Real Team at Real Art Ways

Yedalis Ruíz was born in Puerto Rico and raised in Hartford. She has been involved with Real Art Ways since she was 13 years old! 

Yedalis is a first-generation, bilingual college graduate. She is a graduate of Hartford High, Mt. Holyoke College, and has a Master’s and Ph.D. from UMass-Amherst. She teaches at UMass, working to increase access and equity in higher education.

Gregg has spent his whole professional career at Travelers. Originally hailing from Wisconsin, he has worked in the Minnesota, London, UK and Hartford offices. He and his wife have a deep passion for all forms of art and is prior board member of the Minnesota Museum for American Art.

Rex Fowler is a Hartford resident and most recently served as CEO of the Hartford Community Loan Fund. He was raised in the Missouri Ozarks, attended college in Arkansas, and completed graduate school in Texas, earning a Master’s in Business Administration from Abilene Christian University. Rex is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Leader and a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School Achieving Excellence in Community Development executive leadership program.

Brenda is Hartford Public Library’s Executive Director, Culture and Communications, and oversees HPL’s museum and archive, its ArtWalk gallery, and its Digital Library Lab, in addition to heading the Library’s Communications team.  She holds a B.A. in History from the University of Connecticut and a M.A. in American Studies – Museums, Communities and Archives from Trinity College, Hartford.

Derek Hall is a dynamic anti-racist intergroup dialogue facilitator, public speaker, and activist committed to challenging beliefs and institutional culture rooted in systemic racism and other forms of oppression. Derek has worked in the diversity, equity, and inclusion field for over fifteen years, partnering with public and private school systems, for profit and non-profit organizations both locally and nationally. Derek uses his gifts of facilitation, storytelling and community building to increase the racial & social consciousness of individuals and organizations.

Olu Oguibe is an internationally recognized artist, writer, and curator based in Rockville, Connecticut.

Victor is an artist who was born in Puerto Rico and raised in Hartford. He has received awards and fellowships including the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture Fellowship, Rhode Island School of Design Fellowship, National Endowment for the Arts Challenge Grant and a grant from the Art Matters Foundation. Victor graduated from The University of Hartford Arts School and The Rhode Island School of Design in Providence. He lives and works in Worcester, MA.

Enid Rey is known both locally and nationally for her pioneering work in the fields of positive youth development, education, civic leadership, community-building and integration. Rey is CEO & President at BRAVE Consulting Solutions. Previously, Rey was CEO of Our Piece of the Pie and before that led the Hartford Public Schools’ School Choice Office which was nationally known for its integration efforts under her helm. A graduate of Hartford Public High School, Rey earned her B.A. from Mount Holyoke College and her law degree from UCONN School of Law. Among other affiliations, Rey is an Annie E. Casey Foundation Children Youth and Families Fellow. She resides in Hartford with her 5 children and husband.