Meet Our Staff & Instructors
Barby Wunsch
Barby Wunsch – Executive Director
Started at PRYA in 2023
Barby is a long-time resident of Templeton where she lives on a ranch with her husband, Bob, and raises alpacas. She graduated from University of Oregon in 1999 with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts – Fibers. She received her Master’s degree in Education in 2003. Barby has worked in Fund Development for the past 12 years for GRID Alternatives (Oakland) and Hartnell College (Salinas) raising millions of dollars through grants and donations. Prior to entering a career in Development, Barby worked as a teacher across all grade levels in public and private school settings. Barby is currently Board President for the Templeton Education Foundation where she has been raising money for the Templeton Schools for the past 7 years. She also is the VP for the Central Coast Weavers Guild in San Luis Obispo County. Barby has 2 children, Tommy and Izzy, who are currently attending college. She also has 2 Labrador retrievers, Huckleberry and Goose, and 5 cats.
Natalia Esquivel
Natalia Esquivel – Office Administrator
Started at PRYA in 2025
Natalia supports daily operations and helps ensure a welcoming, inclusive environment for youth and families. She brings a strong passion for working with young people and supporting communities, particularly through bridging language barriers as a bilingual English and Spanish speaker.
Natalia previously worked with the Boys & Girls Club as a Youth Development Professional, where she was recognized as Youth Development Professional of the Year during her first year and later advanced to the role of Assistant Director.
She is excited to be part of the Paso Robles Youth Arts Center team and is dedicated to helping youth build confidence, discover their talents, and shine through the arts
Lauren Athey
Lauren Athey – Program Coordinator
Started at PRYA in 2026
Lauren serves as the Program Coordinator, responsible for maintaining smooth, effective operations across the organization. She is deeply committed to arts education and creating engaging, accessible experiences for youth in a positive and supportive environment.
Lauren is a graduate of California State University, Chico, where she earned degrees in Art Education and Spanish. Her creative practice includes figure drawing, acrylic painting, and ceramic work on the pottery wheel, which shape her thoughtful approach to curriculum design and program leadership.
As a member of the Paso Robles Youth Arts Center team, Lauren is dedicated to nurturing creativity, confidence, and self-expression, helping young artists explore their talents and grow through the arts.
Christy Byham
Christy Byham – Development & Communications Coordinator
Started at PRYA in 2025
Christy grew up in Paso Robles and now raises her family here with her husband. She has built her career supporting local organizations through operational leadership, marketing, event coordination, and creative services. She brings experience in event production, digital content creation, graphic design, and community outreach to PRYA and is proud to support its mission of providing accessible arts education to local youth.
Instructors
Sarah Blick
Sarah Blick – Violin Instructor
Started at PRYA in 2024
Sarah is a classically-trained violinist with a fiddler’s heart with over 15 years of professional experience. After graduating from Roosevelt University’s Chicago College of Performing Arts, she pursued music full-time as a studio musician, songwriter, and performer in genres ranging from Classical to Blues to Bluegrass to Rock before undertaking a three year national tour with her Americana duo Sugar Still. Once the duo toured through the Central Coast, she was hooked and has been living in Paso since 2021. As a teacher, Sarah believes in a strong technical foundation as well as having fun, as evidenced by her willingness to play just about anything. Her current projects include wedding performances, studio recordings, and rocking out with the local bluegrass/Americana group Bremen Town and “y’allternative” Nashville band The Cancellations.
Elise Coatney
Elise Coatney – Art Instructor
Started at PRYA in 2025
Elise is a graphic designer and artist with a curiosity for creativity. She experiments with a wide range of mediums to analyze and adorn the world around her. Currently, Elise works as a freelance graphic designer while nurturing her artistic practice in painting and sculpture. She recently graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a BFA in both Graphic Design and Studio Art.
Sarah Gastelo
Sarah Gastelo – Culinary Arts
Started at PRYA in 2026
Sarah Gastelo is a nutrition educator and culinary instructor with certificates in Nutrition Education & Coaching and Plant‑Based Nutrition from Cuesta College. She has hands-on experience working in school kitchens across Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo, where she supported healthy, scratch‑forward meal programs for local students. In addition to her kitchen work, Sarah taught after‑school cooking classes through the school district, helping kids build confidence, creativity, and real‑world skills in the kitchen. Her work blends nutrition, education, and community connection to inspire healthier habits for families throughout the Central Coast.
