Passionate and Dedicated

Jennifer Minicucci

Executive Director, she/her

MS Arts Administration & Cultural Entrepreneurship Northeastern University

Jennifer is a strong proponent of the power of art to bring about transformational change. She believes art can build understanding, connection and belonging, creating a more just, inclusive, and equitable world. She is delighted to bring to Arts in Reach her passion for art, education, and community building along with more than a decade of nonprofit leadership experience.  

After early stints in corporate public relations at Ogilvy, Adams & Rinehart in Washington, DC and Cone Communications in Boston, MA, she chose to transition to a focus on development and strategic planning for cultural and educational nonprofits. After building fundraising functions at the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, NH and Portsmouth Music and Arts Center (PMAC) in Portsmouth, NH, Jennifer began a consulting practice. Clients included Portland, ME-based Indigo Arts Alliance (IAA), an artist residency supporting Black and Brown artists; the Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra; and Prescott Park Arts Festival in Portsmouth, NH; InventiveLabs, a startup incubator and gap-year program for alternative learners in Amesbury, MA; and Pinetree Institute in Eliot, ME, offering community resources to address the effects of childhood trauma. Jennifer also co-founded Polaris Charter School, a public elementary school for neurodiverse students, in Manchester, NH, and has served on the Board of Trustees for the Academy of Science and Design and Granite State Arts Academy. 

She recently served as President of Art-Speak, the Cultural Commission for the City of Portsmouth, NH, and presently sits on the Board of Advisors for the Museum of Art at the University of New Hampshire, on the Advisory Circle for IAA, and on the Visual Arts Committee of PMAC. An avid oil painter and metalsmith, she has sold her work in several New England galleries. 

Jennifer holds a master’s degree in Arts Administration and Cultural Entrepreneurship from Northeastern University in Boston, MA. She lives with her family in a 202-year-old farmhouse in the Seacoast region of New Hampshire and studies drawing at the Academy of Realist Art in Boston, plays flute in the New Horizons Band at PMAC, and especially enjoys reading, cooking, running, museum-going, and listening to live music.

Anna Nuttall

Art Education Director, she/her

B.S. in Art Education, M.Ed. in Integrated Arts

Anna has been working in Arts Education as a visual arts teacher, administrator and community-collaborator on the Seacoast for over 25 years – and is still loving it! She believes that the arts provide a unique opportunity to develop our gifts of creativity, compassion and expression while exploring our world and ourselves in meaningful and transformative ways.  She has a passion for creating opportunities for young people to cultivate relationships beyond school and home; connections with local mentors, service organizations, and individual artists are empowering and can last a lifetime. 

Anna received her B.S. in Art Education and M.Ed. in Integrated Arts, and has enjoyed teaching grades K-12 as well as Graduate for both public and private universities and loves it all!  In addition to sharing her passion with AIR, Anna teaches at Portsmouth Music and Arts Center and Portsmouth Middle School where she is Chair of the Visual Arts Department for Portsmouth Public Schools. Anna has received several grants and awards throughout her career, including the NH Governor’s Arts Award in Arts Education Leadership.

In her personal time, Anna is busy making art, petting stray cats, hitting nature trails, walking into parking meters while looking at clouds, and otherwise enjoying the little things that everyday life serves up if you’re looking for them.

Liliana Mangan

Program Coordinator, she/her

BA & MEd University of New Hampshire

Liliana is an educator and musician currently living in Newmarket, NH. In college, she studied Music and Philosophy with a focus on ethics and social responsibility. She earned her master’s degree in Educational Studies at the University of New Hampshire and is invested in facilitating creative environments centered on equity and self-expression.

Liliana grew up in the seacoast area of New Hampshire and has experienced the transformative value of supportive artistic communities firsthand. She began working for AIR at the beginning of 2023 and is excited to contribute to an organization that builds the positive creative spaces that have been so meaningful in her own life.

Liliana loves reading scary stories and feels the freest when she is outside exploring natural environments. Writing and playing music with her friends is her favorite thing to do.

Laura Portalupi

Operations Manager, she/her

MSW University of Denver

Laura has an eclectic professional background, with broad experience in writing, editing, research, and community building. Most recently, she worked in educational tech in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has also worked at nonprofits in Colorado and Thailand. Living abroad as a child sparked in Laura a love of cross-cultural exchange. One of her most meaningful experiences has been the relationships she built during her two years in rural South Africa with the Peace Corps. 

In addition to her Master of Social Work degree, Laura has Bachelor of Arts degrees in creative writing and French. She also completed one and a half years of a Master of Fine Arts program in poetry. 

Laura is especially interested in the role of art in social movements, the intersection of art and nature, and how engaging with art can help us reconnect with our authentic self. These days, Laura dreams of creating street art in Paris that encourages people to reflect on our relationship to other animals.

caitlin little

Director of Community Engagement, she/they

caitlin is a multi-modal artist, curator, and culture cultivator based in Haverhill, MA. Originally from Omaha, NE, little is co-founder of Petshop Gallery(Omaha, NE) and moved to the NH Seacoast in 2021 to serve as an AmeriCorps Vista for Arts In Reach. 

Since her integration into New England she has pursued a variety of creative placemaking  endeavors including serving on the Dover, NH Arts Commission, serving on the Haverhill, MA Cultural Council, and collaborating with organizations like the NHAA, NHSCA and Creative Haverhill.

With the arts at the forefront, she believes in challenging traditional ideas of essential needs and strives to create programs, narratives, and systems that create equity, opportunity, and combat gatekeeping.

caitlin lives with her cat child Lucy and spends her free time sleuthing which of the North Shore roast beefs are truly famous. 

Kathi Hardy

Teen Artist Transporter, she/her

Kathi is an exceptional person who is an integral part of our team at AIR. Not only does she play a crucial role in transporting our teen artists, but she also serves as a mentor at The School of the South in Seewanee, TN.  

Kathi loves reading and exploring fiber arts, with a particular love for knitting and crocheting. She spent many years traveling the world through serving in the Navy, and one of the fascinating places she lived was Iceland. She believes that everyone has unique gifts to give to the world, and AIR provides youth the environment to find and bring forth their gifts.  

Lillian Fiorillo

Program Assistant, she/her

Merrimack College

Lillian is a psychology student at Merrimack College. While pursuing her studies, her love for the arts continues to grow. She spends her free time crocheting, painting, drawing, working with charcoal, and creating her works of art. She believes that art has a healthy aspect, which is very important to growing and developing as a person.

Eden Richardson

Teen Wellness Counselor, she/her

LCSW Pending,  MSW – Boston College,  BA Psychology – UNH

Eden has grown up in an artistic family and has been involved in music and art throughout her life, from art and photography club, school musicals, chorus and a cappella. She grew up in Southern NH and has been involved in local mental health organizations such as being a board member of Jason R Flood Memorial Foundation. Eden studied Psychology at the University of New Hampshire and graduated in December 2019. She recently completed her Masters in Social Work at Boston College. Eden loves to sing, explore nature with her puppy, read books and watch movies with the company of her cats, and spend time with loved ones.