Dear BRAC Community,
It is with great excitement, deep gratitude, and a full heart that I introduce myself as the new Executive Director of the Bronx River Art Center. I am truly honored to join this vibrant and resilient community of artists, educators, students, families, and partners who have long made BRAC a cornerstone of creativity, learning, and cultural exchange in the Bronx.
Throughout my career in the arts, I have been passionate about fostering spaces where diverse voices are not only heard but celebrated. What drew me to BRAC was its powerful mission: a unique fusion of art, education, and environmental stewardship that reflects the Bronx’s rich cultural identity while nurturing the next generation of creators and change-makers.
For over four decades, BRAC has offered a vital platform for connection, exploration, and expression. From dynamic exhibitions that challenge and inspire, to our youth and adult education programs, community performances, and affordable artist studios—this is a place where creativity thrives in service of community. I am especially inspired by the way BRAC encourages creative activism and places art at the heart of neighborhood revitalization and environmental awareness.
As I step into this role, I bring with me a commitment to inclusivity, collaboration, and joy. I look forward to listening and learning from each of you—our students, families, teaching artists, studio residents, curators, performers, and community partners. Your voices will be at the center of our work moving forward, and I am eager to build on BRAC’s legacy with a shared vision for connection, creation, and an equitable future.
There is so much ahead to be excited about, and I can’t wait to meet you—whether in a class, at a gallery opening, a performance, or over a conversation about how BRAC can continue to grow and thrive with and for our community.
Thank you for welcoming me so warmly. Let’s make magic together.
With gratitude and enthusiasm,
Akia Squitieri
Executive Director
Bronx River Art Center
Akia Squitieri is an award-winning Producer, Stage Director, Arts Administrator, and Advocate with over two decades of experience in theatre, arts leadership, and cultural programming. She currently serves as the Executive Director of the Bronx River Art Center, bringing her dynamic vision and commitment to community-driven arts engagement to this vital Bronx institution.
Prior to this role, Akia served as the Director of Arts & Culture at the 14Y in New York City, where she successfully led the post-pandemic reopening and revitalization of their arts programs, including theatrical productions, artist residencies, visual arts gallery and community partnerships. Before that, she was Director of Human Resources at Seattle’s 5th Avenue Theatre—one of the largest LORT theaters on the West Coast—where she championed organizational health, equity, and inclusive workplace culture.
Akia is the Founding Artistic Director of Rising Sun Performance Company, a critically acclaimed ensemble-based company dedicated to innovative and socially conscious work. She was also Interim Co-Executive Director of the New York Innovative Theatre Foundation, where she managed operations, live events, and the annual IT Awards celebrating excellence in Off-Off Broadway.
Her career includes a decade-long tenure as Company Manager for the international hit Blue Man Group at the Astor Place Theater, as well as leadership roles at Horse Trade Theater Group, the Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre, and the inaugural FRIGID New York Festival. She has collaborated with organizations such as The Play Company, Dance Entropy, Broadway Dance Lab, Form Theatricals, Drunk Shakespeare, and Planet Connections Theatre Festivity.
Akia’s directorial work has been praised for its emotional depth and inventive staging. Her credits span New York venues including The Kraine Theater, The Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural Center, TheatreLab, Governors Island, and ART/New York. Notable productions include Hellcab, Bug by Tracy Letts, The Glory of Living by Rebecca Gilman, and the original Untitled Calamity Jane Play.
She is a recipient of the New York Innovative Theatre Foundation’s “Founders Award” and has earned multiple directing accolades from the Planet Connections and FRIGID Festivals. As an advocate for safe and equitable theatre spaces, Akia is the founder of “Creating Safe Spaces,” the first theatre-specific anti-harassment training program in the U.S.
A dedicated mentor and thought leader, Akia has spoken and taught at institutions such as NYU, Ramapo College, Theatre Resources Unlimited, and Theatre Communications Group. She is an alumna of the Commercial Theatre Institute and an active member of the League of Professional Theatre Women, Directors Lab North & West, and the League of Independent Theatre.
Outside of her artistic life, she is an avid traveler and certified scuba diver.
IG: @akiasquitieri
Staff, Board & Funders
Staff:
Akia Squitieri
Executive Director
asquitieri@bronxriverart.org
Stephany Cervantes
Manager of Art Education
education@BronxRiverArt.org
Ukari Bakosi
Education Program Associate
ubakosi@bronxriverart.org
Jennifer Tomaiolo
Program Manager
jennifert@bronxriverart.org
Lovie Pignata
Events Associate
events@bronxriverart.org
Jhanique Lovejoy
Exhibition Associate
exhibitions@bronxriverart.org
Michele Brody
Special Projects
mbrody@bronxriverart.org
Chanie Moskowitz
Fiscal Manager
Priscilla Turzo
Bookkeeper
Danny Rodriguez
Facility Maintenance
Board of Directors:
Liliana Candelario
Chair
Eduardo Benamor Duarte
Vice Chair
Anthony Bailey
Treasurer
Danielle Corbin
Secretary
Franchesca Diaz
Director
Katie Giaccone
Director
Michael Wheeler
Director
Funders:
Programs have been made possible with public funds from:
- The New York State Council on the Arts
- The New York Department of Cultural Affairs (and its Materials for the Arts program)
- The National Endowment for the Arts
- Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson
- New York City Council Members Eric Dinowitz, Althea Stevens, Marjorie Velazquez, Oswaldo Feliz
- New York City Civic Engagement Commission/The People's Money
- New York City
- New York State Assemblywoman Karines Reyes
- New York State Senator Luis Sepúlveda
- New York Life Foundation in partnership with the Afterschool Alliance
- Con Edison
- The New Yankee Stadium Community Development Fund
- The Lincoln Fund
- New York Life Foundation in partnership with the Afterschool Alliance
- Generous individual donors like YOU!
Corporate and Foundation support has been provided by:
- Con Edison
- Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation
- The 42nd Street Development Corporation
- The New Yankee Stadium Community Development Fund
- The Simón Bolívar Foundation
- The Andy Warhol Foundation
- Bloomberg Philanthropies
- New York Community Trust
- The Rising Fund of Community Resource Exchange
- The Lincoln Fund
- New York Life Foundation in partnership with the Afterschool Alliance
BRAC's greenroof has been supported by:
- The Bronx River Watershed Initiative, a program of the New York State Office of the Attorney General, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
- The Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation's Bronx Initiative for Energy and the Environment program