Amanda Gonzalez
Amanda Gonzalez – Dance Department Lead
Started at PRYA in 2001
In 2002, Amanda moved to New York City and enrolled in the Joffrey Ballet School, while also dancing in other studios in New York, including Broadway Dance Center, Ballet Academy East, and Steps on Broadway. Amanda has taught ballet and jazz classes since the Youth Arts opened and hopes to teach as long as possible.
She says that children are her favorite part of the Youth Arts program because of the joy they bring to the arts, with their creativity and passion for what they do.
Kristina Hayes
Kristina Hayes – Theatre Instructor
Kristina Hayes is an actress, improviser, and acting/improv teacher with over 25 years of professional experience in TV, film, and live performance. Her credits include Disney’s “Bunk’d,” “Wizards of Waverly Place”, Nickelodeon’s “Instant Mom,”and dramas such as “Castle,” “Bones,”and HBO’s “The Morning Show.” A former MainStage performer at Improv Olympic West, Kristina also appeared on the acclaimed improvised series “Reno 911” on Comedy Central. Now living in Paso Robles, Kristina teaches acting and improv to children and adults, focusing on confidence, creativity, and connection. She is also the founder of Waltz Through Life specializing in social ballroom dance instruction.
To learn more about this teacher visit her website at: KristinaHayesWaltzthroughlife.com
Simon Salcedo
Simon Salcedo – Guitar Instructor
Started at PRYA in 2023
Simon has been involved in music his entire life. Starting with playing classical violin in grade school, and eventually with the SLO youth symphony orchestra in 2010. Entering his freshman year of high school at Atascadero High in 2012, Simon took an “Intro to Guitar Class.” From there, inspiration struck. He went from learning basic first position chords, chord progressions, and even reading tablature, most of the time being away from the class itself. By the next year, he became a Teacher’s Aid for the class, assisting fellow students with the curriculum he learned the year prior. He continued a self taught approach from then up to now, and is well versed in musical genres ranging from classical and blues, to hard rock and modern metal.
Shelby Steiner
Shelby Steiner – Art
Started at PRYA in 2026
Shelby brings over six years of experience working with children through creative and youth-focused programs. Her background includes work as a face painter, balloon artist, and children’s party entertainer, as well as her current role as a Youth Development Professional at the Boys & Girls Club.
A lifelong local, Shelby has a strong passion for arts education and youth engagement. She is dedicated to creating inclusive, supportive environments where young artists can build confidence, explore creativity, and express themselves through the arts.
Kathryn Teale
Kathryn Teale – Piano Department Lead
Started at PRYA in 2013
Kathryn Teale comes to Paso Robles Youth Arts Center with something pretty simple – a deep love of music and a passion for sharing it with others. Her goal is to teach her students a strong foundation of truly understanding music through music theory and reading music, but also to empower them to create their own music and discover their own passion and joy for piano. She believes strongly in developing the artistic spirit when learning music, “It’s never just about the notes on the page, but how we bring them to life and tell a story.” Kathryn has seen first-hand the effect music has in the lives of her students. It is these experiences which motivates her to use creative approaches to teach her students as a class, while also ensuring each student is learning to the best of their ability.
Joe Thomas
Joe Thomas – Art Instructor
Started at PRYA in 2015
Joe Thomas is a big city teacher who moved to Paso Robles and became a farmer. The farm he shares with his wife, Leslie, is home to a vineyard, fruit and nut trees and an extensive family of rescued animals. Leslie’s passion is horses while Joe’s is Siberian Huskies. The name of his farm is Fat Goat Farm and the name of their non-profit is From the Heart Rescue. Whether it is Tintoretto the Alpaca or Grahammy the Goat, they provide him constant inspiration for his paintings and drawings. Joe continues to teach drawing, graphic design, and painting to children at Paso Robles Youth Arts Center.
Caleb Wheeler
Caleb Wheeler – Music Instructor
Started at PRYA in 2025
Hi, I’m Caleb and I have been playing the drums for over 9 years. I have experience playing gigs with the Paso Robles Youth Arts band, playing on the worship team at Paso Robles Bible Church, and teaching lessons for the last few years. I’m excited to share my knowledge and experience with soon-to-be drum enthusiasts!
