MEGHAN KREMPETZ, DIRECTOR
Meghan is passionate about her work with young children and is thrilled to be teaching at Little Mountain Preschool. She brings to her work compassion, reflectiveness, collaboration, curiosity and an abundance of energy and playfulness. Meghan believes that the foundation of early childhood education is the cultivation of caring and respectful relationships and she is dedicated to supporting each child’s individual temperament, abilities and interests. Meghan taught at College of Marin’s Child Study Program, Little Mountain Preschool and Ross Valley Nursery School.
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Meghan grew up in San Anselmo and attended school at Brookside and graduated from Drake High School. During the years after receiving her BA in sociology at UCSC, she worked and volunteered in the public health education field with Peace Corps Niger in West Africa and as a reproductive health educator for a globally respected women’s healthcare organization. Volunteering continues to be an integral part of her life.
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Meghan lives in Fairfax with her daughter Chase and their dog Ozzy. She spends her down-time hiking, reading, creating and spending time with her two children, Owen and Chase, her extended family, and friends.
Marie comes to Little Mountain with over a decade of teaching experience in elementary and middle school. She has had the opportunity to work with children from pre-k - high school and is so thrilled to return to working with preschoolers. Marie is especially interested in social emotional learning and helping students successfully navigate their day at school. She is excited to explore, learn, read and create with all the students at Little Mountain Preschool.
Marie grew up in east bay and attended Sonoma State University. After college she spent a year in the Jesuit Volunteer Corp in Atlanta, GA where she worked for Aid to Children of Imprisoned Mothers. Most recently she taught at a middle school in San Francisco.
Marie lives in San Anselmo, and enjoys spending time with family and friends, and going on all kinds of little adventures with her two kids, husband and dogs.
ANKE BENING
Anke is originally from Germany and moved to the US in 2016. In Germany, Anke started a career as an attorney but she decided to go back to University and get her masters degree in education with emphasis on language and math. She started out teaching as an elementary school teacher in Germany, where she was very fortunate to gather a lot of experience working with special needs kids, especially autism. Since 2016, Anke has worked as a nanny and joined the Little Mountain Preschool team in 2021. Anke believes in playful learning; she loves to sing, laugh, create new games to engage children and teach the students and teachers a little German every day. Anke's son lives in Europe and she and her husband live in Kentfield where they enjoy hosting visits with family and friends from overseas. Her hobbies include traveling, swimming, scuba diving, hiking and reading.
DONNA BRYDON
Preschool is a truly magical time, and Donna is passionate about working with young children. She is committed to the belief that children learn best in a safe, nurturing, and creative environment with cognizance and emphasis of the "whole child"-intellectual, creative, social-emotional, and physical, while encouraging positive self-esteem. Donna was born in San Francisco of Italian immigrant parents and cherishes her heritage. She loves visiting relatives in Lucca, Italy. She enjoys waling, gardening, baking, Jazzercise, and spending tie with family s and friends. She received her BA from San Francisco State University and her Early Childhood Teaching Credential is from Sonoma State University. She taught at Ross Valley Nursery School for many years and at Manor School in Fairfax for over twenty years as a Resource Specialist Assistant and Academic Intervention/ Title 1 Reading Teacher. Currently, she privately tutors student's in early literacy/ reading. Donna lives in San Anselmo and is the proud mother of two daughters and four wonderful grandchildren.
EDITH FESCKES-REYNOLDS
My commitment to early childhood education stemmed from the arrival of my two youngest siblings, one when I was 17, another when 18.. true bliss! After receiving a BA in music , piano/cello, I studied for my elementary school credential at Cal Poly, soon after, I enrolled in a Master’s program at Pacific Oaks College…Human Development, early years! Multi years later, here I am at this darling school Little Mountain. Previously I taught at Mission College and College of Marin in the teacher training program. My most recent ventures were director of San Anselmo Co-op for 18 years, then one sweet year at Cottage Montessori! I was born in Hungary and left there when I was 10.From Budapest to Sausalito. We thanked our parents continually for making that choice.
CAROLYN SEELEY
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Carolyn comes to Little Mountain Preschool with 18 years of elementary school teaching experience, 10 of those in Kindergarten. She is a deeply reflective educator who believes that young children learn best through play and secure relationships with adults and peers. Carolyn is eager to share her love of nature and science. She is passionate about working with young children and cultivating curiosity about the world around them. She is currently enrolled in WildCare’s Nature Guide Program to deepen her understanding of our local ecosystems and looks forward to playing in the dirt with preschoolers.
Carolyn grew up in San Rafael and went to San Rafael High School. After receiving her BA in Cultural Anthropology at UCSC, she earned a bilingual teaching credential and taught in Spanish-English dual immersion schools in Napa and San Rafael. In her free time she volunteers at a medicinal herbal cooperative, creates herbal remedies and enjoys the outdoors with her family and dog, Una.
TORRI CHAPPELL
Torri comes to Little Mountain Preschool after more than 30 years of teaching in elementary schools. Her life-long interest in working with and supporting children inspired her to delve deeper into understanding the developmental psychology and neuroscience behind relationships and learning. Torri became a certified instructor with Hand in Hand Parenting as well as the Neufeld Institute of Developmental Science, which not only helped her as a parent and teacher, but also gave her the tools to provide support to parents as they raised their young children. Torri is inspired by the curiosity, authenticity and possibility of young children and believes in the power of a caring, supportive environment to allow them to fully grow and thrive.
Torri was born in Okinawa, Japan and grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. After receiving her BA in International Studies at Emory, she spent 2 years as a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Vienna, Austria. Upon her return, she got her MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management. The world of international business couldn’t compete with her passion for children so she got her Multiple Subject Credential and has surrounded herself with children ever since.
Torri raised her two children in San Anselmo and is the doting grandma of three grandchildren. Her children went to the San Anselmo Co-op when Edith Reynolds was director and Torri served as the Curriculum Coordinator and soaked up Edith’s wisdom and love. She speaks German and Swedish, enjoys Origami, playing games, cooking, learning Spanish and ukulele and discovering new hiking trails in the Bay Area.