Who We Are

Our Mission and Vision

BuildaBridge is a non-profit 501(c)3 arts education and intervention organization. Our mission is to engage creative people and the transformative power of art making to bring hope and healing to children, families, and communities in the contexts of crisis and poverty.

BuildaBridge envisions a world where all children are resilient, experience self-efficacy, and have a vision for their future. BuildaBridge dedicates its resources to building the capacity of creative adults and local communities to fulfill this vision.



Ami Yares, MA
Executive Director

Ami Yares the executive director of BuildaBridge International. His background is in education, performance and activism. Musically, Ami draws inspiration from English, Hebrew and Arabic traditions and collaborates with audiences from around the world, bringing disparate communities together through his peace building efforts. Ami’s performances and educational programming have been featured components of the US Department of State’s diplomatic missions in Israel and Germany, Seeds of Peace, Harvard University, Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Social Policy and Planning (SP2) department with a Master’s of Science in Social Policy. During his studies, Ami concentrated on the role of arts and culture as a tool for social change and advocated for its increased representation in social policy and public health. He continues to collaborate with Penn as a research fellow at the Slought Foundation and helping build SP2’s Social Justice and Arts Initiative. Ami became the executive director of BuildaBridge International in November. The position fortuitously captures that which epitomizes one of Ami’s most central values that the transformative power of the arts creates healing, hope and change.


Janelle Junkin, Ph.D., MT-BC
Director of Community Programs

Dr. Junkin is a board-certified music therapist and an independent researcher currently conducting a Program Impact Evaluation for the Armed Services Arts Partnership, Washington DC. She has taught at various universities in the Philadelphia region and is currently an adjunct professor at Harrisburg University, Philadelphia campus. Dr. Junkin works with BuildaBridge International as the Director of Community Programming and Research. She is the co-founder of unlock Ngenuity, LLC. which focuses on consulting, creativity, and community through therapy, coaching and research. She is published in the Journal of Applied Arts & Health and the International Journal of Education & the Arts. Her areas of research include child and youth identity development, the role of the arts in conflict transformation, and understanding the community arts and creative arts therapies as vehicles that provide hope and healing to people and communities in crisis.



Stevie French, MA
Assistant Director of Community Programs

Stevie is an art therapist and illustrator with a passion for combining art with social justice. Stevie was inspired to become an art therapist partly due to her work as a BuildaBridge teaching artist, where she facilitated several projects starting in 2010. This included co-leading the Bhutanese Elders Mural Project, where she focused on helping refugees use art to transcend language barriers and inspire healing and community. Stevie presented on trauma-informed community art at Jefferson University's THRIVE symposium and served on the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association (formerly Delaware Valley Art Therapy Association). Stevie has conducted clinical art therapy in forensic, residential, inpatient and outpatient settings with youth and adults. As an illustrator she has published two children's books, Lizzie Fox-Top and Cousin Ann's Stories for Children. Stevie earned her MA in Art Therapy & Counseling at Drexel University, and her BFA in Communication & Design at Virginia Commonwealth University. 


BuildaBridge is also honored to be served by an ever-growing team of talented visual artists, musicians, dancers, actors, and creative arts therapists working as teaching artists in our programs.