Founder, Artistic Director
Tamiko French is a seasoned multi-disciplined artist with more than 20 years of experience in various fast-paced Arts Education environments. Throughout her time back here in her hometown (2013) has built partnerships and curated experiences between the student community and arts organizations such as the Ordway Center for Performing Arts, Northrop Auditorium, The Cowles Center, Walker Art Center, The Guthrie Theater, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minnesota State Fair, The Festival of Nations, Minnesota Orchestra, Springboard for the Arts and the Broadway Business Coalition. Sharing pathways to careers through arts education and performance; Tamiko creates a safe place and platform for students to advocate for themselves, innovate new ways of learning and empower their voice of expression. She has been an arts educator for over 7 years in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area. She served as a teacher at MPS North High School for 6 years and has used these partnerships to develop continuous pathways to demonstrate artistic excellence in the community.
Her passion is rooted in illuminating the human condition and using it as a way to bridge healing, self-discovery, and empowerment with every person she has the honor to work with. This initiative has gained positive roots to flourish by aligning with the North High School Alumni Association, Springboard for the Arts as a 501-c3 fiscal agent, the Awesome Foundation, the Minneapolis Foundation, and with the Guthrie Theater’s Education Department to create access to a usually unavailable resource for most underserved programs and schools.
Technical Director, Digital Media
Paul Kraimer is a Career & Technical Education (CTE) Radio teacher at North Community High School.
He brings his vast experience to North High School with nearly 20 years in the Broadcast industry and 15 years of teaching radio to college and high school students. Paul shares his experience and knowledge with the Adobe Suite software, including Audition, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, and Dreamweaver.
That experience has allowed him to branch out into audio/video editing and production, along with graphic and web design. He has also been a Voice Over professional exclusively represented by NUTS, ltd since 2006. It is that background, along with his family of teachers, that gives Paul the drive to help anyone learn and improve. Learning is a forever process to Paul and his hope is to inspire that in others.
Pauls serves as our techical director, ensuring that each show is supported with lights and sound.
Music Coach, Videography, Photographer
Samuel Wilbur been teaching in the Minneapolis Public School District since 2008. He had the rare pleasure to teach at over 50 public schools in Minneapolis, and out of all of them, Sam chose to teach at North. He loves the strong sense of community and pride that runs through the halls of North High, the intimate classrooms where students get more face-time with their teachers, and the freedom to integrate the arts and STEM into my curriculum.
Sam enjoys teaching Human Geography, Ethnic Studies, and Journalism because it prepares his students to be active members of society. Students learn that they have a voice in this world, and they can change it to better serve themselves and their communities. With Legacy Arts Group, He shares his passions as well as coaching the stdents in thier visual presence on social media. Including vodeography and photography. He also helps with stage managing.
When he’s not teaching, he enjoys writing and recording music, photography, and traveling the world.
Music & Voice Coach
Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, MsArnise like so many other great singers, discovered her singing voice at age five, singing in the church choir.
MsArnise made a reputable name for herself in the Twin Cities as a background vocalist for such International vocal artist and entertainers as Bruce Henry, Mick Sterling, Kathleen Johnson, Kevin Jackson, Johnnie Brown, and The BeBe Zahara Benet!
MsArnise now steps out front, commanding center-stage in her spectacular musical tribute to the Empress of Soul, Gladys Knight or when she is leading her self-titled band, MsArnise!
Her tribute to Gladys Knight debuted in May of 2021 in Mick Sterling’s The Relief Sessions Summer Concert Series with an encore performance at Crooners Supper Club. MsArnise attributes her love for music to the many great men and women of R&B and performs this tribute with the soul, style, and grace of the Empress Gladys Knight herself.