Mary Sanchez joined our Toddler Program in the summer of 2021. Blairsays, My favoritepart of my job is seeing the moments where a child catches on to whats being taught, whetherits a toddler learning how to hold a spoonor a youth learning how to read. Seeing othersgrow and come into their own motivatesBlair on a daily basis. She is excited to be part of the MMS community! Alona joined the MMS team in August 2019 as a Childrens House Assistant Teacher. In the summer of 2011, she spent time continuing her education of reading instruction at the Columbia Teachers College Reading and Writing Project in New York City. Georgia Kane began at MMS in 2012 as a student teacher in the art room. She also spent most of her professional career working for Alverno College as the Assistant to the Dean of Students and working with student leaders. She enjoys bringing children the chance to try a variety of educational artistic experiences, and likes to fill a classroom with their accomplishments, and celebrate their progress and individuality. When she started at MMS, she immediately fell in love with her position. She went to school for Speech Therapy and was working at a school for children with special needs before starting at MMS. Mike is excited to work in a learning environment, close to home, with friendly co-workers around every corner. She thoroughly enjoyed the rigorous liberal arts curriculum and chose to major in English Literature and Writing Composition. Here in Milwaukee, she plans to finish her schooling within the next year or two. She holds a bachelors degree and has trained in the High Scope Curriculum, the Socio-Emotional Foundation For Early Learning, and the Creative Curriculum. It was there that she first learned about the Montessori methodology and fell in love with its hands-on, child-led approach to learning. She is a big college football fan (Oklahoma State Go Pokes!) She also worked as an administrative assistant at an interior design studio in Naples, FL which provided her plenty of administrative experience that she currently uses at MMS. Our toddlers learn how to be independent and do things themselves, making family time more fun, and getting out of the house a lot easier. She loves Wisconsin and spends her time working out, cooking, and listening to her favorite podcast NPR. Pete joined MMS in September of 2007, as the IT Director, handling many responsibilities including managing, repairing, upgrading and installing the numerous systems within the building. She graduated from UW-Whitewater with a degree in Early Childhood Education and Development and a minor in art. Oftentimes on weekends, you can find her and her husband out on the water. She earned her bachelors degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Bethel College in Mishawaka, Indiana. He holds a degree in sportsmanagement along with certifications inCenter Creative Leadership, NFHS Master Coach, USA Impact, and Minnesota Volleyball Instructors. She went to Illinois State University for her education and loves working with children. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Karen earned a Bachelors Degree in Fine Art from the UW-Milwaukee in 2001 and was the recipient of the prestigious Logan Travel Scholarship in 2000. In 2003, she moved to Milwaukee and joined the MMS faculty in 2005 as a Toddler Teacher. The majority of her education was spent in a Montessori school and then graduated from Rufus King in 2019, going on to begin an Associates Degree at Alverno College. He has worked in a variety of educational settings including College for Kids, the Studio Arts and Craft Centre, and the Artist in Residence program at Saint Johns on the Lake. Because she was familiar with the Montessori method and materials, Monicas grandmother regularly had her sit with the students in her school to help with their lessons. She and her husband have two daughters and one of them attends MMS! Outside of MMS, Ashley loves spending her free time with family, traveling, and exploring new cities. Katia loves that she learns from both her co-workers and her students. Before joining the faculty at MMS, Kathy Maki worked in the summer recreation department at Milwaukee Public Schools teaching games, crafts, and group activities to four, five, and six-year-olds. Outside of work, she enjoys playing board games with her family and creating new and keeping old family traditions like taking family trips to several of their favorite spots. She earned a bachelors degree in Spanish from Edgewood College. After moving to Milwaukee from Seattle, Daony joined our team in 2021. She loves spending time with children and is so looking forward to her new career with our toddlers! Additionally, she spent five summers as a camp counselor with the Jewish Community Center of Milwaukee. She strives to create an atmosphere of calm, order, and joy in the classroom. Ms. Alyson Berg is no stranger to Upper Elementary, spending the majority of her MMS career teaching UE students History and Science. Katie looks forward to using her past experiences to help the toddlers gain much new knowledge. Shes looking forward to working with the toddlers because she appreciates the development of a child and children between the ages of 2 and 3 years old are her bread and butter! In anticipation of her professional work, Marcy student taught at Rufus King International Baccalaureate High School and Roosevelt Middle School of the Arts, both in the Milwaukee Public School district. She has a Bachelors Degree in Accounting and a Masters Degree in Education. David is a lifelong learner dedicated to his growth as an educator, and he truly values the curricular depth available to students at MMS. Before coming to MMS, she spent ten years in the customer service field, with