Meet The Little School of Keystone Staff -

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Dena Hoenig Valdez Head of Preschool

Hello! Welcome to The Little School of Keystone! My name is Dena and I joined the Keystone staff in April of 2012. I am thrilled to have started Keystone’s first preschool program! I have my Masters in Education and my Elementary Teaching Certification with a specialization in Early Childhood from Southwest Texas University, now referred to as Texas State University. I have a Bachelor of Science Degree in Family Studies with a Minor in Psychology from The University of Arizona. I am a native of San Antonio and graduate of Robert E. Lee High School. I have always loved children! My Early Childhood experience has included being a camp counselor, teacher and Early Childhood Director. After finishing graduate school, I was hired as the Director of Heintz Preschool of Congregation Agudas Achim. I started their early childhood program and was there for 14 years before leaving in 2012 to start The Little School of Keystone. I am married to my high school sweetheart, Christian. We have two wonderful children. Sari is 8 and graduated from The Little School of Keystone. She will be entering Second Grade. Gavin is 10 and entering Fifth Grade. I would describe myself as a hugger and a kisser. Each day I look forward to greeting the children when they walk in our preschool doors. As the Head of Preschool, I look forward to working with each of you and making your child’s early childhood education a very positive and memorable experience here at The Little School of Keystone.

                

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Glenda Akers Office and Classroom Assistant

I will be joining Little Keystone’s staff for my fifth year as an assistant to the teachers. For the last 9 years, I have been the supervisor for Keystone School’s aftercare program. I have enjoyed my time with Keystone School so much that I wanted to extend my work hours and become a devoted full time staff member. I have nurtured and cared for children for 35 years. I have taught children from infancy to 12 years in a child care setting. I have also been a Director for 3 preschools. I have a Bachelor of Science in Child Development from California State University Fullerton and a certificate in Administration from Santa Ana College California. I have six children, nine grandchildren and four great grandchildren. I am a native of California. When my husband passed away ten years ago, I moved to Texas to be close to my daughters. I am so excited to be a part of Little Keystone and to be a part of your child’s life here at The Little School.

Isabel Rodriguez-Henry

Isabel Henry Terrific Turtles Teacher and Afterschool Spanish Enrichment Teacher

Welcome to the Little School of Keystone! My name is Isabel Henry and I am excited to be teaching in the Terrific Turtles classroom. I was born in Havana, Cuba and came to the United States when I was two years old. I have resided in San Antonio since 1973. I hold a bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education with a minor in Special Education. I am certified to teach Pre-K through 6th grade. Teaching Pre-K brings me the most joy because I enjoy creating a safe, nurturing classroom environment, along with fun hands-on learning. I completed a three-year program with the University of Houston for reading readiness for pre-kindergarten aged children. I am also bilingual certified. Along with teaching the Terrific Turtles, I am the afterschool Spanish enrichment teacher for the Little School of Keystone. My passion for the Spanish language and culture allow me to teach its importance and relevance with your children! In my spare time, I enjoy spending my time with my children Douglas and Luis Andrés, going to the beach, baking, and walking. I see teaching as a reciprocal relationship: As I teach, I also learn from my students. I will work with your children to become active learners, and most importantly, to never lose their love for learning.

Then – Erin and her brother Now

Erin Ochoa Terrific Turtles Teacher

Hi there! My name is Erin Ochoa and I am very excited to be your child’s teacher this year at The Little School of Keystone. I was born and raised in San Francisco, California for the first five years of my life. I moved to San Antonio, TX, just in time to begin my school year in Kindergarten. It was then at that young age that I realized I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up. I aspired to bring that type of passion and enjoyment into a classroom with my own students. I graduated from Texas State University in 2007 with a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies. I am certified to teach Early Childhood through 4th grade and English as a Second Language. While in college I met my husband, Jason, a civil engineer graduate from Texas Tech University. We married in June 2010, and enjoy traveling, doing home improvements, and cheering at Texas Tech and Texas State football games. I also enjoy doing crafts, shopping, baking, writing, watching movies, reading, and spending time with friends and family. After graduating from Texas State, I was a substitute teacher for Northside ISD for half a year before beginning a teaching position at a Primrose School, teaching Preschool, Pre-Kindergarten, and Kindergarten. In my last three years at Primrose, I was the Administrative Assistant and Mentor Teacher. In 2014, I became one of the Terrific Turtles’ teachers at The Little School of Keystone. I absolutely love being part of the Keystone family and am now able to bring my passion for teaching to my Keystone classroom. In February 2016, we were blessed with the arrival of our miracle daughter London after pursuing IVF. London joins our family along with our “fur baby” Ollie, an 8 year old Shih Tzu. We feel very fortunate to have London in our lives and love experiencing the wonderful milestones she achieves.

