Our Approach to Teamdom: We strengthen the quality, creativity, and appeal of our project through diverse participation. Our project best reflects the community when our participation is inclusive. We consciously engage people from diverse corners of the community by actively recruiting them as team members, participants, board members, and panelists. The Syracuse Poster Project is committed to providing civic art created by the community and for the community.

To Learn About Our Poets and Artists: Go to the Posters page and click on a name. All of our shopping and poster gallery pages offer this same way of clicking through to infomation about poets and artists.

To Learn About the Rest Of Our Team: Pictured to the left, Marcus Maynard, 2015 board member (Photo by Mindy Lee Tarry). Read on to learn about the current board, workers, and other team members who have supported us over the years.

Jim Emmons, board chairman and co-founder of the Syracuse Poster Project. Jim conceived of the project in 2000, and teamed up with an illustration professor at Syracuse University, Roger DeMuth, to make it happen. He came to the field of civic art from a career in journalism. At the Project's ongoing leader, he oversees a modest but dedicated team of interns, volunteers, part-time workers, and board members. He’s pictured selling poster prints at the annual Syracuse Arts and Crafts Festival. Photo by Mindy Lee Tarry.

Tom Carlin, board member, treasurer. Tom is an IT consultant in Syracuse. He has lived in central New York since 1972, and currently resides on the east side of the city. He is active in several  organizations, including The Arthouse collective, The Minoa Library board, and the Meadowbrook Neighborhood Association. He spends his free time biking, enjoying the outdoors, frequenting local and national theater, and trying new restaurants.

Amanda Henrie, board member, secretary. Amanda graduated from Syracuse University with a bachelor's degree in architecture. She's now an architectural intern. When she was a student at Henninger High School, she got a jump on careers by sampling college classes in anthropology, medical science, and civil engineering. She ulitimately pursued architecture for its creativity and social benefit. She likes working with teams, and spending time with her young niece and nephew.

Mary Ann Bowering, board member.

Nancy CeCe Sutton, board member. Born a "maker" in Orange County NY, CeCe moved with her parents to Lower Alabama when she was 12. After 50 years of life as a restaurant hostess, barber, graphic designer, event planner, retail manager, landscape designer and administrative assistant in the South, she moved back to New York in 2020 as part of the great Covid rethink-your-life shift. 
She is a long-standing quilter and self-taught glass artist, working in kiln fused glass, mosaic, and stained glass. She believes that art is healing and provides an outlet for both the creator and the viewer, allowing us to come together by sharing our common experiences. 
In her spare time, she enjoys yoga, dancing, and traveling and camping in her motorhome with her sisters and her cat, Frankie.

Faye Greene, board member.

Richard Rodriguez, board member.

Diana Rogatch, board member.

Kate Thompson, sales and marketing officer. Kate is an independent communications consultant and the latest addition to our team. Originally from Buffalo, NY, Kate is an alumnus of Medaille University where she studied Media Communications, interning with the Buffalo Spree magazine and completing a fellowship with the Mayor of Buffalo, Byron Brown. Since making Syracuse her home in 2016, Kate has worked in nonprofit development, fighting for climate justice with NYPIRG and advocating for financial justice with Cooperative Federal.

Naomi Masingale, outreach worker and graphic designer. Naomi graduated from Pratt Institute in 2010 with a BFA in fine arts and communication design. She joined us as an intern in 2017, as she was completing a master's degree in arts administration at LeMoyne College. She then returned as a part-time worker, helping us with outreach and graphic design. Outside work, she loves to geek out around heavy metal bands and chemistry- and math-themed comics. Learn more about her by visiting her Wordpress site.

Mel Saffold, Brielle Dailey, Mike Vormwald, Web Development Team. Mike, as lead developer, is overseeing two webdevelopment interns, Mel and Brielle, who graduated from Hack Upstate's Careers in Code initiative, a coding program for people from low-income neighborhoods. Their work builds on several semesters of in-kind work by Adam Peruta, a web instructor at the Newhouse School of Public Communications, and his students, who created mock-ups of a re-designed site.

