988. She was on the faculty of Lesley University, Cambridge, MA in the Creative Arts in Learning graduate program for 15 years and was president & artistic director of The UnCommon Theatre Company, a local regional children’s theatre, for 18 years. Sherye is also an educational consultant, providing regional school districts with long and short-term in-service programs that address strategies to enhance student learning through STEAM, integrated arts curriculum and assessment design. She served on the Fine Arts Advisory Council to the MA Commissioner of Education for 6 years and was a member of the Massachusetts Alliance for Arts Education for many years and is currently on the board of Arts|Learning. Sherye’s greatest joys come from her husband Jim of 42 years, her 3 children and her 5 grandchildren.
Tori Augusta (she/her) - Program Coordinator/Office Manager: Tori is a practicing artist and has worked with children for over 10 years. She has been with SMARTS since early 2016. She graduated from UMass Dartmouth in 2012 with a BFA in Design/Photography. Tori was born and raised in Mansfield, MA and is passionate about arts in our community. When Tori is not at SMARTS she spends her time with her partner and five year old son, and enjoys making art and going thrifting.
Alan Clavette (he/him) - Administrative Assistant: Alan teaches music at Studley Elementary School in Attleboro. He earned his Bachelors in Music Education at the University of New Hampshire and his Masters of Arts in Teaching at Bridgewater State University. He is a native of North Attleboro, Massachusetts and attended the SMARTS Cabaret Program for several years. Alan is a returning SMARTS veteran teacher after taking a break for some years and is super excited for this summer.
TEACHING ARTISTS
Pete Tarsi (he/him) – Drama Teacher: Pete holds a Bachelor's Degree in Creative Writing and Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Master's Degree in Education from the University of Massachusetts. He has just published his sixth Young Adult, his third under a pen name along with his popular "Flipping the Scales" trilogy published under his own name. Pete has been teaching physics for twenty-five years at Attleboro High School, where he is also the after-school Drama Coach. During his time there, he has world premiered four of his own original plays. His one-act play "Tracks" has been published by the Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois--one of the three largest play catalogs in the country--and ranked in the top ten most produced short plays by high schools in the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 school years. Pete has three awesome daughters, who all participated in the SMARTS Summer Institute.
Seth Antonitis (he/him)- Percussion Teacher: Seth has been assisting and teaching percussion at the SMARTS Summer Institute for 20 years. He began drumming 20 years ago, mastering several percussion instruments in the process. He is a longstanding member of the Rhythm Room under bandleader Rick Morin and is a freelance musician and private lesson teacher. Seth’s method of teaching centers on passing down knowledge in a fun, interesting, and energetic fashion. Seth earned his BA in Philosophy from The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth.
Claire Munley (she/her) - Visual Arts Teacher: Claire is a practicing artist and has been working with children and teens in the arts for over 9 years. Being her first year with SMARTS, she's excited to bring her passion for painting, drawing, printmaking, textile design, and other media to the program. Earning a BFA in Art Education from UMass Dartmouth in 2014, followed by an MAE in 2020, she's always trying to learn new things to bring to the table. She enjoys spending sunny afternoons in her at-home studio, painting or sewing, accompanied by her cats Mona Lisa and Moose.
GROUP LEADERS/ GROUP LEADER ASSISTANTS
Matthew Wright: My name is Matthew Wright, and for the past five years up until last summer I have gone to SMARTS camp. Every time it was an amazing experience and I am excited to return to that environment!
Madison Durrick: Hi, my name is Maddy. I’m going to be a college freshman at Clark University in the fall. I love animals. I have three dogs! I love drawing, painting and all kinds of crafts. I’m super excited to meet everyone this summer!