Our Staff

Each room is staffed by a Lead teacher with early childhood education.  Our lead teachers have Montessori certification, Montessori professional development training or the opportunity to acquire the certification through AMS. All professional staff meet yearly requirements for continuing education with additional trainings.

All staff participate in Professional Development opportunities throughout each school year and are given the opportunity to attend Montessori-based workshops and conferences.

Teacher-student ratios are 1:5 (Young Toddler), 1:8 (Toddler House) and 1:12 (Children’s House and Kindergarten). Lead teachers have assistants who have completed various levels of certified Montessori training.

Teachers and assistants are assessed each year by the Head of School and the parents so that the staff is continually improving their skills and capabilities.

Teacher Training

  • All Day Montessori teachers are Montessori certified or are in the process of completing their certification.
  • All lead teachers have bachelors degrees in education or comparable student teaching experience.
  • Assistants are strongly encouraged to complete their undergraduate degrees.
  • All Day Montessori requires all lead teachers to complete their Montessori certification and provides financial assistance for this purpose.

 

Staff -2024 – 2025 school year

Toddler Houses

Young Toddler House (15 months – 30 months)

Denneille Thomas
Co – Lead teacher, Asst. Director of ADM Young Toddler/Toddler House Program

Denneille or Mrs Nell joined the ADM family in 2021.   She is married with three children, ages 9, 14 & 15.  Previously, she worked with children for over 10 years in a home daycare setting. Most recently she was a teacher’s assistant with 1st and 2nd grade special education students.  She recently received her Bachelors degree in Early Childhood Practice from National Louis University.  This achievement led her back to her passion of working with preschool age children.  When not teaching Mrs. Nell loves to spend time with her family!  Nell has completed the Discover Montessori course at  Seton Montessori  Institute.

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Celeste De La Torre 
Co – Lead teacher

Celeste grew up on the south side of Chicago. She discovered ADM after moving into the Evergreen Park neighborhood with her husband and two daughters. She first discovered Montessori in 2018 while working as an assistant with infants. She quickly fell in love with the beautiful way children were learning. She completed her Montessori training at Seton Montessori institute in 2021 and is currently taking her CDA training to further her education. Celeste has worked with children from 6 weeks old to 3 years old. She loves singing songs in Spanish and sharing her Mexican culture with the students. 

Karen Harris

Assistant Teacher

The youngest of 10 children, Karen Harris was born and raised in the Beverly neighborhood. After earning her associate’s degree from NIU she moved to San Francisco where she taught for 5 years at the exclusive Getty Montessori PlayGroup. She eventually moved back to the Beverly neighborhood to raise her family of four girls, all Montessori trained of course. She has returned now to her first love, teaching young minds in the Montessori tradition.

 

Toddler House I (2 years – 3.5 years)

Brianna Burge
Lead Teacher/ Childcare coordinator 

Hello! I’m Brianna or Ms. Bri. I recently joined the ADM family September 2022 as the Co-Lead teacher for Toddler House 2. I have a BA in Family Consumer Sciences with a concentration in Family Services from Eastern Illinois University. I have been in the early childhood education field for 3 years as both a lead teacher and permanent substitute. When I am not teaching, I am spending time with my family and dog! I come from a big family of 7 brothers and sisters, most of whom are younger than me. They are where my passion for children and education derived from. As a teacher my goal is to encourage my children to flourish and become independent young people.

Brianna has completed the Discover Montessori course at  Seton Montessori  Institute.

Shannon Whelan
Assistant Teacher/ Morning Care Staff

Shannon or Ms. Shan joined the ADM family in the Summer of 2023. Previously she was a middle school teacher at Saint Casimir in Hammond, Indiana; before transitioning to a teacher, Ms. Shan worked in Chicago for several radio stations. She loves to sing and dance and is extremely excited to be a part of the ADM crew! Ms. Shan has her Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from Saint Mary’s College Notre Dame and her teaching certificate and license in 7 -12 ELA. Ms. Shan doesn’t have any kids yet, but she loves to hang out with her younger cousins, nieces, and nephews; their activeness keeps her young and on the move. As a teacher and a continued learner, Ms. Shan’s goals are to learn something new daily and make learning fun.

Ms. Shan loves reading, writing, listening to podcasts, baking recipes off of Pinterest, and making people try her new creations.

Toddler House II (2 years – 3.5 years)

Shannon O’Keefe-Anderson
Lead Teacher
Hello my name is Ms. Shannon. I have recently joined All Day Montessori in January 2021, but it already has my heart. I started off as a substitute teacher, working with all ages at the school. I co-taught in CH1 with three to six year olds.  I have known for years that I wanted to make a career out of working with children because they really light up my life. I started my career working at daycares. I pursued my Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, which led me to working in DCFS as a caseworker. After leaving DCFS, I returned to my previous daycare and received my Teaching Certificate. I happily worked as the teacher for the infant room for two years. Prior to coming to ADM, I had nearly seven years working professionally with children along with fifteen years of informal experience. When I am not at work, I enjoy spending time with my husband and our animals. My goal as a teacher is to provide a complete education to all children with love and fun.

(Shannon is currently in the Infant/Toddler Montessori Endorsement Program through Seton Montessori.)

