Welcoming The Newest Clay Art Center Board Members
A warm welcome to the five new members of the Clay Art Center Board of Directors!
At our most recent board meeting, Clay Art Center welcomed five new board members: Jon Cancro, Dalia Concepcion, Melissa Gallaher-Smith, Emily Gumpel, and Jeff Janowicz. The Board of Directors includes professionals with a wide variety of experience that come together to help support Clay Art Center's mission and vision. Below, you’ll find a welcome message from Board President Sally Ng, as well as bios for each of our new board members. You can find bios for all of our current board members on the Board of Directors page.
Clay Art Center is pleased to announce the appointment of our new board directors: Jon Cancro, Dalia Concepcion, Melissa Gallaher-Smith, Emily Gumpel, and Jeff Janowicz. Aligned with our strategic plan for expansion, aimed at fulfilling our mission and addressing the ongoing demands of clay education and Community Arts programs, our new directors bring valuable expertise and a broad perspective to the organization. Their contributions will support the leadership team and strengthen our efforts toward achieving the stated mission, advancing expansion initiatives, and ensuring sustainable growth.
We express our sincere gratitude to the current board of directors, committee members, and volunteers for their dedicated service, expertise, and significant contributions guiding and supporting the organization. We also recognize our exceptional staff for their unwavering commitment and commend Executive Director Emily Peck for her outstanding leadership and transparent, collaborative work with the board.
Clay Art Center’s mission is dedicated to education, creativity, and community engagement through clay by providing an inclusive space for learning, studio practice, exhibitions, personal growth, and professional development in ceramic arts. Our vision is to ignite a passion for clay and provide a nurturing community for that passion to flourish.
As we continue to grow and evolve, we look forward to serving our clay community with excellence.
Best,
Sally Ng Briggs
She/her
Board President
Jon Cancro
Jon Cancro has been involved with the Clay Art Center since 2024, having volunteered at several events and taken classes with his wife and two children. Jon studied at Bentley University near Boston and graduated with Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Accounting. Jonathan is a CPA and has worked for Apollo Global Management for over 18 years in a variety of roles and is currently the firm’s Global Head of Strategic Finance. Prior to Apollo, Jonathan was an Auditor at PwC.
Jon and his family live in Westchester and spend their summers in Cape Cod. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys working out, traveling, cooking and being surrounded by his family and friends as much as possible. He and his wife are passionate about providing back to their community through volunteerism and giving.
Dalia Concepcion
Dalia Concepcion spent most of her professional career working as an actuary at a reinsurance company in Connecticut. She has been involved with Clay Art Center since 2015 as a student, volunteer, co-chair of the annual fundraising gala, staff member working as development associate for 2.5 years, and a member of the board development/bylaws committee.
Dalia lives in Westchester with her husband and enjoys singing, reading, traveling, dabbling with various forms of art, and spending time with her people.
Melissa Gallaher-Smith
Melissa has been learning to love clay since she first attended a Hand in Hand benefit for Clay Art Center in 2018. Wheel classes followed soon after, and she has enjoyed the comradery and commiseration found at CAC ever since. The dynamic creativity of this community inspires her to use her talent and energy on the development committee to connect CAC with others in the region who want to support community art spaces.
Melissa is a nonprofit development professional and Certified Fund-Raising Executive with a decade of experience helping individuals in Fairfield County, Connecticut achieve their philanthropic goals. She joined Connecticut Audubon Society in 2024 as the Director of Development, an opportunity that aligns with her personal passion for birds and environmental conservation.
Melissa and her family live in Stamford, where every mug and bowl in their cupboard is off-center, clunky, and not very cleverly decorated, but everyone has a favorite, nonetheless.
Emily Gumpel
Emily Gumpel is a marketing and operations leader at a global museum technology company that provides collections management solutions to cultural institutions worldwide. She leads strategic initiatives across marketing, business operations, and customer engagement, supporting more than 1,000 museums, archives, and libraries. Raised in Port Chester, Emily combines professional expertise in art history, museum technology, marketing, and change management with a deep commitment to strengthening her community. She is passionate about ensuring that residents, especially young students, have access to the arts and a supportive creative community through Clay Art Center.
Emily holds a master’s degree in the history of art and architecture from Pratt Institute and an MBA in strategic business management and marketing from Hofstra University. In her free time, she enjoys hosting dinner parties for friends and family, researching regional Italian recipes, and spending time by the ocean.
Jeffrey Janowicz
Jeff started working in clay longer ago than he cares to admit. He became a student at the Clay Art Center in 2009 shortly after moving to the area, and currently serves on the facilities committee.
He studied engineering at Michigan Tech and spent his career working in various roles in the automobile industry throughout the world. Jeff now lives in Port Chester with his wife, where he spends his time in his shop building boats, and doing volunteer work.
Interested in learning more about joining the Board of Directors or one of the Advisory Committees? Check out our Board Opportunities.