Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator is a creative entrepreneurial laboratory based at FIU’s Biscayne Bay Campus. RA+DI’s mission is to bridge the gap between creative practitioners and entrepreneurial success while promoting innovation within the FIU community.

About RA+DI
Our core program offers one to two-year fellowships to students in the disciplines that compose the College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts (CARTA) providing a supportive ecosystem to turn their ideas into viable products, services, and businesses within a socially conscious, co-creative, mentorship, and mindset focused environment.
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator was founded in 2017 with a grant from The Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation.
Become a Ratcliffe Fellow
Tech Conversations Podcast
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator at Florida International University presents “Tech Conversations”, talks with experts innovating at the intersection of technology, creativity, and entrepreneurship.
Hosted by Director, Dr. Jacek J. Kolasiński, producer Maggie Salas-Amaro and guest co-hosts Neil Ramsay and Dimitry Saïd Chamy.


Vision
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator at FIU seeks to bridge the gap between talent and entrepreneurship success while promoting innovative art + design within the community.
Mission
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator is dedicated to push the boundaries of innovation and creativity and inspire the next generation of future entrepreneurs actively participating to the exponential growth of South Florida’s creative economy.

News + Events
Fellowship Program
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator’s signature Fellowship Program offers a creative ecosystem of guidance and expertise and financial support to Fellows selected from across FIU’s CARTA college. New cohorts are selected every year and announced in August. The fellowships last 1 year with a second-year option for qualified candidates.
- Eduardo Badal
- Paris Jade Bender
- Farah Brown
- Rachel Maria Bussanich
- Brittanie Nicole Cote
- Alejandra Sofia Cuadra
- Raquel Brianna Damus
- Marcelo Oscar Ertorteguy
- Anasofia Guardia
- Jarod Ra’sean Hammond
- Dean McMurry
- Libia Montaño
- Beverly Renee Muzii
- Luis Pacheco
- Brianna Page
- Stacey Erica Pierre
- Alberto Valentin Ravelo
- Dominika Rocco
- Aiko Valentina Uzcategui
- Teri Watson
- Chantae Wright
- Daniela Zulueta
- Sara Valente
- Pamela Correa
- Kenny Diaz
- Veronica “Nika” Dotsenko
- Anai Fonte
- Mark Herrera
- Zion Nubian Joseph
- Carlos Toshiro Kurimoto
- Mariana Lora
- Yenifer Padron
- Nicola Massimo Salino
- Jadayne Anthony Smith
- Angela Sweidan
- Victor Saul Urroz
- Justina Vaicelionyte
- Lyla Di Wu
- Pamela Correa
- Kenny Diaz
- Veronica “Nika” Dotsenko
- Anai Fonte
- Mark Herrera
- Zion Nubian Joseph
- Carlos Toshiro Kurimoto
- Mariana Lora
- Yenifer Padron
- Nicola Massimo Salino
- Jadayne Anthony Smith
- Angela Sweidan
- Victor Saul Urroz
- Justina Vaicelionyte
- Lyla Di Wu
- Taina Nikki Adam
- Chelsea Julia Abella
- Yery Lorena Alvarez
- Ilan Aronovski
- Gabriela Baluja
- Lauren Rosa Chmelnicky
- Kianna Coley
- John Dominic Colon
- Noah Farid
- Mariantonia Gutierrez
- Jeronimo Mura
- Jagoda Nowak
- Ana Oceguera
- Maribel Ornelas
- Tyler Oviedo
- Elena Tugusheva
- Diego Waisman
- Alexander Zastera
- Raphael Alegbeleye
- Dalia Berlin
- Leon Gomez
- Gabriel Homem Andrade
- Predrag Kovačević
- Jerchovia Moxey
- Zoe Nikirk
- Jeannie Ordonez
- Valentina Palm
- Sara Pezeshk
- Martina Potlach
- Valeria Rios
- Claudette Goico
- Dhani Shanti
- Kali-Ray Skinner
- Sofia Soriano de Figueiredo
- Jose Veliz Aragon
- Alberto Guevara
- Bernardo Dalla
- Diana Vazquez
- Karen Garcia
- Leslie Villegas
- Maisha Richardson
- Mara Stegaru
- Michelle Wade
- Milan Gibson
- Monica Lebro
- Paulina Reynaldo
- Silvana Soriano
- Sophia Cabral
- Stephanie Valdes
- Warner Chisholm
- Alex Rovira
- Alfred Cardenas
- Andrea Leon-Moreno
- Arina Plyanskaya
- Bemelyn Puchols
- Brett Serfozo
- Catalina Dugand
- Celeste Fastabend
- Marco Ordonez
- Neil Mayorga Garcia
- Sarah Oeschger
- Sarah Sassen
- Sofia Rock
- Sonia Gonzalez-Park
- Zaria Dennis
- Alexandra del Canto
- Karla Kantorivich
- Carrington Ware
- Chris Friday
- Daniela Fernandez
- Denis Rovinskiy
- Fortunee Cohen
- Iman Kiffin
- Latricia Russell
- Michael Fernandez
- Gianna DiBartolomeo
- Quincy Chery
- Laura David
- Catalina Muñoz
- Victoria Carballo
- Hector Brignone
- Victoria Yunta
- Daniel Tabet
Entrepreneurial Residents
The RA+DI Entrepreneurial Residency program invites noted creative entrepreneurs to develop their practices in community and collaboration with the incubator while engaging with our Fellows as mentors.
Microcredentials
RA+DI is developing digital micro-crendential badges available to our fellows and the wider community through the Credly platform. Our first releases are Fundamentals of Business Development for Creative Practitioners and Fundamentals of Podcast Production and AI Integration:
Fundamentals of Business Development for Creative Practitioners
Developed within the Ratcliffe Art and Design Incubator – College of Communication, Architecture + The Arts, this badge recognizes the development of the mindset and skills needed to align a creative practice with a business model. Earners are familiar with the language of entrepreneurship; can move from a creative idea to a sustainable product and business model; develop strategies to connect and engage with customers; and use a canvas to define and model their business ideas.
Fundamentals of Podcast Production and AI Integration
Developed within the College of Communication, Architecture and The Arts, this badge recognizes foundational knowledge in podcasting, storytelling, audio production, branding, distribution, monetization, and AI-driven tools. Earners can understand the core elements of podcasting, identify the key stages of content creation, and recognize how these skills impact media landscapes and audience engagement. Badge earners are equipped with valuable tools to launch and grow their own podcasts.
Faculty

