Our Instructors
Kellee Blanchard
Kellee was born and raised in Eugene and she loves teaching Imagine That! in her hometown. During the school year she leads Moving Joyfully, a dance and movement program for young children where she fosters creativity and self-discovery in her students. Kellee feels that working with children is a blessing. She uses stories and imagination in her teaching so Imagine That! feels like home to her playful heart. Though life has allowed her to teach in many places such as India and South America, Kellee will always look forward to her summers with the wonderful team and super Imagine That! kids. This year Kellee is honored to have taken on the role of director of Imagine That!
Scotty Perey
Hailing from the Big Sky State of Montana in 1988, Scotty Perey graduated from the University of Oregon School of Music (Composition, ’94) and proceeded to build a community of nearly a thousand students and their families over the past two decades, both privately and within the 4J School District, as well as from the ten past seasons of Imagine That! Enjoying everything from music to reading to writing to hiking to skiing, playing with his band, “The Sugar Beets” or traveling all over the world, Scotty can safely say that there is no job in the known universe more custom-tailored toward the very essence of his being than teaching music at Imagine That!
Eden Pierce
Eden grew up in Eugene, attending Imagine That! as a camper from the age of 6, and has been involved in various roles ever since. Growing up, Eden was a student of Scotty Perry and played piano and vocals in an all girls rock band. Eden graduated with a BFA in Musical Theater from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. She is now a cycle instructor at the new Eugene Family YMCA and the Downtown Athletic Club. In her spare time, Eden loves to exercise, cuddle with her puppy, and travel to Australia to visit her partner. Eden can't wait to experience another year of Imagine That Magic!
Elise Pierce
Born and raised in Eugene, Elise began attending Imagine That! with her sister when she was 8 years old. Her love for the magic of Imagine That! has been growing ever since. Currently a preschool teacher at Teton Science Schools near Grand Teton National Park, she engages with children through creative inquiry and exploration of the natural world. During her time with the youngest humans, she enjoys wondering, exploring, observing, and constructing knowledge through different artistic mediums both inside and outside the classroom. Previously, Elise’s work at the Child Development Center in Bellingham, WA shaped how she encourages children to guide their learning through curiosity and fascination with the world. At other times, she is traveling, creating, and outside playing, learning with people she loves. She returns home every summer to immerse herself in the beauty of Eugene and the fun of Imagine That!
Lisa Mattielo
Born in Eugene and raised in the Pacific Northwest, Lisa has delighted in watching her nieces (now camp instructors) Elise and Eden perform for years in Imagine That! camps. Lisa's love for music, drama and art started early on. At the age of 9, she wide-eyed watched Liberace on TV and decided to become a concert pianist. She has taken many years of piano and voice lessons, created myriad art projects (often utilizing an abundance of glitter) and entertained her friends and family endlessly with her hilarious, ongoing one-woman show. Lisa graduated with an M.A. in Teaching English as a Second Language from Eastern Washington University and has lived in Italy and Spain. She has taught preschool in the 2/3's class at The Big Little School for 12 years thus far and loves it! When not exploring and learning with her classroom kiddos, Lisa loves performing in plays in various local Eugene and Cottage Grove theaters. Her life goals are to learn to fence, play the drums and adventure all over the world teaching kids.
Rachael Barrows
After having experienced Imagine That! as a camper from the ages of 8-14, Rachael is excited to return to the magic as a drama teacher. Born and raised in Eugene, Rachael graduated from Western Washington University with a degree in Environmental Science and recently completed an internship with NASA's DEVELOP program. They are currently working towards a career in Oceanography, but are thrilled to go back to their roots in Eugene for the summer and work within their passions of education and creativity. Their goal is to find a career path that blends science, education, and fun together.
Their other interests include art, writing, travel, and playing ultimate frisbee. Having done theater through childhood and into high school, they are excited to combine their love of drama, creativity, and small friends during camp this summer.
Nina Palada
Nina was born and raised in San Francisco, California. She is currently working as a 1st Grade Teaching assistant at The San Francisco School. In addition she teaches dance and movement classes to young children. She graduated from Saint Mary's College with a double major in Dance and Choreographic Studies and Justice, Community, and Leadership. She enjoys teaching movement, and movement exploration with young children. She has worked as an assistant teacher at Imagine That! for four years, and now is one of the dance teachers.
Liam Gibler
Liam has loved performing and storytelling since he was little. Before he could spell, he would make picture books with squiggly lines to represent the sentences. He’d then sit his parents down and “read” to the family.
As he grew up, Liam sang in choirs and did plays. Spending his summers at arts camps; first as a camper, then as an intern. At Imagine That!, Liam is excited to share the techniques and warm ups he learned from camp which he still uses on stage as a comedian and professionally as a journalist.
Madison Chapman
Maddie was raised in Seattle, WA and loves the PNW! During the school year she attends Brigham Young University in Utah and is working on her degree in Elementary Education, while also pursuing a minor in ballroom dance. She dances for two university dance companies (ballroom and folk dance), teaches beginning ukulele lessons to kids, and recently got engaged to her fiancé, Erik!
She began attending Imagine That! when she was 9 years old and had the absolute joy of having her Aunt Kellee as her dance teacher for every camp she attended. Maddie feels so lucky that her camp experience has come full circle after working as teen helper for three years, as she now gets to teach alongside her aunt as one of the dance instructors.