Our Team

Larry Tamburri, Executive Director

Lawrence Tamburri has been the Executive Director of the Newark School of the Arts since April 2013. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) from 2004 to 2011. Prior to joining the PSO, he served in the same capacity for the New Jersey from 1991-2003, as well as the Savannah and New Hampshire Symphony Orchestras.

Tamburri has published numerous articles on arts management, music and symphony orchestras. He has been a presenter for the League of American Orchestras, The Association of British Orchestras, The American Assembly, and the Salzburg Seminar. as well as acting as a consultant for The U.S. Department of State and The Fund for Arts and Culture. Tamburri was a lecturer in Arts Management at SUNY Purchase for eight years until retiring in 2020. He has served as a member of the Adjunct Faculty of Seton Hall University’s Graduate Arts Administration program, as well as the Adjunct Faculty of Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz School of Public Policy. Tamburri is a board member of Program for Parents and the Marvin Hamlisch International Music Awards. Additionally, he was a board member, as well as president, of the Newark Arts Council and ArtPride NJ.

Tamburri received a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education from Duquesne University. He holds an MA in Music History, and Literature and an MBA from Arizona State University

Letter from the Director

Dear Families:

“What makes America exceptional are the bonds that hold together the most diverse nation on earth. The belief that our destiny is shared; that this country only works when we accept certain obligations to one another and to future generations. The freedom which so many Americans have fought for and died for come with responsibilities as well as rights. And among those are love and charity and duty and patriotism. That's what makes America great.”

– President Obama, November 7, 2012

Since its founding 50 years ago the Newark School of the Arts has embraced diversity as a core principle of the school. From this flows important ideas:

• recognition of the abundant diversity of cultures;

• respect for the differences;

• acknowledging the validity of different cultural expressions and contributions;

• valuing what other cultures offer;

• encouraging the contribution of diverse groups;

• empowering people to strengthen themselves and others to achieve their maximum potential by being critical of their own biases; and

• celebrating rather than just tolerating the differences in order to bring about unity through diversity.

As we embark on our next 50 years, the Newark School of the Arts recommits itself to providing  a positive atmosphere for students to become confident, capable, constructive and caring members of our community and beyond. Diversity makes us stronger as a school, a community and a nation.

 With best wishes for an enjoyable year,

Larry Tamburri

ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

Lidiane Francisco, Registrar

Lidiane Francisco - is a multilingual in Portuguese-Creole, Portuguese, English, and Spanish. She completed a Bachelor of Business Administration-Management from Berkeley College, New Jersey, in 2019 with honors. In the past 10 years, Lidiane has dedicated her professional talents in the Administrative field, Office Management, Human Resources, and Customer Service leadership. Ms. Lidiane has worked in Programs such as the City of Newark ID as a Registrar, and MTA Easy Pay program as a Customer Care Team Coach, supervising, leading, and educating a team of 13 customer service representatives. She also devoted volunteering services at the Red Cross, Sal Cape Verde Island, and to different organizations in the City of Newark such as The Leaguers Inc., WIC - Women, Infant, & Children, City of Newark Occupy the Block, and Mayor Ras Baraka’ 2018 campaign.

Sharon Salvador,

Development Director

Newark School of the Arts’ new Director of Development Director and Liaison to the Board is Ms. Sharon Salvador, MBA. Ms. Salvador is a distinguished Leader in Local and Global economic development with over 25 years of experience in Grants and Strategic Planning, Administration, Fiscal Management and Operations for various Corporations, Foundations and Charitable Organizations.  Ms. Salvador has a BA in Economics, an MBA and is a doctoral candidate pursuing a Doctorate in Business Administration in Business Intelligence (2025).

Patricio Molina

Director of Conservatory Division           

Music Theory, Piano,  A musician, Chilean-native pianist, composer and conductor Dr. Patricio Molina’s talents have been recognized by a number of people, institutions and competitions, including The New York Times which described him as “a gifted artist”. Patricio completed his master’s degree at the Manhattan School of Music under the guidance of Dr. Marc Silverman and his DMA in piano performance at Rutgers University. He is set to complete his PhD in composition in 2020. For more information about concerts, projects, and performances, please visit www.patriciofmolina.com 

Doris Martinez, Office Manager

Richard Marshall

Director of Program Operations, Marketing, Community Outreach

Richard is a resident of Newark who takes great pride in his community and is passionate about arts education. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from NJIT and later left the corporate world to serve his community. For more than two decades, he has held several academic positions, including Science, Math, STEM, and STEAM, as well as a dance teaching artist. Richard has also contributed his event management skills to various community organizations across the state. During his tenure at NSA, he has demonstrated his expertise in development and operational support, which has significantly enhanced arts education and the NSA team. As a director, he has excelled in managing advertising, community outreach, and overseeing both in-school and out-of-school operations, making a significant contribution to the organization's success. Richard is also a fellow of VELP, the Victoria Emerging Leaders Program at Rutgers University, and a graduate of Leadership Newark, a public policy program through the City of Newark.

John Prall, Finance Director