Marquis Studios is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization providing arts-in‐education services to 170 New York City public schools annually. We strive to develop a strong partnership between artists and teachers by providing arts programs to supplement traditional classroom teaching techniques. Each residency or workshop focuses on a specific visual or performing arts discipline selected by school staff and administration.
Marquis Studios administrative staff is comprised of twelve employees with occasional help from interns and volunteers.
Ryan has been a proud member of the Marquis Studios team since 2012. He loves international travel, roller coasters and writing. An Army veteran, he is originally from Seattle, where he graduated from the University of Washington before relocating to New York. Ryan has a background in music – he plays guitar and has toured North America with his own bands, and as tour support for other acts. He has worked extensively as a stage manager for Cardone, the Ultimate Vaudeville Magician. He has been a house manager at Manhattan Repertory Theatre. Ryan is currently stage-managing a developing musical, written by James Franco and David Van Asselt. Ryan is a writer and actor at Studio 4 NYC, where he has spent the summer in a filmmaking masterclass taught by James Franco.
Born and raised in New York City, Laura is passionate about making the arts accessible to everyone in her community. She attended Reed College in Portland, OR, where she received a B.A. in Art, with a concentration in sculpture and book arts. Laura has worked with a number of organizations throughout the city, which has given her firsthand experience in the positive effects of the arts. She first joined Marquis Studios as an intern in 2015, and is excited to continue making an impact as part of the team.
For 25 years, Paula has devoted her career to enriching the lives of children in New York City. Paula worked as a teaching artist for various arts education organizations while earning her Master of Arts in Educational Theater at New York University. After graduating NYU, Paula worked for the New York City Department of Education as a high school drama teacher. Moving into the non-profit world, Paula worked as an Education Associate at TADA! Theater.
Paula was in charge of afterschool programming at the theater as well as dozens of public schools throughout the five boroughs. She became the Program Director at East Side Community High School overseeing their arts program collaboration with Urban Arts Partnership (then known as Working Playground). Paula then served as the Executive Director at Breakthough NY, an academic enrichment program for motivated middle school students from low-income families. Most recently, Paula ran Families First, a non-profit, early childhood center serving the Cobble Hill, Brooklyn community for nearly 40 years. Paula has extensive experience as a grant writer, development director, strategic planner and event manager. Paula’s career has centered on serving marginalized student populations, including students attending under-resourced public schools and students with disabilities. Paula believes deeply in supporting all students and providing equal opportunities to experience the arts. Paula lives in Brooklyn with her husband, daughter, son and a trio of two cats and a dog.
Paula.Heitman@MarquisStudios.org