For Kids
Summer Camps
Our kids’ summer camps are led by licensed educators who bring both expertise and enthusiasm to every session. Through engaging art projects, playful experimentation, and plenty of fun, campers will learn new skills, build confidence, and make lasting memories. Learn more about our teachers here.
Ongoing Kids Classes
Our kids’ classes are led by experienced educators who are also talented artists and makers. They bring their passion for both teaching and creativity to every session, crafting an experience that’s as engaging as it is educational.
Our Teachers
Mariza Dovis
Mariza has always been an avid creative and maker for as long as she can remember. She followed her passion for clay by receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and Certification to teach Art at JMU. She taught in Fairfax County Schools, Woodland Montessori, Spitzer Art Center and now Friendly City Clay.
Malea Gascho
Malea G. earned her B.A. in Visual Arts from EMU in 2011 and later became certified to teach K-12 Art in Virginia. She loves creating her own art, but teaching art and seeing her students develop their own creativity, perseverance, and identity as artists has been even more fulfilling. She is currently teaching art to middle & high schoolers at Eastern Mennonite Schools.
Cyndi Gusler
Gyndi Gusler, MFA, began her teaching career as an elementary art teacher, and has been teaching art to children in summer programs for over 20 years. She is currently a professor of art at EMU where she shares her love of creating with her students, and runs their summer art camp program. She especially enjoys working with small groups of students, allowing each child to explore the techniques and language of painting and drawing.
LP Keller
LP Keller fell in love with the Friendly City when she studied art at JMU. In 2016, she earned a BFA in Studio Art with a concentration in Ceramics. She is a certified art teacher in Virginia and taught elementary art (including wheel throwing) in Harrisonburg City Public Schools for 7 years. She loves exploring art with her students and seeing how her students express themselves through art. She is a mother, a baker, a ceramicist, an art teacher, and the woman behind LPMpottery.