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.
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.
Meghan lives in Fairfax with her teenage children and their dogs Zephyr and Ozzy. She spends her down-time hiking, reading, creating and spending time with family and friends.
LEAH ROBBINS
Leah was born and raised in Southern California and moved to Marin County after graduating from high school in 1974. She received her B.A. in Biology from Dominican University in 1990. She completed College of Marin's Early Childhood Education program in December 2013 and is a credentialed Preschool Teacher through the State of California.
"I have no children of my own, although I've helped to raise many babies in my 30 years of working in childcare here in Marin. I consider these my beloved extended family."
Her sister, Valerie Robbins, happily lives in Marin, too. She works at the Marin Humane Society and is their Director of Human Resources.
"I am honored to have the opportunity to work alongside the teachers - who I lovingly refer to as The Dream Team - at Little Mountain Preschool. I look forward to all of our many wonderful adventures together!"
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
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.
ROBYN MARESCA
Robyn was borne and raised in New Jersey and moved to California to attend Chapman University where she received her BA in Liberal Studies. From there she moved to upstate NY where she attended The Culinary Institute of America and went on to open a Personal Chef/Catering business based in Mill Valley, CA. After starting a family, Robyn decided to take a step back from the demanding hours of her business to be home with her 2 sons and started focusing on Early Childhood Education. She is currently receiving her ECE certificate through UCLA.
Robyn has previously worked at Little Mountain where she applied her cooking skills in the preschool kitchen with hands on cooking projects with the students. She has also worked at Hidden Valley as a kindergarten aide, giving her an understanding of kindergarten preparedness and is excited to help students get ready for elementary school. Robyn lives in San Anselmo with her husband, 2 sons who are both LMP alumni and their 2 dogs, Sandor & Clementine. Robyn loves spending time with her family & friends, enjoys yoga, baking, traveling and reading.