Meet our Staff

Executive Director

It is a joy and privilege to work with such skillful, enthusiastic educators. We take ourselves seriously as teacher-researchers, called to be exceptionally curious and creative on children’s behalf. How closely can we attend, how thoughtfully can we respond, to fuel each child’s natural drive to learn, to make themselves known, to make sense of this fascinating world?

Lisa joined TCS in Spring 2020 after leading elementary and middle schools in Vermont and Massachusetts. She holds a BA in Economics from Yale University and a Masters in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In her free time, Lisa writes poetry and hikes with her teenage son and their dog Hazel. Fun fact: At 19 Lisa soloed in a little Cessna airplane.

Administrative Assistant

This is such a fun place to be! We take such pride in what we’re creating together. I love coming to work and serving our community, especially during this exciting time of revival. Giving tours and welcoming new families—the start of long-term connections—is a favorite part my role.

Lisa joined our team in 2000 after working as a special education assistant in local public schools. She taught preK children at TCS for six years before becoming administrative assistant in the main office. Lisa earned a BA degree in English, Language and Literature from the University of Maryland. She loves to travel, hike and read. Fun fact: Lisa has her eyes set on Ireland for her next big trip.

Assistant Teacher, Robin’s Nest (Nursery)

Our work is to nurture and build on the innate goodness in every human being. I'm particularly fascinated by infants' and toddlers' explorations of nature and movement. They’re little yogis, so connected and expressive with their bodies.

Carolyn joined TCS in 2021. She holds a BS in Nursing from Northeastern University and a Masters of Public Health in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from San Diego State. She has worked as a neonatal intensive care nurse, an epidemiologist and, most recently, a yoga instructor while raising her twins. Outside of work, she hikes, skis, paddles and cooks. Fun fact: Carolyn was a competitive triathlete.

Dedicated Substitute (all age levels)

The Treehouse feels just right to me. We teach what every person needs to learn when they are little, especially how to practice empathy and work together in community. I am invited to share my own fascinations and wonderings with children. It’s hard to find adults who get excited about bugs—I am one of them! At least five preschoolers are no longer scared of spiders.

Christine joined us in 2023. She grew up in Nevada and received a Bachelors in Fine Arts and Illustration from Arts Center College of Design in Pasadena CA. Before moving to Vermont, she worked at mortuaries, specializing in gravestones. Fun fact: Christine fosters rescue cats, dogs, rabbits and rodents, finding them forever homes.

Shared Lead Teacher, Robin’s Nest & Butterfly Glen (Infants & Toddlers)/ Little Farmers Director

In the Nest the tiniest things are new and wondrous, even awe inspiring. A leaf! The texture of a friend’s hair, especially when yours hasn’t grown in yet! The sound of the door opening—who will walk through next? Everything is cause for experimentation. Curiosity is always in play: What might I do next to fuel children’s drive to discover?

Cindy joined TCS in 2017. She graduated from Granite State College with a BS in Early Childhood Education and has been working in the field for more than 30 years. In her free time she loves to chill out with her dog Pandora. Fun fact: Cindy practices kickboxing and USA Karate.

Lead Teacher, Butterfly Glen (Toddlers) / Reggio Coach

I believe I can learn as much, if not more, from children than I can offer them. I’m particularly interested in language around conflict resolution, social skill development, and social justice at the 2-turning-3 stage. What does it mean to be inclusive and celebrate diversity when there isn’t that much diversity in our community? What does it mean to be socially aware when you are two years old?

Emily joined us in 2021. She earned a BA in ECE at the University of Vermont, followed by a Master's degree in ECE with a focus in Constructivism and a Master's Certificate in Infant Toddler Mental Health, both at Portland State University. Outside of school, she loves to explore with her pit bull Moto. Fun fact: Emily collects and cuts license plates into the shape of their given states.

Lead Teacher, Robin’s Nest (Nursery)

There’s nowhere I’d rather be than with infants. Nothing beats a baby’s smile! Life isn’t complicated yet. It’s about making those initial connections with parents at home and us at school. Babies are forming their first ever relationships and put every ounce of trust in us to care for them. Our job? It’s to respond so they know their needs will be met. A smile or a babble or a cry, each is equally important. “I hear you. I see you. I’m here for you.”

Emmie joined our Infant program in 2021 and has been an infant-toddler teacher for more than a decade. She graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a degree in Early Childhood. Outside of work, Emmie likes to knit, garden and tackle puzzles. Fun fact: Emmie used to run her own cupcake business.

