Ilyssa (She/Her) is an art educator, multimedia storyteller, and community art and craft organizer from North Carolina. Prior to her role at West End House, she worked as a youth visual arts instructor at Sawtooth School for Visual Arts in Winston-Salem, NC. Among the classes she taught were stuffed animal making, garment/ wearable art, and experimental printing methods. In her own art practice, she is passionate about the intersections between art and social change, in particular, the influence and significance of craft traditions of Appalachia and the Philippines. In culmination of her degree in Apparel Design and Merchandising at Appalachian State University, she created a fashion collection based on pre-colonial Filipino spirituality. 

Ilyssa is an avid seeker and creator for creative collaboration, organizing craft nights at Village Fabric Shop in Winston-Salem, NC, participating local fashion shows, co-creating an art collective for under-represented groups in Boone, NC, leading mending events, teaching sewing classes at her hometown library, making short films with friends, and styling photoshoots. Ilyssa is excited to explore the art and craft communities of Boston and bring her passion for community art making and youth art mentorship to West End House!