ReCreate is grateful to have the following people serving on our Board of Directors.
Samantha King - Board President
Sam King has worked in the education and non-profit sectors for 25 years. She began her career as a high school English Language Learner teacher at Piedmont Hills high school in San Jose, CA. Her time at Piedmont Hills led her to pursue an MA in Education from the University of Michigan focused on quantitative analysis as a tool to further social change. Since 2019 Sam has worked as a STEAM/Maker/Design Thinking consultant with schools and non-profits. Sam currently lives in Davis, CA with her husband of 25 years, her 16 and 17-year-old sons, a wild boxer dog, and a friendly gecko.
Alisa Lee - Board Vice President
Alisa is an education and community focused communications professional that graduated from UC Davis with a BS in Environmental Biology and Management. She has over 25 years of experience working in Northern California leading education programs, corporate communications and university outreach initiatives and grants. She has served as an industry spokesperson and expert on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) outreach and managed national and local STEM initiatives. Her fields of interest include K-12 outreach, mentoring, capturing career and life stories, and fostering equitable access to opportunities for diverse representation in the greater STEM fields.
Donna Sangwin - Board Treasurer & Founder
Donna founded and led ReCreate for 15 years, and also has 30+ years of experience in business development, sales, marketing, team facilitation, and a passion for making. Under her guidance, ReCreate brought school programs to over 150,000 students, one classroom at a time. She is a UC Santa Cruz alum, and her past includes national management positions with American City Business Journals, which has over 70 publications in the US. Donna loves to spend her time with her family making things, sewing and being active as a theatre mom to her daughter and exploring the coast with her son.
Andrea Flamenco - Board Secretary
Andrea is the Education Programs Manager at California IT in Education (CITE). Andrea has a BA and multiple subject teaching credentials from the University of California, Riverside, and a MA and administrative credential from San Jose State University. Andrea brings a STEAM background to the board and holds a Software Engineering Education Lead certification from The Bower Institute and San Jose State University, Google Educator Certification, and a Leading Edge National Digital Educator Certification.
Karen Quinlan - Board Member
Karen is a recently retired Roseville City School District administrator having had 40 years of experience in education. She is excited to offer the ReCreate Board her passion for child development, leadership, teaching and learning strategies. Karen participates in her local community through Soroptimist International of the American River. This is a philanthropic organization that helps promote education and training for women and girls. She recently became a coach for Placer County Office of Education, supporting new administrators clearing their credentials. This includes facilitating their leadership and learning collaborative. In addition, she finds no greater joy than volunteering in her grandchildrens’ TK and 3rd grade classrooms on a weekly basis. Karen's hobbies include yoga, traveling and enjoying live music.
Renee Perez- Board Member
Renee has been actively enhancing STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education in public schools for over a decade through strategic teacher partnerships, PTC leadership, grant writing, and nonprofit board roles. Her efforts have focused on creating innovative learning experiences, fostering school collaboration, and securing funding through grants and business partnerships.
As a local entrepreneur, Renee brings valuable business insights and a strong network to ReCreate. She looks forward to leveraging her experience to support educational initiatives and expand opportunities for students, combining her passion for STEAM education with her community-driven approach.