Meet our Preschool Teachers & Caregivers
Cynthia Brown, Owner, Director & Head Teacher
Bozeman Montessori Children's House
A native of Quebec, Canada and fluent in French, Cynthia moved to the U.S. as a teenager and has dedicated the past 28 years to the care and education of young children. In 1985, after completing a 2 year intensive training & internship, she received her Montessori Teaching Diploma from Pan-American Montessori Society.
After working for a decade in various Montessori schools in the U.S. and having fallen in love with the natural beauty of the Northwest, she opened Giving Tree Montessori School for Infants and Toddlers here in Bozeman in 1996. After 6 years of enjoying her thriving school, she moved to her husband's home state of Tennessee.
Now having returned "home" (as she calls Bozeman), Cynthia is utilizing her 18 years of experience teaching this age group by opening the Montessori Children's House, named in honor of Maria Montessori's first school in Rome.
Cynthia has always possessed a deep love for children and is a mom of four boys and a girl. She loves the snow, including ice skating and cross country skiing and also enjoys scrap booking, ballroom dancing and ballet.
Her philosophy can be summed up simply in her conviction that the so called "Terrible Twos” should actually be called “The Wonderful Twos”.
Cynthia is a dedicated Montessori teacher and her passion is teaching the little ones. She has learned to cultivate and channel the abundant energy, enormous learning potential, curiosity and wonder that toddlers naturally possess.
Infants
Marjorie Orie
Marjorie comes to us with years of experience caring for infants including 4 of her own. She offers exceptional loving care to each little one and is adept at using daily care experiences as opportunities for learning. She creates a happy, calm atmosphere with her generous smile and joyful nature.
Marjorie and her husband have recently relocated to Bozeman from the island of Trinidad. So far their favorite recreational activity here in town is dancing!
Celeste Pfau
Celeste brings experience as a baby sitter and has a genuine warmth and nurturing quality in her care of each infant. She has a strong passion to work with children and finds her time with them very rewarding.
Celeste holds a degree in Visual Arts from The Cooper Union in New York City. She has been both an art and gymnastics instructor. She is also a working artist who loves to sculpt, paint, draw, crochet and more. She moved to Bozeman to be near her twin sister who is a graduate student at Montana State University.
Theresa Hazen
Theresa is a certified Montessori primary teacher with the Pan American Montessori Society. She has great joy in caring for infants and children of all ages. Her daughter, Natalie, is the love of her life.
Theresa enjoys being outdoors and appreciating the beauty that surrounds us.
Toddlers
Kristin Horn
Kristin holds both a B.A. in psychology and a Masters of Education in Early Childhood. She is an experienced Montessori teacher certified by the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI).
She has a rich educational and cultural background including serving as a Peace Core volunteer in Guatemala for 2 years, experience in environmental education and working with the Forest Service in Alaska.
Kristin is an energetic, joyous teacher and caregiver, guiding our toddlers to small and large accomplishments each day!
Kristin lives in Bozeman with her husband and their daughter Teagan who attends our pre-primary program. They enjoy outdoor adventures together and serving our wonderful community.
Ashley Smith
Ashley is an experienced Montessori teacher as well as a leader of wilderness backcountry trips. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Recreation Studies and her Montessori certification is from the American Montessori Society (AMS).
Ashley's enthusiastic, cheerful nature helps create happy, rewarding experiences for our Toddlers every day.
Ashley and her husband enjoy living in Bozeman with their two children. Their son, Oliver, attends the Montessori Children's House pre-primary program.
Rose Karlsen
As the oldest of 5 children, Rose is very experienced in caring for little ones and she greatly enjoys being a part of the Toddler care-giving educational team. She has worked as an assistant for two summers at a local Montessori program and has been a student at Montana State University studying interior design and film.
Her bright smile is appreciated by all.
Justina Swart
Justina brings the experience of many years of babysitting here in Bozeman. Her happy energetic nature contributes greatly to our Toddler's positive experiences.
Pre-Primary
Jeannine Porzio
Jeannine is a certified Pan American Montessori Society teacher with over 14 years of experience caring for and teaching young children in Oregon and in Montessori Schools here in Bozeman.
Her life has been dedicated to the education and caring of children and she draws upon a multitude of resources gathered through the years to create the best possible learning experiences for our two-year-olds.
Jeannine's six grown children keep her life beyond school lively and busy.
Meghan Beatty
Meghan graduated from the University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee) with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in art education in 2011. Her creativity and calm, nurturing qualities contribute greatly to the positive tone of our pre-primary classroom.
Bonnie Kinnear
Bonnie has been a nanny for several families here in Bozeman and has a natural enjoyment of caring for children. She was a dance teacher for 7 years and her grace of movement is a wonderful model for our two-year-olds.
In December 2012, Bonnie returned from teaching English in Thailand and is currently studying Education at Montana State University.
Taken During Our 2012 Staff Christmas Party
Back row from left to right: Jeannine Porzio, Kristin Horn, Cynthia Brown, Meghan Beatty, Marjorie Orie
Front row from left to right: Justina Swart, Ashley Smith, Rose Karlsen, Theresa Hazen, Bonnie Kinnear (not on picture), Celeste Pfau (not on picture).
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