Jacek J. Kolasiński MFA, PhD
Program Director / Professor. Areas of expertise: art and history, emerging digital technologies, 3D design and rapid prototyping, 3D printing and scanning, public art and social practice, exhibition curation, video installation, multi-channel projection and multimedia environments, cross-cultural visual communication, curriculum development and academic administration.

Neil Ramsay MS
Faculty Research Associate. Areas of expertise: creative economics, strategic design, venture partnerships, integration of artistic-thinking in business contexts, developing alternate solutions to social and commercial challenges, functionally tinkering with nonlinear processes in problem-solving, business management constructs applied to institutional hierarchies.

Dimitry Saïd Chamy MFA
Faculty Research Associate / Resident Artist & Designer. Areas of expertise: design branding and corporate, product & experiential design, graphic design, content and exhibition curation, 3D modeling and visualization, presentation and motion graphics, writing for business / persuasion, small business coaching and development, UI/UX, interactive and web development, surface & pattern design.

Maggie Salas-Amaro MS
Podcast Producer / Social Media Coordinator. Maggie Salas-Amaro is an award-winning producer and media executive. During her media career, she has worked for some of the world’s most successful brands including Viacom, The Walt Disney Company, NBC Universal, FOX, Hola! TV and Univision. Currently, she produces and co-hosts the podcast “Tech Conversations “created by the Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator at Florida International University. Salas-Amaro currently leads Canela Kids part of Canela Media the first AVOD for Hispanics in the US and Latin America. In 2023, she was recognized by the Worldwide Women’s Audiovisual Association (WAWA), as an honorary member for her 30 years of career in media.

Octavio J. Visiedo MS
Faculty Research Associate. Mr. Octavio J. Visiedo is a lifelong educator and had the honor of being the first Cuban American Superintendent of Schools in the history of Miami Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS). Mr. Visiedo was also the first MDCPS graduate to lead the 4th largest school district in the nation from 1990 to 1996.

Carlos Fueyo MArch
Faculty Research Associate. Creative director and visual effects designer Carlos Fueyo ’08 has cultivated a successful career blending the two things he loves most – architecture and film. Carlos Fueyo was drawn to design and film from a very young age, always wondering how such awe-inspiring works were created. Today, he is fortunate to work in the fields he is passionate about, continually amazed by the possibilities within them.

Joyce Billet MS
Year II Program Fellowship Mentor. Joyce Billet (b. Paris, France) is a French-American artist living and working in Miami, FL. Her background in architecture has encouraged her to play with material and textures in an effort to mix the sensations of painting and sculpture. By questioning material, process, and purpose, Billet’s work presents a dialogue between the analog and the digital via themes surrounding nature, absence, and materiality. Central to Billet’s practice is a desire to foster conversations about how humanity can coexist with nature while embracing technology.
The Ratcliffe Foundation
The Ratcliffe Art + Design Incubator was founded in 2017 with generous and continuous support from The Philip E. and Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation whose vision continues to guide our programs and provides funding for key faculty, equipment, and our fellowship stipends.