The Arts & Wellness Community Network

The Arts & Wellness Community Network provides a broad panorama of 1-to-1 and group arts education, and creative experiences for VCBH clients enrolled in The Arts & Wellness Program.

Our network incorporates individual Artists, Arts Educators, Teaching Artists, Art Therapists, and Cultural Organizations drawn from all artistic disciplines (music, dance, theater, literary).

Cultural partners of The Arts & Wellness Community Network will be trained in Trauma Informed Art Practice, Social Emotional Learning Arts, relevant basic Public and/or Behavioral Health certifications — and receive ongoing professional development in Arts, Healthcare, and Wellness.

Arts & Wellness Coaches

  • Founding Director of The Arts & Wellness Program • Arts & Wellness Coach • Program Concept, Development & Management

    Nicole Taylor, operatic soprano and master teaching artist, is a senior Arts Envoy for the U.S. Department of State & Bureau of Educational & Cultural Affairs. Founder & CEO of Creativity Through Music Consulting, LLC specialized in cultural diplomacy, arts & health, arts-infused community outreach, arts education and advocacy, cross-sector partnerships, creativity training for corporations and cultural events. Director of Ventura County Behavioral Health's new Arts & Wellness Program, funded at $1 million dollars. Director of the Oxnard Performing Arts Center Artists In Schools program, 2023/24 California Creative Corps Artist-in-Residence with the County of Ventura Office of &Culture. Female leads include: Le Nozze de Figaro, Les Dialogues des Carmelites, Die Fledermaus, Cunning Little Vixen, The Turn of the Screw, and Porgy & Bess. World premieres include: the Suite for Peace by Kenny Burrell; in a tribute concert featuring B.B. King and Stevie Wonder; Sir Paul McCartney’s oratorio Ecce Cor Meum at Carnegie Hall; and Eliott Goldenthal’s opera Grendel directed by Julie Taymor. Performances with San Francisco Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Sarasota Opera, Lincoln Center Festival, and the Mostly Mozart Festival.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Remote Arts Prescription Design

    Kate is a professional dancer and instructor whose work focuses on the intersection of arts and health. During her ten-year career with Ohio Contemporary Ballet, she performed, choreographed, taught, and led community-based initiatives in arts and social prescribing.

    Originally from Richmond, Virginia, Kate discovered dance through a public school outreach program and went on to train with Richmond Ballet. She earned a B.S. in Dance and Arts Administration from Butler University.

    Kate has designed and facilitated movement-based wellness programs for diverse populations, including older adults and children. She also teaches private and group classes focused on alignment, mobility, and joy in movement.

    Outside of work, Kate enjoys traveling, attempting new physical challenges, consuming chocolate, coffee, and veggies, and spending time with her loved ones—especially her husband and dog.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Administrative Liaison for Music Matterz Music Therapy Practice • Arts Prescription Design

    Mineli Arakelian is representing Music Matterz Inc. Music Matterz Inc. is a music therapy family practice specializing in neurologic music therapy, committed to providing the highest quality of care in music therapy, music and creative arts services, and music education possible. Domain areas include motor and language, social, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral therapies.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Arts Prescription Design

    Eduardo Jimenez, Eddy, was born in a small village in Oaxaca, Mexico called Teotitlan del Valle, famously known for its rugs.Eddy grew up in Moorpark, California. He constantly visited Oaxaca and learned how to weave. Upon graduating High School, he served a two-year mission in Mozambique, and Swaziland Africa. Eddy attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah where he worked full time in administration at a private school. He was fortunate to work with special needs and trauma students. He participates in farmers markets throughout Ventura County showcasing rugs and other crafts from Oaxaca. He is excited to be at MICOP and work with such amazing individuals. He knows all the great things MICOP does for the community and wants to contribute to that in any way he can.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Marketing & PR • Arts Prescription Design

    Jill Covell is a dedicated artist with over 25 years of experience in mixed media. She holds a BA in Painting and Drawing from UCLA and an MFA in Installation Art from Claremont Graduate School. Her artistic journey has taken her across California, where her work has been exhibited in numerous galleries, showcasing her talent and passion for art.

    In addition to her artistic practice, Jill blends mindful and guided meditation techniques to help others visualize their healing process through art. She developed the Calm Art program, which brings creative expression to local high schools and cancer support groups throughout Los Angeles and Ventura counties. With a focus on innovation and expression, Jill continues to inspire others through her unique creations while empowering them on their personal healing journeys.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Design Consulting • Arts in Health Consulting • Remote Arts Prescription Design

    Katrina Pineda (AKA: Kat) is a certified Health & Wellness Coach specializing in helping people play for their wellbeing through the business she founded, Playtronus LLC. She is a professional designer, multimedia artist, arts in health professional, researcher, and consultant. She has her MA in Arts in Medicine from the University of Florida (2018) and BFA in Multimedia Art from CSU, Chico (2010). Kat's been part of various efforts at the intersection of arts & health for over a decade, ranging from leading volunteer opportunities for coworkers and facilitating arts workshops to coaching, conducting evaluations, researching, and hosting networking events. Additionally, she has a decade of experience in UI/UX design, research, and management of young children’s EdTech products.

  • Arts & Wellness Coach • Program Documentation • Arts Prescription Design

    Maria de Jesus Mayo is a Mexican-American mixed media artist born and raised in Oxnard, CA. Her work explores Latinidad, belonging, and Indegenous & Black femme perspectives. Her personal pieces evoke fragility, vulnerability, and evoking intimacy through the lens and creative process of storytelling. Her passion in film began at the age of 17 when she documented her summer trips to Mexico with her mother. She is an alumni of the The New School’s Documentary Media Studies program. Her first first short, La Lupita premiered at 2019 Doc NYC Festival. She recently completed the Social Documentation M.F.A. Program at UC Santa Cruz where she finalized her short, "simi", a modern meditation on the complexities of motherhood.

Artists

  • Nathan Hayden

    Social Practice Art

  • Cory Hill

    Music, Griot Storytelling, CEO & Founder of Percussive Storytelling

  • Mina Jimenez

    Traditional Zapotec Weaver

  • Andy Lepe

    Geometric Art

  • Benita Sosa Martinez

    Traditional Zapotec Weaver

  • Gaby Montiel

    Singer, Songwriter, Youth Arts Advocate

  • Rafael Perea de la Cabada

    Visual Art

  • Craig Rosen

    Creative Writing, Poetry, Executive Director of Ventura County Arts Council

  • Elisabeth Zuck

    Deep Puppetry, Visual Art

Cultural Organizations

Community Organizations

  • Gold Coast Transit District

    Access

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  • Ventura Botanical Gardens

    Nature

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  • Ventura County Community Information Exchange

    Access & Resources

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  • Ventura County Libraries

    Education & Access

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  • Ventura County Transit Commission

    Access

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