Meet the StaffOur philosophy to implement bigger, worldly ideas at the preschool level is unique, with a curriculum and methodology based on current research in education, psychology, linguistics, and the sciences. Degreed and certified teachers, who are continuously trained in the latest instructional strategies and child development, create a fun, engaging, activity-based learning environment where knowing and growing become synonymous |
Ms. Ande (pronounced like Gandhi without the
"G") has over 15 years of experience in teaching and administration.
Five of those were spent in Thailand, where she met her husband and had her
first child, Addison (Addy), who's 8. Her twins, Rowan and Gavin, are now 6 1/2
years old and loving life. Ms. Ande has an MA in Philosophy and a certificate
in Preschool Management. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Curriculum
and Instruction. Ms. Ande spends what free time she has reading
science fiction and making lists. Angie DeGroat, School Director Ms. Angie has always known she wanted to be a
teacher and work with children. She began teaching with IPS in April of 2010
and loves the creativity and warmth of the IPS community. She graduated with
her MA in Early Child Development from Oglethorpe University. She feels that
working in administration allows her to have an impact on more children, get to
know all of the IPS families, and develop curriculum, which is her passion. Ms. Angie moved to Atlanta in 2007 from New
Jersey with her boyfriend and best friend, Kenney. On the weekends, you will
find her exploring Atlanta on her bike, writing, learning sign language, and
enjoying life. Megan Pickering, Instructional Coordinator Ms. Megan started with us in June of 2006. She
was new to teaching and was excited to get to learn from the best of the best.
She's now famous for her unique, creative, and energetic style. She has a
Bachelor of Science in Geology with a Minor in Writing from Allegheny College. Ms. Megan has two young daughters, Olivia and
Natalie, who light up her life. In her spare time she loves to play games,
hike, and spend time with her daughters and with friends. She loves to camp and
be outdoors. Alice Harris, Instructional Coordinator Ms. Alice began teaching with us in August 2006.
Her education began with a Business degree but after receiving an additional
degree in Child Development, Ms. Alice pursued teaching as a career. After 25
years of teaching, Ms. Alice still calls the classroom her passion and her
heart! Ms. Alice spends her free time with her husband,
their three teenage sons, and favorite girls (her dogs!). Besides teaching, her
passions include perusing home renovations books and interior design. She has
recently enrolled with the Fulton County (DFCS), with the intention of becoming
a Foster Parent as well as possible Adoptive Parent. Angela Robinson, PDO Teacher Ms. Angela joined International Preschools in
Spring 2006. She now has 32 years of teaching experience and has over 60
education and child development certificates. Ms. Angela and her husband Ray have two children:
her son Jamario and her daughter Shatara. In her spare time Ms. Angela enjoys shopping,
reading, going to movies, and sometimes babysitting. When she gets time off
from work, she loves to vacation at Disney World! Kim Smith, 2K Teacher Ms. Kim came to us February 2008. She spent quite
a few years in the medical field as a Paramedic. Searching for a little more
joy in her job, she found IPS and hasn't looked back! In addition to her
undergraduate studies in Psychology, she has also completed the CDA program and
Yoga for Tots training. She also volunteers for The Special Olympics of GA. Ms. Kim has two bubbly daughters. Scout is 5
years old and a recent graduate from IPS. Finley will be 3 this year and keeps
Ms. Kim on her toes! She has two hermit crabs named Shellie and Hermie. Her
favorite places are Zoo Atlanta, Callaway Gardens and the beach and she loves
owls! When she gets spare time, Ms. Kim loves to sew, cook, read books and
relax with her family!!! Faye Cain, 2K Teacher Ms. Faye was born and raised here in Atlanta, GA. Always
dreamed of teaching young children how to learn. She graduated from
Bethune-Cookman University with a BS in Elementary Education (K-6). Since
then her experience enhanced by substituting, tutoring, and assisting teachers
in/out the classroom. Additionally, she furthered her education and
earned a MS in Education. Ms. Faye is beginning her first year teaching at
IPS. As she grow with the IPS team her goal is to develop valuable
skills that go beyond the classroom. She will challenge herself everyday while
challenging students to reach big goals. She wants to make a meaningful
difference in student lives. Outside of the classroom, Ms. Faye babysits when needed. More
often enjoys spending time with family and friends. Libby Clay, 2K Teacher Libby Clay is a recent graduate of UGA, where she
earned a bachelors Heather Stewart, 2K Teacher Ms. Heather recently graduated Cum Laude from the Univeristy
of Georgia with a Bacherlor's degree in Early Childhood Education, a minor in
Spanish, and has just completed her ESOL endorsement. She has primarily worked
with K-2 students, and is eager to teach a 2k class. In her free time she likes
to read, cook, and travel the world. She has been to 49 of the 50 United
States, England, France, Canada, Spain, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands,
Costa Rica, and Tanzania. Her most exciting trip was a month long adventure in
Tanzania where she climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, rode a camel, snorkeled in the
Indian ocean, and went on animal safaris! Melissa Kramer, 3K Teacher Ms. Melissa joined International Preschools in
November 2006. Her under graduate studies were in Geology, though she spent
some time in the business world before joining our team. Ms. Melissa loves the
academic preschool environment, learning, and teaching. Ms. Melissa and her husband Brett have a son,
Aiden, and a daughter, Avery. Tyner Rushing, 3K Teacher Tori Klein, 3K Teacher Ms. Tori has been a teacher at IPS since January
2010. She is working towards her degree in Literature with a minor in Rhetoric
at Georgia State University. She has had a lot of experience working with
children. She worked as a nanny for four summers while in high school as well
as coaching 3 and 4 year old soccer teams. She also was a camp counselor at the
Cherokee County Outdoor YMCA. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, sewing,
