Everson Museum of Art names three new board members

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Everson Museum of Art recently announced three new appointments to its board of trustees. 

Bishop Dr. H. Bernard Alex, Daniela (Savinelli) Molta, and Damian Vallelonga began their service on Jan. 1. They complete a group of 25 trustees who will continue to guide the Everson through the many challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and support upcoming endeavors that include the launch of a new café and planning for a new sculpture park in the Everson Community Plaza, the museum said in a news release. Both initiatives seek to drive tourism in Central New York.

Dr. Alex is a senior pastor and teacher at the Victory Temple Fellowship Church. A native of Syracuse, he has a background in English education, curriculum development, and program design. He is presently in a cohort in the Fellowship for Emerging Leaders in Ministry, a creative alliance between Syracuse University, Le Moyne College, and Harvard. Alex currently serves as a board member for the Salvation Army, the Human Rights Commission of Onondaga County, and is a commissioner with the Town of DeWitt Police. He is also president of the Syracuse Chapter of the National Action Network (NAN). His late father, Gus, served as the Everson’s longtime superintendent, both at the James Street and Harrison Street locations. 

Molta is an assistant professor of digital advertising at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. She most recently worked in the marketing departments at Facebook, GoPro, and Netflix, where she was responsible for advertising strategy. Prior to her time in Silicon Valley, Molta worked in digital-media planning and buying at OMD and MEC (now Wavemaker). Molta’s research interests involve digital-media ethics, specifically digital literacy, data ethics, and equity in media planning. Molta also serves as the founder and principal consultant at CaliYork Consulting, a digital-marketing consulting firm based in Syracuse, the chief marketing officer at Domaine Lachaal, a Tunisian olive-oil business based in Buffalo, and as executive director of Black Media Mogul Maker, a digital-media entrepreneurship training program for the Black community in Syracuse.

Vallelonga, raised on the east side of Syracuse, is the owner of Echo, a multi-disciplinary design studio that helps small businesses, nonprofits, and municipalities with graphic design, website design, and public art. Vallelonga currently splits his time between working as a marketing consultant at Switchstance Marketing and serving as a first-time real estate developer with Westcott Remix. He is active with the 40 Below Public Arts Task Force and as a board member (now president) of the Westcott Neighborhood Association.