Melissa De Jesus-Akuete is a first-generation Dominican-American interdisciplinary artist and art educator born and raised in NY. She attended the Fashion Institute of Technology and graduated with Honors from Pratt Institute with a BFA and MS in Art Education. She was trained in a diverse range of art mediums and integrated classroom environments throughout NYC.

As an artist, she reflects on personal narratives and explores how art can educate and create dialogue around critical social issues, particularly those affecting marginalized communities. She lets her concepts guide her material choices working across various mediums and styles, including drawing, painting, ceramics, sculpture, textiles, and jewelry design. As an art educator, she believes education has the immense power to liberate. She strives to teach culturally relevant curricula that creates meaningful dialogue, explores complex issues and empowers students by improving their agency, voice, and ability to express themselves.

Her current work incorporates unconventional materials, such as human hair, and examines her personal experiences with motherhood and grief. Through this exploration, she sheds light on the often-overlooked intersections of these experiences, addressing their taboo nature within the Latino community and their relationship to mental health.

Previously, De Jesus-Akuete taught art and Co-Directed two art galleries at Groton School, the #1 private boarding high school in the country. There, she managed an eighth-grade girls dormitory, was the Head of the Art Curriculum Working Group and a leading member of the DEI Committee. She is a five-time recipient of the Pratt Presidential Merit Award, two-time recipient of the Black Alumni of Pratt Award, and a graduate recipient of the Pratt Outstanding Merit Award.

She is a mother to two beautiful toddler boys; speaks fluent Spanish, and recently moved to Richmond, VA to further pursue her art.