DAVID SQUIRE
Advocate * Philanthropist * Board Member
30 Years of Service to Saturday Academy
Dave was raised in the small Southern Oregon town of Ashland and is a third generation Oregonian. He bought his first guitar in 1961.
From high school Dave went to Oregon State University where he met and married his wife Carol in 1966 and graduated with a BS in Electrical Engineering in 1967. Dave started his professional career as a design engineer for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration at Ames Research Center in California. He quickly returned to Oregon with his wife and three kids in 1969 as a design engineer for Tektronix. He went on to work as an engineering executive at many local high-tech companies.
Dave partially retired from high tech in 2014 and does some business development consulting but mostly volunteers on several non-profit boards involved in STEM/STEAM education including Saturday Academy and Oregon MESA. He served 6 years on the elected board of Portland Community College.
Dave’s guiding light, Carol, passed away in 2015 but he is supported by his three children’s families (including four excellent grandchildren) and his friends. His hobbies are anything with kids and grandchildren, music (guitar, banjo and singing) and hanging out with friends at his small ranch in Tygh Valley, Oregon.
I believe that education is the core solution to most of our societal problems. STEAM education in particular and especially hands-on STEAM education is a vital component of the kind of education that can serve students well throughout their careers. Even if they don't enter a STEAM career, the skills they acquire though hands-on-learning will support their success in whatever career they enter.
It is important to me to work with great teams doing great things. The work of Saturday Academy provides great experiences for our students and is instrumental in getting them started in life. To be a part of the team that creates these opportunities is a privilege and honor that I greatly appreciate.
ELLEN REGAL
Educator * Artist * Advocate
30 Years of Service to Saturday Academy
Ellen Regal is originally from Boston. She studied economics and education and took art classes in her 20s and 30s. A pivotal moment in her life occurred when she was in 8th grade. Polaroid had donated cameras and film to her school and she got the opportunity to take one of the cameras and spend the day taking photos. The school was six minutes from the subway and she went on an adventure that day. Ellen still remembers the excitement she felt exploring the city with her camera.
In high school she volunteered to teach ceramics to kids, offering a creative space to go on Saturdays, which was important to her. She wanted to make the world a better place. She loved teaching, but needed an eclectic life, so she traveled and studied French in France and Spanish in Costa Rica and Guatemala.
In her 20s she became interested in hiking and backpacking, working at Glacier National Park where she had the opportunity to climb mountains with fellow photographers. She spent many years traveling and learning how to take photos.
In 1980 she purchased her first good camera and new opportunities opened up for her. In 1992, she moved to Portland. She was ready for a new journey and wanted to be creative. She believed that anything was possible, so she went to film school and worked at OPB.
Ellen taught her first Saturday Academy class in 1993. 30 years later, she is still teaching for Saturday Academy. The first class she taught was the “Art of Photography” and then “The Magic of the Dark Room.” Ellen takes her students on field trips in her Saturday Academy classes. She teaches them about seeing and changing their perspective. She says, “Every student is in the same place, but they each see things differently and they capture completely different photos.”
Ellen started teaching middle and high school students for Saturday Academy and also teaches afterschool classes for the Saturday Academy to You program. She enjoys teaching in the schools because the students are attached to where they are. Ellen says, “This is their space and they have a sense of place. They document their friends and a specific time and place in their lives. Often when they look back at their photos, they have an emotional response to what they’ve captured.” Her goal remains the same today, to offer a creative space for kids. She says, “They are so excited to take photos. It’s very empowering for them. They learn about light and perspective. They’re completely engaged and create amazing work.”
The passion I felt then, to make a creative space for kids, still burns inside of me today. I, like everyone else at Saturday Academy, want to help kids find their spark. It truly makes a difference in their lives.
I am honored to be recognized by Saturday Academy. I am grateful that there is a place for arts education in a STEM based program. As a photographer I have always said that a camera will take you to places you otherwise might not go. The same is true for Saturday Academy. They have created opportunities and trained me to teach in a wide variety of programs. It is a gift to get to know students all over the city to be able to make a creative space with them