jobs in competitive sales, retail stores, banking, and marketing. Millie is actively involved with the American Camp Association as a Standards Visitor and is dedicated to creating high quality programs and positive, nurturing environments for young people to play and learn. David Swanson grew up in Chicago. Elaine Dragotta came to MMS in the fall of 2015 to serve as a Lower Elementary Assistant. Toddlers are like young scientists, eager to learn, try new things, and explore the world around them. She also teaches three violin ensemble classes at Tamarack Waldorf School in Milwaukee. In addition to teaching at MMS, she also teaches at Atonement Lutheran School and has a private studio in Brookfield and is the accompanist for the Lutheran Chorale of Milwaukee. In her free time, she enjoys doing art, photography, and getting together with friends and family. Sierra Falkowski was born and raised in Milwaukee, WI, and grew up traveling yearly to different parts of the country. Kari grew up in Waukesha and attended the Montessori School of Waukesha for her primary years. During the summers, Monica would visit her grandparents in Germany. In 2013, Ron started teaching at MMS, where he found his second home/family and now wife. Ms. Annie Elfelt is beginning her MMS journey this year as one of our new Literature and Writing Composition faculty. She lives in South Milwaukee, has two daughters, two grandchildren, a great-grandson, and a Sheltie, Peanut. Outside of MMS, Bre enjoys going home to visit her family and participating on the track and field team at Marquette. During her time working there, Katie ran her own playground field house, as well as arts and crafts, sports and many other fun activities. Not only is she excited to help her students understand grammar and composition, but she also looks forward to exploring with them how throughout the centuries. Her degree is in Finance and Economics, and although we know she isnt planning a life long career in our Toddler Program, we feel so honored to have her working in the Stepping Stones North Toddler Room while shes transitioning from college to her career. Her favorite place to go is the library because shes an avid reader. She completed a rigorous International Baccalaureate accredited education and has spent the last four years tutoring literacy and teaching children in Preschool and Lower Elementary. As a former 4-H member, she has a passion for youth development and was drawn to Milwaukee Montessori School by its focus on youth-led learning. Her ultimate dream isto someday run her very own child care center! Lynda Williams joined the MMS team in December of 2018 as a Childrens House Assistant Teacher. Welcome to Milwaukee Montessori School, a co-educational private independent day school for students from toddler age through the eighth grade. Olivia has always loved the Montessori approach to learning and was intrigued to find out about Milwaukee Montessori School. While in college, Mary spent a year studying at La Universidad Autnoma de Guadalajara in Guadalajara, Mexico. and enjoys attending hockey and basketball games. When shes not spending time with the MMS toddlers, you can find her gardening, writing music, and getting out into nature! She is currently a part-time student at MATC and working towards her degree in Human Services. Jon has enjoyed coaching and teaching physical education at Milwaukee Montessori School since 2003. She also loves attending medieval reenactments with her fianc, where she dons a suit of armor, spars with blunted swords, and teaches the public about medieval Europe. Throughout her schooling, she volunteered both as a writing tutor in both MPS and The Milwaukee Rescue Mission. Liz has her Bachelors Degree in Psychology and Studio Art from Lawrence University and is planning on becoming an Art Therapist, specifically working with nonverbal children and geriatrics. In 2018, she graduated from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. While exploring the Montessori Method at home with her two-year-old daughter, Evangeline, she found a passion for Montessori education and decided to learn more about it and teach it to other children! Prior to coming to the United States, he worked as a teacher in Russia and Mexico. Fun fact! Kenya spends her free time playing with her daughter and husband, going to the zoo, visiting parks, and cooking. Greg is married to Katie and they have two children, Penelope (5) and Lennon (2), as well as their dog Lani, with who Greg spends almost all his free time with. She loves to read and share her knowledge with others. Outside of MMS, Carina enjoys spending time withher two rambunctious boys swimming, creating art, reading together, playing basketball, and visiting libraries. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English education from Vaze College, Mumbai, India in 1997. He lives in the Canon Park neighborhood with his wife, two daughters, and dog, Hector. Danbegan working at MMS in Upper Elementary, after graduating with a B.S. Millie is passionate about the outdoors and has spent many summers out in the woods building communities and creating safe, challenging, and fun experiences for young people. In her spare time, she enjoys various art projects and relaxing with her cat! Shes a recent spring 2019 graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater where she obtained her Bachelors Degree in social work, with a minor in human services. Anoma Wijenayake has been a Directress in the MMS Childrens House since 2002. For most of her professional career, she worked at the YMCA managing the Day Camp Program Business Office. Lynda is thrilled to have found her place within the MMS Community as she transitions into this new role as an educator. with her fiance. Working