Your Coach!



Michelle Gaither

DESIGN CHALLENGE FACILITATOR EXTRAORDINAIRE

An educator with over 15 years of experience, Michelle has previously taught preschool, middle & high school; been a student support specialist; and now delivers Design Challenges here at Construct. Passionate about student learning -- and we are ALL students! -- racial equity, and holistic wellbeing, Michelle envisions and works toward a world where these three necessities exist and thrive together.

A genuine Oregon local, Michelle was born, raised, and still resides in Portland. She is a mother, a wife, a lifelong learner, a runner, and a lover of new experiences, good food, travel, reading, and rest. 

In addition to her work with Construct, Michelle serves as a DEI Consultant & Trauma Facilitator for Village Resiliency, an organization that consults with schools and other organizations for applying equity and trauma-informed tools that can help create an inclusive environment that supports resiliency and reduces the negative impacts of trauma.

Michelle holds a Bachelors of Arts in teaching as well as a Masters in Education in Curriculum/Instruction with a dual endorsement in Teacher Leadership and Trauma & Resiliency in K-12 Schools, from Concordia University.

Industry Experts

Karina Ruiz, Architect

Principal at BRIC Architecture, Inc. 

Karina Ruiz is a founding Principal of BRIC Architecture in Portland, Oregon.

Over her 25-year career, Karina’s focus has been on the design of innovative learning environments. She is purposefully engaged in the dialogue on the intersection between pedagogy, design innovation, and equity. Karina has been a tremendous advisor and supporter for Construct and for Student Design Challenges she has served as a mentor and visionary. 

As educational facility planning lead for BRIC, Karina inspires planning, community engagement, and design efforts where architecture can help to create a more equitable, just and humane world. 

As a Latina Architect, Karina believes strongly that, “We must provide mirrors and windows to often marginalized communities that have historically been underrepresented in this field and work actively to introduce this field to young girls like me.”  

 In 2019, Karina served as Chair of the AIA Committee on Architecture for Education. She has also served as a Board Member of NOMA PDX. She embodies BRIC’s tagline: Building Relationships and Inspiring Communities.  

Karina’s leadership is based in the ardent belief that design can partner with pedagogy to more equitably serve all our learners. Karina’s goal is to design schools that empower learners to change the world.

Paul Backett 

Co-Founder & Creative Director at Evolve Collaborative

Paul is a Founding member of Evolve Collaborative and serves as its Creative Director. Evolve is a design, strategy and innovation agency who partners with brands to deliver relevant products, services and experiences that make a difference. Evolve was founded upon the idea that the best design always arises from collaboration with other design teams and directly with client partners.

The difference great design makes in people's lives is what drives Paul and is the reason Evolve exists

Paul also taught for years as an adjunct professor at the University of Oregon in the Product Design program. At UofO,  Paul co-developed the curriculum and taught product design studio classes in the BFA degree program, integrating the theories and applied practices of the disciplines of art, architecture and design.

Previously, Paul worked at Ziba Design as the Industrial Design Director as well as serving as a Product Designer at Seymourpowell, a major UK consultancy company. 

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Wilson W. Smith III

Footwear Design Director - Nike Inc.

Wilson Smith graduated from University of Oregon with a degree in Architecture. He was hired by Nike as a Corporate Interior Designer, but soon moved from architecture, graphics, and interiors into Product Design where he has been ever since – He’ll celebrate his 40th year with Nike in 2023.  

Wilson is one of the most celebrated footwear designers in the country–named by Black Enterprise magazine as one of the top African-American designers in the United States. His footwear designs have been worn by some of the world’s greatest athletes, including Michael Jordan, Serena Williams, Roger Federer, and Andre Agassi.  

Wilson’s design wisdom and innovation is matched by his interest in teaching and serving communities. With Nike, Wilson aided recovery efforts in Haiti after a hurricane and has been central to providing sports and physical activity programs in Native American and Aboriginal communities across the U.S. and Canada. He has taught a BFA-level course for fifth-year Product Design Program students that focuses on adaptive design for athletes, making sport accessible for all. 

We are particularly grateful to WIlson for sharing his time and boundless energy as a founding Board member of Construct, where he has repeatedly served the student design community as mentor and visionary.