Andrew Hauner joined the Beginnings staff in 2020. He is a city kid at heart. He has worked with children and their families across learning contexts and settings in NYC, including the Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Children's Museum, Blue School, Imani House and P.S. 10K. After studying classics at Boston University, Andrew completed his higher education in the Czech Republic, where his parents immigrated from, earning a BFA in photography, a BA in French philology and an MFA in intermedia and art education. He's currently pursuing an MSEd in early childhood education at Brooklyn College, The City University of New York (CUNY). He is interested in the Reggio approach to early childhood education as a way to see, challenge and leverage his teacher subjectivity and cultural lens. He also likes Casio keyboards and reading.
Aneesha Kinard joined the Beginnings community in the fall of 2017 as a floater teacher. She received a BA from Fordham University in Natural Science. Before Beginnings, Aneesha worked with the Girl Scouts of Greater NY teaching coding and mentoring young girls. She also has experience as a teacher working with children with disabilities, tutoring adolescents and adults, and working in after school and summer camp programs. In her free time, Aneesha likes to cook all types of cuisine and likes visiting the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx.
Anjelica Blige is a proud native New Yorker, avid Knicks/Yankees fan, and dog mom to her favorite pup, Melo. She is a former Opal School educator, having spent 6 years teaching in Reggio Inspired schools in Portland, OR, and continuing this past year in Battery Park. She is excited to join our community and immerse herself in the wonders of Beginnings. When Anjelica is not at Beginnings, you can catch her at the dog park, having coffee with a book… or listening to Beyoncé.
Bio Coming Soon!
Beau has been a part of the Beginnings community since 2008. He can be found in the classroom and sound studio teaching music or at his desk working on all things digital communications. Prior to working at Beginnings, he received his B.F.A. from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in Theater Performance and English Literature and his front-end web development education from General Assembly in New York City. He began his teaching career at a Brooklyn Heights Montessori School as the music teacher for first through eighth grades. There, he taught classes and led performances for chorus, songwriting, music theory, piano and guitar. He also collaborated to write an original musical for the upper school. At Beginnings, he has developed the sound studio and music website for which he presented his work on the evolution of the music studio program at Blue School's annual conference on Innovation in November 2013. This led to the development of the current Beginnings website which he also created. Beau lives vicariously through his children who love to do interpretive dance performances to the Hamilton soundtrack and play soccer, baseball, tennis, Atari and Nintendo.
Bethany Cole joined the teaching staff at Beginnings in 2013. She previously taught at The Family Annex Nursery School and has worked for many years as a water safety instructor at Hillard summer camp. Bethany has a B.A. in liberal studies from SUNY Purchase. She is pursuing a master's degree at Bank Street College of Education.
Caroline McAuliffe started working at Beginnings in November 2022. She is an interdisciplinary artist and fine arts specialist. She believes in creating possibilities for quality education that engages individuals cognitively, emotionally, and socially. Caroline strives to develop ways to bring people together throughout her workplace and community spaces. She believes the art studio is a space for open dialogue and inclusion. She brings her love of art, practice, process, materials, repurposing, and artistic expression to her community and students. Caroline studied art and the philosophy of arts education at Hobart and William Smith Colleges and received her Masters in Painting and Drawing from Pratt Institute. She taught in the Primary and Middle school programs at Blue School from 2014-2022. She lives and practices art in Brooklyn with her wife, Karen, and kid, Sal.
Claire Lipkin is excited to join the warm Beginnings community in the new school year. She brings previous experience as a 4s Teacher and Early Childhood Cooking Teacher at Far Brook School in NJ. While earning her BA in Gender Studies with a minor in Education Studies at Skidmore College, Claire enjoyed working as an Assistant Teacher at the Skidmore Early Childhood Center. Both nurturing environments inspired her interest in progressive early childhood education models. In her free time, Claire loves reading, dancing, and thrift shopping—activities she enjoys sharing with young children to inspire learning and creativity in the classroom.
Diana Tobon started teaching at Beginnings in 2011. She has a bachelor's degree in psychology from Hunter College of the City of New York. Prior to joining Beginnings, Diana taught Pre-K at ABC Preschool and Kindergarten Center in Woodside, NY and taught Spanish to children for eight years at Language Workshop for Children in NYC.
Kate Ratcliff is excited to start at Beginnings in the fall of 2024! Kate has 13 years of experience working with young children, including eight years of experience working specifically with 2-year-olds. She loves their enthusiasm and joy for exploring their world. Kate has a B.S. in Early Childhood General Education from Iona College and a Master's in Early Childhood Special Education from Bank Street College of Education.
Kris has been working at Beginnings since 2005. He has a BA in Literature and Creative Writng from Fairfield University and an MFA in Creative Writing from the New School. His second novel, The Antiques, will be published by Scribner in January 2017.
Laura Graham started working at Beginnings in 2010. She holds a B.A. in dance and philosophy from Hamilton College. While dancing for a company in Albany, NY, she taught modern and ballet technique to children ages 3-18. Laura also worked for many years as a teacher and artistic director at a performing arts camp. Laura is currently pursuing a master's in early childhood education at Hunter College. Laura presented her work to instructional coaches for the New York Department of Education in May 2015.
Laurie Hammette spent her formative years in University Park, Maryland, before attending the University of Tennessee, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in French Language and a minor in Recreation and Tourism Management. During her studies, she spent a semester at the Université d’Angers in France for an immersive language experience. After graduating, Laurie worked at the Library of Congress Child Development Center in Washington, D.C. This sparked her passion for working with children and motivated her to pursue a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education. After her graduate degree, she started teaching in New York City as a lead preschool teacher at a bilingual French school. She remained there for 20 years, developing curriculum for early learners—3 years with three-year-olds and 17 years teaching pre-kindergarteners. Most recently, Laurie taught at Germantown Friends School in the Philadelphia area. She also completed a two-year training program at Mindful Schools and now incorporates mindfulness techniques into her teaching to support students’ emotional and cognitive growth. Outside the classroom, Laurie enjoys time with family, friends, and pets, as well as traveling, reading, playing and watching sports, and spending time in nature. She is excited to continue her educational career with the Beginnings community!
