Our People

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 boards of non-profits involved in STEM education.

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.

Mary Stein has been a bookkeeper for many local businesses in Oregon for over 35 years. She is the grandmother of two children who are currently in elementary and middle school. She was a teacher in the public elementary school system for six years and substitute taught for three years. Recently, she has been a volunteer in the public elementary school system.

Akshay Gupta has spent his career in high tech, including building Corning(R) Gorilla(R) Glass into a global ingredient brand. During his tenure at Corning Gorilla Glass he integrated music as a key element to connect the brand to consumers in a meaningful way that can have a positive impact. That led him to discovering Playing For Change with whom he built a multi-year relationship across the world. He also worked with artists like Gin Wigmore and the Imagine Dragons. Akshay’s belief is that music is a universal language and bringing it to children and young adults can make a positive difference in this world.

Alicia has a strong background in performing arts, including vocal/choral performance, piano, and musical theater. She graduated from BYU-Idaho with a degree in Social Studies Education and spent her early career teaching high school Honors History. She is currently working on her MBA with an emphasis in Executive Leadership at Whitworth University, and works for PacificSource Health Plans handling Account Management for WA and the Inland NW. Although she is no longer in public education, her passion for music and education are a centric piece of her home life as in her spare time she teaches piano to her four children, and volunteers with the schools supporting them in their performances and musical endeavors.

Ann Gerson is originally from Winnipeg Canada. Ann attended the University of Manitoba for graduate school obtaining her PhD in Clinical Psychology. After practicing for 4 years, she moved into school psychology and eventually administration. She spent the last 25 years as a public elementary and middle school principal in Salt Lake City, Portland Public Schools and Lake Oswego. Ann is the mother of 2 and grandmother of 2. Other volunteer work includes Urban Tour Group treasurer ; Rosemary Anderson High School advisory board; Kizamani fundraising group and serves on multiple committees at the Multnomah Athletic Club.

Kevin Corcoran has been in the Employee Benefits and Health Insurance industry for over 15 years and is currently the Regional Sales Director for Pacific Source Health Plans in Washington. Kevin also serves on Community and Industry Boards at a local level including his role as Board Chair at Summit Dog Services. Kevin lives in Bellevue, Washington with his wife and two teenage children, one in high school and one in middle school. Kevin is passionate about the role music plays in our lives, throughout our life’s journey.

Amy Richter was born and raised in Portland Oregon. She has an educational background from Whittier College in Music Therapy and has been a musician since the age of six. Amy also has 20 years of marketing experience with a strong emphasis on project management. During a 10 year career at adidas, Amy directly managed marketing initiatives that contained budgets between $3-12 million. Amy served as a board member for Camp Ukandu, a camp for children with cancer for 5 years and volunteered at the camp for 13 years. In 2010/2011 she participated as marketing committee member for Salud, an organization who supports medical care for seasonal vineyard workers. Amy has two children in the public school system and has volunteered at her children’s schools for the past eleven years. Amy has taught over 800 Music Workshop classes for students K-8th grade.

Laura Strickland was born in Portland, but spent most of her formative childhood living on Maui. Exposed to a plethora of musical genres from an early age, her parents and older brothers instilled in her a deep appreciation for the positive role music can play in a person’s life. Laura enjoyed a 15 year career in Graphic Design at Nike. She has two children who attend schools in Beaverton School District and is an active volunteer in her community. She is passionate about the role music plays in connecting people and their cultures, and is a firm believer that music enriches the soul.

Before moving to Oregon in 2012, Jessika grew up in Spokane, Washington and learned early on that music was going to be a vital part of her life going forward. She earned her bachelor’s degree in K-12 Music Education from Eastern Washington University while simultaneously performing and recording on saxophone regularly with the Bob Curnow Big Band, Latin band Milonga, the Spokane Jazz Orchestra, and more.

Jessika and her partner Kyle moved to Eugene Oregon in order for her to earn her master‘s degree in Jazz Composition. As a teaching fellow at UO she had opportunities to continue teaching, and had the opportunity to perform abroad at the Montreux, Umbria, and Vienne Jazz Festivals. In 2015, Jessika released her first album of original compositions and arrangements for large jazz ensemble with the PJCE (Portland Jazz Composer’s Ensemble) record label.

From 2015-2019 Jessika taught K-8 general music and band in Eugene while also organizing and writing for the Eugene Composer’s Big Band and the Jessika Smith Big Band, and while writing and arranging for the PJCE, The Shedd Institute, and for personal commissions.

In 2019 Jessika accepted a position teaching in the Parkrose School District and relocated to Portland, Oregon. She currently teaches 6th-8th grade general music and band, and directs the Parkrose HS Jazz Band. Jessika firmly believes that music can change a child‘s life and that relevant and vibrant music education is an essential and vital part of all students’ education.