with children and their bright spirits is her passion. Cece happily joined the staff at Milwaukee Montessori School in 2009. He is a Nighthawks teacher and is an assistant gym teacher for the Child Care students. Since graduating from MMS in 2011, Nate has done many things, including being in a band, working with his brother at his commercial painting company (they paint our halls every summer! Harper has been a part of the MMS community since 2002. She earned a coaching emphasis that she has put to good use starting Milwaukee Montessoris after school sports programs. BlairHatchett recently joined the MMS faculty as a Toddler Teacher working in the Toddler I program. She teaches 4th-8th grade students cumulative visual art concepts and techniques that have allowed her students to win numerous awards within Scholastic Arts, Wisconsin State Fair Youth contests, and the Milwaukee Regional Art Fair. In her free time, she enjoys being active such as playing sports, attending festivals, exploring, being with family/friends and volunteering in the community. She has also volunteered with her alma mater and a number of arts organizations in Milwaukee. Before coming to MMS, she spent time in the Oshkosh school district as a substitute teacher, and now she has joined us to be a CH Assistant! Furthermore, Ashley completed more than 3,000 hours of volunteer experience at First Assembly of God Fort Myers as an event planner. Beginning in 2010 with tutoring Algebra, trigonometry, calculus, and statistics,Danrose to become the Lead Tutor for the UW-Milwaukee Department of Mathematics in November 2015. Deepali acquired her diploma in Montessori training from the American Montessori Society in 2008. Then, she served as an assistant teacher in the Junior High, Upper Elementary, and Lower Elementary classrooms. She is married to Bruce Loder and they have two adult children, Kaity MMS 02 and Will MMS 05. Marriage brought Deepali to Milwaukee, and subsequently to Milwaukee Montessori School. He also provides music to marketing and new media firms, and has taught guitar and ensemble lessons at Milwaukee Montessori School since 2007. In 2017, Micha earned her Masters Degree from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut in Teacher Leadership with a focus in Literacy. She is a Milwaukee native and has lived in southeastern Wisconsin her whole life. Her three sons, Greg, Steve, and Jordan all attended MMS, and her youngest son is now working with us in the Marketing department! She had the privilege of becoming a foster parent to juvenile girls while accomplishing an internship from the Eastern Michigan University Social Work Program at the Ennis Center for Children in Metro Detroit. He has also led several continuing education seminars and lectures for adults and educators covering educational technology, game design, programming, and animation. Hannah was born and raised here in Milwaukee and recently moved to the Eastside, where shes enjoying access to the lake and tacos! Laurie has taught many facets of music in various school systems including elementary music, orchestra, world drumming, choir, and piano. She spent two years teaching conversational English (ESL) and organizing educational and cultural events in Policka, Czech Republic. Lubna is originally from Pakistan, where she taught elementary and middle school. Lizz has served as a visiting team member in the accreditation process for the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and as the faculty representative from Milwaukee Montessori. Since graduating he has been making prints and functional ceramics at his studio where he also organizes events and workshops. Jane obtained her Montessori Teaching Certification in 2003 and began teaching in the lower elementary at New World Montessori. She came to MMS to use her expertise and to learn more about the Montessori method! Before joining the team at Milwaukee Montessori School in 2021, Kaylin nannied for a sweet and curious toddler for six months. One of our MMS Alumni Staff Members, Annie Shafer is a recent graduate of Stonewall College. Shortly after, she returned to school part-time at UW-Milwaukee to pursue her Masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in reading and concurrently became state certified to teach reading to students from early childhood to age 21. Hannah graduated from Marquette University in May of 2019 and is originally from Salinas, California. Every day, she and her husband are thankful they found MMS years ago for their family. In her spare time, Millie loves to cook for family and friends, practice yoga, take long walks in the woods, go camping, and watch movies with her husband and two sons. Kari went on to earn her primary Montessori diploma from the AMI Montessori Institute of Milwaukee in 2015. She is also creating a book documenting the projects her students have done over the last decade. In May of 2016, she was promoted to the Director of Development position. Her beloved horse is now retired and spends his days eating the most excellent grass and hay Minnesota has to offer. She enjoys art, spending time with family and friends, and, most importantly, dogs. He also teaches several group and private lessons. Micha Johnson teaches Junior High Science with a focus on chemistry and laboratory experiments. This past MMS school year was his first year as a full-time employee. During the summer, Sarah enjoys traveling, quilting and other needle arts. Those programs included basketball, volleyball, and track and field. If not outdoors, you might find her reading, drawing, or completing the occasional jigsaw puzzle. Brittany uses her degree in IT at Milwaukee Montessori as the Business Office Assistant along with working in the Accounts Payable department.