Sydney Porter Williams is a community-based teaching artist who utilizes art as a form of transformation in classrooms and communities. She is the Community Arts Research & Education (CARE) Program Director and an adjunct professor in Art Teaching at the University of Utah. Porter Williams holds an MFA in Community-Based Art Education and an Honors BFA in Art Teaching, both from the University of Utah. She previously served as Artist in Residence at the Neilsen Rehabilitation Hospital. Porter Williams received the Utah Art Education Association’s Preservice Educator of the Year Award in 2022 and a 2024 Utah Museum of Fine Arts grant to co-create an interactive exhibition in the museum.

Matthew Brasher is a community-based teaching artist born and raised in Tooele, Utah and currently residing in Salt Lake City. His passion for building meaningful connections through artmaking led him to pursue a BFA in Art Teaching from the University of Utah. Throughout his undergraduate career, Matthew has designed and facilitated numerous art lessons, workshops, and grant-funded programs for community partnerships across the Salt Lake and Tooele Valleys.

His teaching philosophy is rooted in his belief in the boundless and reciprocal nature of creativity. With the proper care and environment, he has found that creativity can grow to unimaginable heights and become a powerful force for healing. His goal is to plant the seed of creativity by encouraging bravery, embracing the process, supporting creative freedom, and reinforcing growth through communication and connection.

Matthew’s work with the C.A.R.E. Program has reached communities including: UNP Hartland Partnership Center, The Parkinson’s Center for Excellence, The INN-Between, and Club U Summer Camps.

Hannah Taylor is a third-year Art Teaching student at the University of Utah. She specializes in painting and drawing and has over five years of experience working with young children. She is currently in partnership with the Hartland Community for Youth and Families as a visiting teaching artist. Here she facilitates artmaking projects for children with the goal of providing opportunities for creative self-expression and community building among students.

Hello! My name is Xhantall, and I am in the final year of my Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree here at The U. During my time here, I have been able to explore and expand on sides of my Mexican American identity both through art making and, more recently, involvement in the community. In the CARE program, I facilitate arts programming with Communidades Unidas, Work Force Services, and UNP Hartland Partnership Center.