LeeAnn has been a part of the Beginnings community since 2004 in various roles. She was previously the Director of Parent Relations and Special Events, then the Assistant Director, and became the Director in 2022. LeeAnn received a B.F.A. from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in Drama and Psychology and has a Master's degree from Hunter College in Early Childhood General and Special Education. She is also a certified adult and children's yoga instructor. She has taught drama and yoga in many different schools and was the Lower School Drama teacher at Brooklyn Heights Montessori School, where she collaborated with the children to write and perform original theater pieces. She has worked as a private Special Education Itinerant Teacher (SEIT) and taught yoga privately to children with special needs. In addition to her work with children, LeeAnn was the Assistant to the Director of Special Events for the V Foundation for Cancer Research, focusing on fundraising and event planning. LeeAnn loves to do yoga, play dress-up with her kids, and cook all types of food. She believes the key to happiness is a well-curated charcuterie plate shared with friends.
Lekyta Catts joined Beginnings in the Fall of 2018. She is from Poughkeepsie, NY, and is working on her BA in Child Psychology & Development at The University of Massachusetts (online). Lekyta has been working with children for a total of 13 years, with 8 of those years having been early childhood, elementary, and special needs classrooms in the Hudson Valley. Some of her other passions include writing whimsical and comedic poetry and seeing her favorite band, Hanson (yes, THAT Hanson!), on tour.
Lilla Chabler has been a teacher at Beginnings for nearly two decades. Originally from Poland, she studied Literature Education at the University of Zielona Góra, where she prepared to teach Polish grammar and literature at the middle school level. There, she also worked with children with developmental disabilities, an experience that deepened her appreciation for inclusive, child-centered education. She has attended professional development with the Opal School, North American Reggio Emilia Alliance (NAREA), and St. John’s Episcopal Preschool to learn from educators and classrooms that celebrate children’s thinking and creativity, and in 2022, she traveled to Reggio Emilia, Italy, to explore the approach firsthand. Lilla continues to develop her educational craft through SUNY coursework in curriculum planning and assessment, emergent literacy, the development and meaning of play, and inclusive early childhood education. When she's not in the classroom, Lilla is an avid reader who loves spending time in nature, hiking, and gardening. This fall, she is excited to cheer on her son as he begins his college journey.
Lily Byerly joined the Beginnings staff in September 2015. She received a B.A. in psychology from Wellesley College and spent her college and post-college years working with preschoolers, adolescents and college students in various settings. Before joining Beginnings, she spent three years at the Wellesley College Child Study Center, a laboratory preschool, teaching children ages 2-5. Lily received a master's degree in early childhood education from Bank Street College of Education in May 2020. She loves doing a deep dive, whether it is into the world of making miniatures or backyard chicken care, or the social politics of reality competition shows, or something else entirely!
Margo Lippman moved to New York City in 2006 to attend Eugene Lang College at The New School University, earning a Bachelor of Arts in Social Inquiry. Over the past 15 years, she has worked with children of all ages in various settings. Before joining Beginnings, she taught at City and Country School as a swing teacher for all lower school groups and later served for 3 years as an Associate Teacher in the 3s classroom and as the Language Arts Teacher in the 5s (Kindergarten) class. Margo is passionate about exploring the world with children, both inside and outside the classroom, and looks forward to continuing this work at Beginnings.
Marisa Chung started working at Beginnings in September 2021. Her first classroom experience began at an Early Head Start Program, which led to her decision to enter her teaching career. She worked as a lead teacher in a private school with infants and toddlers in the Lower East Side and later joined the teaching team at the CUNY Graduate Center's Child Development and Learning Center. Marisa is currently pursuing a master's degree in early childhood education at Brooklyn College.
Bio Coming Soon!
Rosalva Moran has been teaching at Beginnings since 2007. Before working at Beginnings, she taught for five years at the Language Workshop for Children as a Spanish teacher to children aged 6 months to 9 years. She holds a B.A. in psychology and English language arts and a master's degree in early childhood education, both from Hunter College. She enjoys listening to music (in English and Spanish), loves the color purple, and is a fan of Hello Kitty.
Sara Redeghieri joined the Beginnings community in 2022 as an AfterClass instructor and floater. She received a B.A. in Anthropology and Romance Languages from Mount Holyoke College. She grew up in Reggio Emilia, Italy, and was fortunate to experience the educational approach firsthand. She has worked with children of various ages and in diverse settings internationally, facilitating after-school and summer camp programs, teaching cooking enrichment classes, and designing language workshops. She spent the last two years discovering the many wonders of materials while working at the non-profit Teaching Beyond the Square. She's pursuing an MSEd in early childhood education at CUNY's City College of New York. Sara loves to learn about different cultures and their people. She loves to cook, whether learning new recipes or perfecting her Nonna's traditional pasta recipes.
Tania Molina started working at Beginnings in 2007. She moved to New York in 2005 from Puerto Rico, where she studied Theatre and French. During college, Tania volunteered with children in low-income communities, which later evolved into teaching theatre to youth across the island. She holds a B.A. in theatre from the University of Puerto Rico and an MFA in theatre from Columbia University.
Zachary Schlee taught at Beginnings from 1998-2004 and returned in 2008 after living upstate for a number of years. In addition to his years at Beginnings, Zachary has also been a head counselor at Friends Seminary summer camp.