Our Team
Led by Visionaries, Mentored by Artists, Driven by Educators
Dr. Evelyn Chen, Executive Director
Dr. Evelyn Chen holds a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy from the University of Virginia and brings over two decades of dedicated experience from various levels of education, including serving as a former FCPS Assistant Principal and a tenured professor specializing in arts pedagogy. Her deep understanding of both academic administration and the practical realities of K-12 schooling makes her uniquely qualified to lead the Coalition’s strategic vision and manage its complex relationship with the public school system. Evelyn’s commitment to equity is the driving force behind her work, ensuring that FACE’s programming targets the communities where the access gap is widest. She believes passionately that art is a powerful equalizer, offering every student, regardless of their background, a non-verbal path to demonstrate competence and build self-worth. Under her leadership, FACE has tripled its artist residency placements and secured major multi-year grants, solidifying its position as a sustainable leader in arts-integrated education in the region. Her leadership style is characterized by empathetic listening, strategic foresight, and an unwavering focus on measurable outcomes.
Marcus O’Connell, Director of Artist Residency Programs
Marcus O’Connell is a classically trained musician and a professional teaching artist with a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Juilliard School, whose career spans performance, composition, and dedicated educational outreach. Having spent 15 years as a touring professional, he brings a vital, real-world perspective to the programming, ensuring that all instruction is not only rigorous but also relevant to the contemporary arts landscape. Marcus is directly responsible for recruiting, training, and mentoring FACE’s roster of teaching artists, developing the comprehensive curriculum that translates their professional practices into effective classroom methodologies. His specialty lies in interdisciplinary projects, notably designing a program that uses jazz improvisation techniques to teach statistical probability in high school math classes, demonstrating his innovative approach to arts integration. Marcus is known for his inspiring energy, his ability to connect deeply with artists and students alike, and his firm belief that the structure and discipline required to master an art form directly translate into academic and life success.
Aisha Khan, Community & Family Engagement Coordinator
Aisha Khan holds a Master’s degree in Social Work and Community Organizing and has dedicated her career to fostering authentic, bidirectional relationships between non-profits, local families, and community stakeholders. Her role is critical to the FACE mission, focusing on ensuring that the organization’s programs are not only accessible but also culturally responsive to the diverse linguistic and demographic populations within Fairfax County. Aisha manages all public-facing events, including organizing the annual “Fairfax Artful Futures” festival, which showcases student work and serves as a major community fundraiser and awareness campaign. She leads initiatives for parent workshops, helping families understand how to support their child’s creative development at home, effectively bridging the school-home divide. Her approach is built on trust, respect, and deep understanding of grassroots mobilization, ensuring that FACE remains genuinely connected to the families it serves. Aisha is a tireless advocate whose efforts guarantee that our programming truly reflects the needs and aspirations of the entire community.
Samuel “Sam” Hayes, Lead Program Evaluator and Curriculum Developer
Sam Hayes is a former FCPS K-5 Art Specialist and holds a Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction, bringing over a decade of practical experience in designing and assessing arts curricula within a large public school setting. Sam is responsible for the crucial task of measuring the efficacy of all FACE programs, developing the quantitative and qualitative tools used to track student engagement, artistic skill acquisition, and academic cross-over results. He works closely with school administration and faculty to align FACE residencies with state and local academic standards, ensuring that our arts-based instruction genuinely supports, rather than distracts from, core subject learning objectives. His meticulous and data-driven approach is essential for demonstrating the program’s tangible value to policymakers, administrators, and grant funders. Sam’s dual background in art instruction and educational accountability provides a grounded perspective, ensuring that while the programs are creatively boundless, they remain pedagogically sound and fully accountable for the significant educational outcomes they promise.
Community & Engagement
Building Bridges of Creativity Across Fairfax County
We fundamentally view family involvement not as an optional addition but as an absolutely vital component of a student’s success and the core mission of the Fairfax Arts Coalition for Education, recognizing that artistic learning is most potent when it is nurtured and celebrated within the home environment. We actively empower parents and guardians to become engaged partners in their child’s creative and academic journey by hosting a series of accessible, hands-on family workshops focused on simple, powerful arts integration techniques that can be applied daily, such as using sketching to improve observation or incorporating creative storytelling into family routines. Beyond workshops, we ensure consistent and transparent communication regarding program goals and student achievements, and we actively recruit parents to volunteer in capacities that align with their skills and time constraints, from organizing logistics for showcases to serving on advisory committees that help shape the future direction of our programs. By fostering this robust collaboration between students, educators, and families, we build a cohesive support system that reinforces the value of creativity as a shared, life-long family value, ensuring that the benefits of our work extend far beyond the school day.
Join Us
Advance Your Career in Creative Education
Explore Meaningful Career Opportunities with FACE
Career Opportunities: Roles That Truly Make a Difference
The Fairfax Arts Coalition for Education is consistently seeking passionate, experienced, and innovative professionals to join our growing team, offering dynamic career opportunities for individuals who are driven by the belief that the arts are the most powerful catalyst for educational and social change. We recruit for a diverse range of specialized roles, including Teaching Artists who are professional practitioners trained in pedagogical best practices to lead our in-school residencies; Program Coordinators who manage the logistics and scheduling of multiple simultaneous projects across the county; and Development and Communications Specialists who focus on securing funding and raising the visibility of our essential work. Unlike conventional teaching roles, positions at FACE offer unparalleled creative autonomy, providing staff with the opportunity to design and implement groundbreaking interdisciplinary curricula that genuinely merge their artistic expertise with academic instruction. We provide competitive compensation and benefits, recognizing the invaluable expertise that professional artists and experienced educators bring to our mission, ensuring that a career with FACE is both creatively fulfilling and financially sustainable.
Full Contact Details
Organization Name: Fairfax Arts Coalition for Education (FACE)
Address: 4139 FOUNTAINSIDE LANE NUMBER 101, FAIRFAX, VA 22030
Email: info@fface.lat