Born and raised in Australia, I taught and played with infants through school-age children for over a decade before pursuing adult education. Prior to coming to the UNH in 2003 I spent 10 years on the faculty in Human Development at Pacific Oaks College, known for its anti-bias curriculum and support of children’s play.

My publications include Emergent Curriculum and contributions to both editions of the The Hundred Languages of Children drawn from my study and research related to the Reggio Emilia Approach from Italy. My writing currently focuses on the connections between young children in child care and the broader adult community. I hold a doctorate in early childhood education and development from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and degrees in human development and elementary education. I hold a Director’s Credential (Level 4) from the NH Child Development Bureau.

My spouse Shelly is a child therapist in private practice and my two children attend Oyster River Public Schools. At CSDC my contributions include the development of a highly professional and research-oriented staff, a deeper understanding of the impact of culture and diversity on everything that we do, and continued exploration of our inquiry-based early childhood education with children, their families, and student-teachers.

Born in Taiwan but raised in the Southeast Asian countries of Thailand and Singapore, I came to the US in 1977 for my undergraduate studies, trying to decide what I want to be “when I grow up.” I stumbled into the field of early childhood education while at Michigan State University’s Lab Preschool Program, and have never left it since. Over the last 23 years, I have served in the capacities of preschool teacher, childcare program administrator, and as early childhood pre-service program placement coordinator, university supervisor and instructor. Through all this, I have remained involved at various levels with laboratory schools – at the University of Houston and at the University of Maryland..

I am honored to have the opportunity to serve at the CSDC as the Associate Director of Inquiry and Pedagogy. I look forward to collaborating with and learning from the staff as we move forward in our efforts to maintain and further the CSDC’s excellent local and national reputation as an exemplary program for early education and teacher training, and more importantly, to continue to provide the highest quality of education and care for young children.

I came to CSDC from the Dover School District where I worked for the last 5 years. I held positions at Horne Street School, Garrison Elementary School and the Professional Development Department so I was able to meet many people and learn a lot too. In 2003, I completed my Bachelors Degree in Organizational Management at Daniel Webster College after attending classes at night for three years.

Our family lives in Strafford. I have two sons, Michael (16) and Matthew (13) and my husband, Dave. We share our home with our pets Scott, Suzi and Pepper. We enjoy spending time together skiing, going to the gym, walking and spending time with family & friends.

I am very happy to be part of the CSDC family for the past two years.