cooking, and taking her dog on hikes. She also loves running, playing soccer,
doing yoga, and finding other ways to stay active. Ashley Tuten, 3K Teacher Ms. Ashley is new to the IPS team and is so excited to share
her gift of teaching in Atlanta. She graduated from North Georgia College &
State University with a dual degree in Early Childhood Education and Special
Education in 2008. Ms. Ashley loves to travel and has taught in England and
most recently in China. Teaching children from all over the world is something
that she is very passionate about. Ms. Ashley just got engaged and is planning on marrying her
best friend in November 2011. Other than wedding planning, she loves spending
time being outside, traveling, taking pictures, and drinking a good cup of
coffee. Kristin Mejia, 3K Teacher Marta Lanier, 4K Teacher Ms. Marta began working with us in
2010. She received her bachelor’s of arts in music as well as in
education from Emory University. She current plays in the Rome
Symphony of Georgia and with the Emory University Symphony, but absolutely
loves spending the day with the kids at IPS. She also has two dogs
at home and enjoys attending dance class. In her “spare” time she
enjoys conducting music lessons for young children and going to concerts with
friends. Her favorite color is purple and her favorite animal is the giraffe! Maia Vernon, 4K Teacher Ms. Maia is a native of Atlanta, Georgia. She
graduated from Georgia Southern University with a B.B.A. in Computer
Information Systems. Her career in education started as a substitute teacher
for Atlanta Public Schools for grades K – 4th. From there, she was offered a
position as a kindergarten paraprofessional at Garden Hills Elementary. Coming
from a family of educators, she had the privilege of learning different methods
of teaching by assisting in numerous classrooms including her mother’s, who
owned her own daycare and was a kindergarten Montessori teacher for Briar Vista
Elementary School. Sherilyn Taylor, 4K Teacher Rebecca Bartlett, 4K Teacher Rebecca Bartlett is a second-year teacher at IPS.
She holds a BA in Psychology and Master's in Marriage and Family Therapy. She
is currently pursuing certification in teaching and school counseling. She has
two children at IPS and enjoys reading, traveling and spending time with her
family and friends. Jennifer Bullard, 4K Teacher Ms. Jennifer has been employed in Early Childhood
Education for nearly 19 years. She's received numerous awards and trainings in
Early Childhood Development, including her CDA (Child Development Associate). Jennifer's past time hobbies include spending
time with family, writing, traveling and shopping. Her philosophy on education
is you get the best of others when you're willing to give the best of self. Ashley Self, 5K Teacher Ms. Ashley joined the IPS community in the winter of
2011. She grew up in Atlanta and
attended college at Auburn University (War Eagle!). After graduating college, Ms. Ashley spent 2 ½ years
living in Charlotte where she became a certified yoga instructor. Always having a passion for young children and
spending most of her time working with children, she also became a certified
kids’ yoga teacher. Ms. Ashley was drawn back to Atlanta a year ago and continues
to devote her time to children and yoga. When she isn’t teaching preschool or yoga, Ms. Ashley
enjoys spending time with friends, family, and her dog, Ollie, as well as
travelling and cooking. Kristen Perchalski, 5K Teacher Dyonne Bourne, K Teacher Ms. Dyonne joined IPS in 2010 teaching the 5KA
class. She is originally from Brooklyn, New York, and is a graduate of Clark
Atlanta University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a
minor in Business Administration. She comes from a large family, and has also
worked in other various children’s settings, including Keystone, a Center for
Children with Autism, as well as The Marcus Institute. She is returning back to
school to earn her masters in Psychology. Ms. Dyonne is so excited to soon be marrying her
fiancé Julius this September 2011. In her spare time she enjoys traveling and
visiting family, as well as shop and going out to new restaurants. Natalie Denny, 5K Teacher Ms. Natalie comes from Dayton, Ohio and moved to
Atlanta in August 2010. She earned a Bachelors of Health and Sports Studies
degree from Miami University (Ohio) in 2007 and recently completed her Masters
of Education with a specialization in Child Development through Ashford
University. She has two years experience in college athletics. Ms. Natalie has a beautiful daughter, Harper (3)
and in her free time she enjoys reading books, relaxing in the sun, golfing,
learning to cook, playing basketball, working out and keeping up with the
Cincinnati Bengals and Reds. She’s looking forward to meeting her new students
and having a very fun school year! Andrea Moy, 5K Teacher Ms. Andrea is excited to be part of the teaching team at IPS!
She joined the school in summer 2011 after moving to the Atlanta area from
Chicago, IL. After receiving her M.Ed. in Elementary Education from DePaul
University in 2008, she worked at University of Chicago Laboratory School as a
second grade Assistant Teacher. Ms. Andrea truly believes in teaching her
students to be socially responsible leaders in a globally changing society. In her spare time, she loves to travel, explore new
restaurants and spend time with friends and family. She lives in Gainesville,
GA with her fiancé Dan, their crazy dog Lucy and Wonton the turtle. They are
thrilled to be planning their fall 2012 wedding! Regina Brandt, Special Projects Ms. Regina is a native Atlantan and one of the
few you will meet who took swimming lessons in the lake in Piedmont Park. She
attended Morningside Elementary School and Grady High School. She holds both BS
and MS degrees in Criminal Justice from Georgia State University. She has
completed both the Child Development Certificate and the National
Administrator's Credential training programs. She began her career working with
young children at the YWCA on North Highland in 1992. She came to IPS in the
Fall of 2007. She strongly believes in community service. She teaches CPR and
First Aid classes for the American Red Cross where she is also an Instructor
Trainer. Ms. Regina also works with the Girl Scout Council
of Greater Atlanta and the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization. She loves
travelling and sends postcards whenever she can. She also enjoys gardening,
reading and arts and crafts of all kinds.
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