Roger DeMuth, former professor in the illustration program at Syracuse University, and co-founder of the Syracuse Poster Project. Roger partnered with us from 2001 until his retirement in from teaching in 2015. He continues to work as an independent designer and illustrator from his home studio in Cazenovia. The work includes: children’s books, puzzles, maps, packaging, garden design, historic preservation, and panoramic photography. View it at www.demuthdesign.com

John Thompson, former professor in the illustration department at Syracuse University. After Roger's retirement, we worked with John, until his retirement in 2017. In 2006, he won the Hamilton King Award from the Society of Illustrators for the best illustration of the year. He has illustrated stamps for the U.S. Postal Service and documented missions of the Armed Services. He has taught in Florence and taken students to India for painting and drawing classes. Visit his website.

Marty Blake, professor in the illustration department at Syracuse University. Marty succeeded Roger and John in teaching the senior illustration class. She is also an independent graphic designer and illustrator specializing in digital collage. For the digital work, she scans material from her extensive personal library of old books, magazines, ephmera and wall paper swatch books. Her gallery pieces incorporate cut paper, bits of lichen, and an occasional doll limb. Visit her website.

Eric Rogers, founding board member. Retired from Chase Design in Skaneateles, Eric remains active in civic affairs, travel, and sport. He's a long-standing participant in the civic engagement group, FOCUS Greater Syracuse, and former president and ongoing member of SCORE, an advisory group for small businesses. Next time you see our posters at the airport, think of Eric--he initiated that display. Photo by Caitlyn Bom.

Michael Moody, artist. With Michael's death, early in 2016, Syracuse lost a long-standing member of its art scene. He joined us over the summer of 2013 to work on the South Salina Street Art Initiative. Michael worked with Rachel McMillian, one of two youth workers, to install posters in venues along the South Salina Street business corridor. You can still enjoy his work in the mural he created at Westcott and Beach streets.

Tania Peterson, outreach worker. With Rachel McMillian (below), Tania is one of two youth workers who helped us in 2013 with the South Salina Street Art Initiative. Tania reached out to venues along the South Salina Street business corridor, offering a selection of our full format posters for long-term indoor display. At summer's end, she enrolled at SUNY Morrisville to study early childhood education.

Rachel McMillian, poster installer. Rachel teamed up with Michael and Tania (above) to help with the South Salina Street Arts Initiative. After Tania lined up venues to display our posters, Rachel helped install them. She likes art and fashion and working with kids. She attended SUNY Morrisville for a degree in business technology.

Peter Chan, information technology specialist. Peter designed our original website from the ground up. A native of New York City, he graduated from Syracuse University, spent a decade or so working as a tech specialist in Syracuse, then moved to Maryland for more work in the tech sector. He enjoys cooking and aviation, and has built a flight simulator in his basement. He’s pictured at his favorite supermarket.

John Paratore, owner of Paratore Signs in Mattydale. John uses sophisticated digital printers to print our large-format posters—the ones for the downtown poster kiosks. Paratore Signs was established by John’s dad, back in the day of hand-painted signs. It continues as a family business, with help from John’s wife, Paige, their daughter, Valerie, and son-in-law, Ian.

Chuck McFadden, former director of maintenance for the Downtown Committee of Syracuse. For most of the Project's history, it was Chuck who led the maintenance crew that changes out the poster panels. The crew cleans, maintains, and keeps downtown attractive. They also run the long-standing downtown farmer’s market, Tuesdays during the summer, at Salina and Washington Streets.

Tom Cunningham and Tina Parker, co-founders of the former Eureka Crafts in Armory Square. Tom, Tina Parker and other Eureka-ites were among the pioneers of Armory Square. They opened Eureka just as the former warehouse district was reinventing itself. Eureka was an early supporter of the Poster Project, selling poster prints, and maintained a long tradition of selling and supporting authentic crafts.