_edited.png)
Team Members
Amanda Dodson
Youth & 2D Instructor
Amanda is a painter, writer, and instructor with a mental health therapy background. Starting her career at 13, she has taught art to children and led art therapy for neurodivergent youth. Amanda is passionate about helping students explore their creativity at Pikes Peak Artist Collective.
Sara Mihalko
Ceramics Instructor
Sara is a ceramic artist with 10+ years of experience, blending her love for people and cultures with clay. After studying Anthropology, she pursued ceramics full-time in 2022 and sells pottery locally and online. Her classes focus on confidence, creativity, and skill development in a welcoming, process-focused environment.
Brooke Jenkinson
Ceramics Instructor
Brooke, a ceramic artist and educator, moved to Colorado Springs after earning a BA in Art Education from Montclair State University. With eight years of teaching experience, she inspires students of all ages. An active member of the Pikes Peak Artist Collective, Brooke’s work is influenced by nature’s beauty.
Leah Gonzales
Ceramics Instructor
Leah Gonzales is a dedicated visual artist and educator from Colorado Springs. She received her BFA from Maryland Institute College of Art (2011) and MFA from San Francisco Art Institute (2017). While in San Francisco, she co-founded Space Bar Collective, a participatory alternative art space that raised funds to compensate local and regional musicians during events.
Emi Rivera
Studio Manager
Emi is PPAC’s newest studio manager! She is a lifelong artist of many mediums including ceramics, printmaking, painting and sewing. She loves learning new techniques, science, and history through the lens of art. She graduated from Colorado State University in 2016 as a first generation student with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts. Emi is a forever artist-teacher who is always willing to help.
Meagan Johnson
Ceramics Instructor
Meagan Johnson is a ceramic artist based in Colorado Springs. She studied ceramics in college and has maintained her own home pottery studio for the past four years, where she continues to develop her practice and work with students. She especially enjoys teaching beginners and helping new potters feel comfortable at the wheel.
Savannah Walker
Ceramics Instructor
Savannah is a ceramic artist and painter who recently graduated from College of the Ozarks with a Bachelor's of Art in Studio Art. During college Savannah worked as a pottery assistant, maintaining the classroom, assisting with class demos and tutoring, firing the college's wood, gas, electric, and salt kilns, making clay bodies, and mixing up glazes.
Rhonda Conn-Parent
Youth Art Instructor
Rhonda created the Studio Graduate class after years of teaching children, recognizing their need for structure and creative freedom. "The Grad Class" is an independent art studio where students create based on their vision, with monthly lessons to enhance skills. Limited to 12 students, it fosters collaboration and growth for ages 10-18.
Erin Gillespie
Adult Painting & Drawing Instructor
Erin is a painter, illustrator, and muralist based in Colorado Springs. With years of teaching at Bemis School of Art and other local centers, she’s passionate about sharing her love for art. A professional artist with two fine arts degrees, Erin believes art unites and heals. She’s excited to inspire students at Pikes Peak Artist Collective.
Al Tanner
Ceramics Instructor
Al is a multimedia artist and pottery business owner, teaching ceramics at Pikes Peak Artist Collective. Specializing in wheel throwing, she fosters an inclusive, supportive classroom for all skill levels. Al encourages creativity, connection, and the therapeutic process of clay, whether making functional pieces or sculptures.
Elyssa Klett
Sewing Instructor
Elyssa is a sewist who has been sewing since she was a kid, when her mother forced her to sew her own school uniforms. While she didn’t appreciate her newfound skills then, she has been able to use sewing to take on more creative pursuits as an adult, including a stint where she chose to make any new clothes that she wanted.
Frank Gray
Ceramics Instructor
Frank Gray has been producing hand made pottery since 1969. His training included a college degree in Ceramic Art and an apprenticeship at the Blakeslee Pottery in Lafayette, Co. Primarily a producer of useful stoneware, Frank is also competent building with coils and slabs as well as having a basic understanding of technical ceramics. He has taught on several levels, including individual lessons with beginners. Frank is presently semi retired and has a home studio in Colorado Springs.
AJ Shipley
Ceramics Instructor
AJ is a ceramicist from the Southeast who has recently moved to Colorado Springs. They’re both a craftsperson and an artist, with a dual-sided studio practice that reflects these two aspects of ceramic making, producing both functional goods as well as sculptural pieces — and anything in between — using the pottery wheel. AJ is passionate about accessibility of the arts for all and creating safe spaces where anyone can feel confident in learning a new skill.