JoAnn began in the position of a Consultant and Director in October of 2003 to develop a PreSchool program at Prince of Peace Church. After a year of measuring, purchasing and organizing Prince of Peace PreSchool opened with it's first class of PreKindergarten 3&4 year olds and a 2 year old program called Playmates in September of 2004. Since then our classes have expanded to include Stepping Stones, a class for young 3 year olds and two, 2 year old Playmate programs. We offer an optional Lunch Bunch program and have become a licensed Music Together PreSchool with classes offered to students in the PreK and Stepping Stones programs.
JoAnn came to POPPS with over 20 years of varied educational experiences with her focus in Early Childhood Education. Her teaching background includes teaching at the Elementary School level in New York City and Passaic County, NJ and most recently at Calvary Lutheran Nursery School in Allendale, NJ where she created a 2 year old program and taught both 2 and 3 year old classes. She holds teaching certificates from the State of NY and NJ Departments of Education for teaching Nursery School and Elementary School.
Kim comes to us with six years of experience working in nursery schools. Her two children were enrolled in cooperative nursery schools where she was a participating parent and a member of the Board of Directors for both schools. This will be Kim’s fifth year teaching at Prince of Peace PreSchool. She is presently a Teacher of a 2 year old Playmates Program and a Co-Teacher of our young 3 year old Stepping Stones Class.
In addition to being a teacher, Kim is the wife of Anthony and the mother of Tony (11 years old) and Sebastian (9 years old). She has a Bassett Hound, a Rescue Dog, and a Guinea Pig who enjoys making classroom appearances on occasion… along with buckets of mud, volcanic eruptions, and a whole host of other things designed to peak the curiosity of the children!
In her leisure time, Kim is an avid reader, Cub Scout leader, member of the Social Action ministry at Prince of Peace, Co-Leader of their 2007 Vacation Bible School and a volunteer for VBS and Good Friday Mini-Camp. In the summer you can find her in the garden tending to her pumpkin patch.
Helene started teaching at Prince of Peace PreSchool in September 2004. She is presently a
Teacher of a 2 year old Playmates Program, Co-Teacher of our young 3 year old Stepping Stones class and a Music Together Preschool Teacher.
Helene has a BA in psychology from Douglas College at Rutgers University, a NJ Elementary Education teaching certificate and a Preschool Music Together certificate. She has previously taught 5th grade in Old Tappan and worked as a Branch Director for the YMCA in Massachusetts. Helene is a member of Prince of Peace Church and has been Co-Leader of their Vacation Bible School in August 2007 and a volunteer for VBS and Good Friday Mini-Camp.She also teaches Sunday School and works with RVPEC, an organization in River Vale that supports parents of exceptional children.
She is the Family Manager of her household that includes her husband Jim, twin boys, Connor and Erik, and a border collie named Sadie.