Autumn Hill
Assistant Teacher/Aftercare Staff

Autumn is the eldest of three daughters, and was born and raised in the south suburbs of Chicago. She went to school for graphic design but slowly transitioned into childcare. She is a proud mother of two amazing children 9 and 15 years old. She started in child care as a volunteer floater, and quickly earned her CDA in infants and toddlers. She has been working in child care for over 8 years. She truly believes you should learn something new everyday in life and teach it to others. She has been with ADM since the summer of 2023.

Children’s Houses (3 years – Kindergarten)

Children’s House 1 (Annex Building)

Betsy Sosa
Lead Teacher, Director of ADM Young Toddler/Toddler House Program, Assistant Teacher/ Morning Care Staff
Ms. Betsy is an AMS certified Montessori Directress with an early childhood background.  She joined the ADM staff in 2016.  She had been working in a Montessori Environment for the previous ten years. In her free time she enjoys sewing, painting with watercolors, cooking, and being with her cat, Marce. While here at ADM she has been teaching Spanish to all the students and enjoys getting to spend time with each and everyone of them.

LaVerne Bailey
Assistant Teacher

I am the mother of 5 children so that makes it so easy to care for the children at ADM. To be surrounded by children and supporting the philosophy of ADM is a pleasure! To teach a child the language of respect and kindness can go a long way in any environment! I have an Associate Degree in Business Management and love arts and crafts, showing and teaching kids the craft world is so delightful! If you can so the joy on their faces when we do an art project, is a joy for me!  Love being an assistant teacher at ADM!

 

 

Children’s House 2 (Annex Building)

Angela Franklin
Lead Teacher Assistant,  Teacher/ Morning Care Staff
Angela joined the ADM staff in 2017.  She has found much joy in working with children for the previous five years.  Before starting to work with the kids, Angela worked with the elderly population in places like Iowa, California, and Hawaii.  When she is not at ADM, Angela enjoys cooking and traveling the world.

 

 

 

Justin Collier

Assistant Teacher

Hello my name is Justin. I’ve worked in childcare for 2 years and I’ve been a Montessori teacher for the past year. I’m 1 of 5 children and I was born and raised in the Chicago area. I believe childcare is the most important job in the world and I’ve wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. I think children learn best when they are happy and feel safe, so creating a positive learning environment is my first priority. My goal is to help create a healthy balance between building independence and, and giving the children tools within the curriculum to flourish as they move forward in their academic process.

 

 

Support Staff

 

Jumitrius Reed
Floating Assistant Teacher

Jumitrius originally started in 2021 as the kitchen coordinator. She loved the children so much that she was asked to step into the classroom was an assistant teacher. She loves to read and sing and is a natural comedian.

Jada Hayden
Floating Assistant Teacher

Jada returns to ADM for her third year.  A recent Saint Xavier graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and Associates in Arts and General Studies, she strives to connect with the children and support the classrooms when they need it.

 

 

Stephanie Gonzalez
Maternity Leave Sub

Hello, my name is Stephanie I discovered Montessori back in 2021 while working with Infants and toddlers and fell in love with seeing the children’s growth and way of teaching. I have been in the early childhood education field for 2 years now. I grew up in the south side and enjoy traveling and spending time with my family.

Nevel Kasiner
Substitute Teacher 

Ms Nevel has been with ADM since 2013.  She has been working with young children for over 20 years, with emphasis on children with special needs. Her background includes integrated learning programs, early childhood training and special needs adult services.

 

 

Dorothy Price
Kitchen Manager

(Info coming soon).

 

Tami Hopkins

Extended Care teacher

(Info coming soon).

Administration

Caitlyn Solomon
ADM Head of School 
headofschool@alldaymontessori.org

Caitlyn (She/Her) is eager to return to All Day Montessori as the Head of School! She has worked in Montessori for over a decade as a teacher and administrator, including six years at ADM when she first started teaching! Caitlyn earned her Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and her 3-6 Montessori certification from Xavier University in Cincinnati. Her love of learning continued as she got her M.ED in Educational Policy and Leadership with a focus on Diversity and Equity in Education from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Caitlyn also works as a white Anti-Racist facilitator for a consulting firm founded by a Montessorian in Chicago. When not in school, Caitlyn loves riding her bike, crocheting, reading, and being with her family.

 

Cyndi Williams
Business Manager
cwilliams@alldaymontessori.org

Cyndi joined the ADM staff in the Spring of 2016.  She received her BA from the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a Masters in Curriculum & Instruction from the American College of Education.  A former 6-12 Language Arts and Social Studies teacher with years of office management and accounting experience, Cyndi is married with three children and enjoys the theater, reading and traveling with her husband, George.  Her granddaughter and grandson are the delights of her life.

Cyndi has completed the Discover Montessori course at  Seton Montessori  Institute.

Pat Bentley

Administrative Assistant
assistant@alldaymontessori.org

Mr. Pat joined the ADM family in the summer of 2023. Pat has lived in the Beverly area all of his life. He attended Moraine Valley Community College and received his bachelor’s degree in English from Governors State University. He enjoys doing work in an office setting, and outside of work enjoys playing board games, walking his dogs and playing pickup games of soccer on the weekends.