Lead Teacher, Fox Den (PreK)

Over the past decade, I’ve had the privilege of working with incredible children and families. Young children are imagination engines, fearless in their rich ideas and stories. The preschool mind is at a beautiful stage, unconstrained by the limits and filters we develop as we grow older. Everything is fresh and new and possible. We big people can certainly learn a lot from children’s mindsets.

Eric joined our team in 2024. He earned a BA in English Literature and Culture from Lyndon State College and then proceeded to teach at the early childhood and middle school levels for the next 10 years. Outside of work Eric volunteers at a local community theater. Fun fact: Eric and his son Eukie are both enamored with nature and tractors.

Part-time Music Director

To develop musical language we bring attention to simple things: time, pitch, one note following the next, basic melodies. Children are right there for it and respond to my presence as much as the music. “Are you actually here with us?” kids of all ages seem to ask without words. “Open and genuine with us?”

Jes is an award winning singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and visual artist. She joined TCS in 2021 and visits each of our classrooms weekly with her banjo and guitar in hand. Jes earned a BA in Liberal Arts from The Evergreen State College in Olympia WA and, post graduation, started gigging more than 100 shows each year with her band. Fun fact: Jes is also a printmaker who works on a letter press from 1890.

Lead Teacher, Fox Den (PreK)

In early childhood, play is learning and learning is play. Shouldn’t there always be time to read just one more book for the love of books? To drop everything and just go run around outside because it’s sunny or rainy or snowy or just plain cloudly? To continue a meaningful discussion without worrying about “the bell”? There is always time… here in preschool.

Teacher, Butterfly Glen (Toddlers)

It all boils down to children’s rights — everything from the right to play and learn in a safe, beautiful environment to the right to be seen as a complete person, not a half-person or “person-to-be.” This means: I want to listen to you! Where do you want to begin?

Lucy joined our team in 2023. They earned a BA in Gender Studies at Barnard College in New York City. Before joining TCS, Lucy worked as an “Explainer” at the Montshire Museum of Science, where they got to show children cool rocks and answer questions all day long. Outside of work, Lucy loves fiber arts and collage and playing guitar. Fun fact: Lucy studied abroad in Indonesia and Australia.

Lead Teacher, Songbirds (PreK) / Librarian

My teacher team and I constantly question our assumptions and motivations: Are we thinking about this with an adult brain or with a child’s? Are we setting up our classroom and routines with a mentality that might inadvertently limit children? How can we burst open possibilities in honor of our kids?

Madison joined the TCS team in 2022. She holds a BA in Studio Art with a Psychology minor from Colby-Sawyer College where she worked with preschoolers at Windy Hill, the college’s campus school. She owns a pottery wheel and devotes her free time to ceramics. Fun fact: Madison takes her cat Echo on walks around the neighborhood on a leash.

Lead Teacher, Songbirds (PreK) / Staff Orientation Coach

I'm interested in children's imaginative thinking and ways their brains are capable of extending far beyond our own. I'm interested in imagination as a bonafide, powerful way of learning. When you are with a child, they see little things everywhere that we might miss or simply take for granted. The joy in a stick. The joy in an icicle. The joy in having a friend.

Mia joined TCS in 2018. She earned a BA in Education in Sweden where her primary focus was on children with special needs. Mia trail rides on her horse Sox and loves visiting her grown-up kids in Europe and Washington state. Fun fact: Mia was a serious marathon and ultra trail runner. She won an 80-mile race with her dog beside her for 25 of those miles.

Dedicated Substitute (all age levels)

In the Robin’s Nest, where I often work, infants are expressing big feelings for the very first time. They’re experimenting with senses too—do I like this texture? this sound? taste? color? Children are discovering the joy found in playing with friends. There are so many firsts to support, celebrate and build on.

Olivia joined our team in 2017 and has since been a float in every classroom, serving children ages six weeks to five years. In her spare time Olivia loves traveling to the ocean in Maine and going to Vermonster events with her son Blake. Little-known fact: Olivia is fascinated by all things medical, especially psychology.

Lead Teacher, Robin's Nest (Nursery)/ Little Chefs Director

I am thrilled to be in the nursery after three inspiring years with toddlers. It’s a whole new world for infants and for me. Together we experiment and investigate: babies are born scientists! I especially like the challenge of designing "provocations." Our littles are encountering everything in life for the first time and our team gets to witness and document their “aha!” after “aha!” discoveries.

Sophia joined us in 2021 after graduating from McGill University in Montreal with a BA in Geography. In her free time she likes to cook, ski and go for long walks in the woods. Fun fact: Sophia attended a Reggio-inspired preschool when she was little.