Keaton enjoying new role as Region Two director

By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
 HOULTON, Maine — When Caribou native Dave Keaton was presented with an opportunity to return to The County to take over the Region Two School of Applied Technology in Houlton, it was an opportunity he simply could not pass up.
Now in his second school year as the regional director of the Region Two School, Keaton is looking forward to new programs and methods of expanding the school’s reach for students. He replaced Mike Howard, who held the post for 10 years.Region Two is a technology/career-based school that is partnered with RSU 29 (Houlton, Littleton, Monticello, Hammond), SAD 70 (Hodgdon, Amity, Cary Plantation, Haynesville, Linneus, Ludlow and New Limerick), RSU 50 (Southern Aroostook and Katahdin school systems) and East Grand Community School.
Prior to coming to Region Two, Keaton was the center director for the Somerset Career and Technical Center in Skowhegan for six years. While in Skowhegan, Keaton kept his home in Caribou, where his family stayed, and came home every weekend during the school year.
“It was a good school system to work for,” Keaton said. “They gave me the room to grow and enhance the center, which I feel that I did. And while I was very grateful for that opportunity, my heart was always in Aroostook County.”
Born and raised in Caribou, Keaton said he phoned home every night to speak with his wife and two daughters. And while it was difficult to be away from his family during the week, he was able to spend every weekend and school vacation with his family.
“This (Region Two) really was a dream come true,” Keaton said. “I get to do a similar job and be so much closer to home.”
Now that his first year is complete, Keaton said the shift from being a center director to a regional director was challenging.
“As a center director you have a supervising superintendent over you,” Keaton said. “When I came here, this being a region, I, for all intents and purposes, am the superintendent.”
In his first year, Keaton said he did not want to make many changes at the school because he wanted a better understanding of what worked well at Region Two and what needed improvement.
“No two centers are alike,” he said. “We did start a new EMT program, which I am proud of. We have had a lot of interest in it.”
Changes in technology have rapidly been incorporated into the classroom at Region Two.
“We are not your grandfather’s shop class anymore,” Keaton said. “Our goal is to get our students more employable.”