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Alle Neesham Busy Bug Teacher

My name is Alle Neesham and I am so excited to be your child’s teacher this year! I am a San Antonio native and graduated from the International School of the Americas. I received my bachelor’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of North Texas, Denton, and am certified to teach Early Childhood through 6th grade and ESL students. I come from a long line of teachers and always knew that I would be a part of my family’s legacy. During my high school’s internship program, I was fortunate enough to intern in my mom’s kindergarten classroom. From that wonderful experience I knew that teaching young children was my passion and where I belonged. Although my time spent in North Texas over the past 6 years was rewarding, I am very happy to be back in my hometown and teaching at The Little School of Keystone. When I am not in the classroom, I love to draw, paint, read, play tennis, and spend time with my family and friends. I also love to travel and explore new and exciting places every chance I get. I absolutely love a nurturing, yet challenging school environment and hope to pass my passion for learning on to your child!

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Viviane van Poppel Busy Bug Teacher and Soccer Enrichment Teacher

Hi! I am Viviane van Poppel. I was born in Belgium, Europe and moved to San Antonio when I was 11 years old. I grew up speaking French and Dutch and I still speak both when I can. A couple of years ago I became an American Citizen but in the Netherlands I am recognized as holding a dual citizenship, so I am still Dutch as well.

It was my 2nd grade teacher in Belgium that inspired me to become a teacher. I also always knew that I wanted to be a mother and have children of my own. I have 2 great boys. Chase is 14 and Vance is 11.

I am certified to teach and graduated from UTSA with an Early Childhood Education degree. My most recent venture in teaching has been working for the past 9 years as a Pre-K teacher (3’s, 4’s & 5’s). I feel a great sense of joy when I see a child grow socially, emotionally, and academically. This is why I really enjoy teaching. One thing that can always bring a smile to my face is when a student comes up to me with a great sense of accomplishment from doing his or her work and that I know, as a teacher, that I helped that student feel that confidence.

I have also enjoyed playing and coaching a number of team sports over the years (mostly soccer) and it has been exciting to help build a love of sports in these younger children and watch them grow.

I am so excited to be a part of The Little School of Keystone and I can’t wait to meet everyone!

Then – Janet and her brother Now

Janet Whitworth

Rainforest “Monkey” Room Teacher

Welcome to The Little School of Keystone! I am excited to say that I am one of the pre-K 4 teachers! I graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a bachelor's degree in Human Development & Family Sciences, and I am certified to teacher Early Childhood through 6th grade. I am also proud to say that I have been with The Little School of Keystone since they opened their doors! I am blessed with a wonderful husband and two silly children: Liam and Olivia. I am looking forward to getting to know each of you this coming year!  

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Angela Brysch Garcia

Rainforest “Monkey” Room Teacher

Hi, My name is Angela Garcia, all of my students call me “Ms. Angela”. I am born and raised in Texas and I love to be outdoors. My husband, J, and I enjoy an active lifestyle with our 3 children. Our sons, Alec (8th grade) and Bron (6th grade), attend Keystone; and our daughter, Angelique, is a junior studying marketing at the University of the Incarnate Word. I love listening to music, gardening and reading. I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio; and am a certified Kindergarten through 6th grade teacher. I am a teacher at heart and spend countless hours in professional development honing my craft. I am grateful to teach on the Keystone campus where I can practice research based teaching strategies designed to meet the needs of every learner. The Little School of Keystone offers limitless resources to its teachers and provides teachers with independence that allows both teachers and students the ability to reach their full potential. The Little School campus is rich in history and beams beautiful architecture that provides inspiration where we can bring life to our philosophy of providing a warm, nurturing environment designed to meet the needs and interests of young children. For these reasons and more I am grateful to call The Little School of Keystone my school home.

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Michelle Gann Rainforest “Frog” Room Teacher

Hello there! My name is Michelle Gann and I am excited to be your child’s teacher at the Little School of Keystone! I was born in Kennesaw, GA and lived there for about 6 months before my father was stationed at Edwards Air Force Base, California. All my life I have moved around experiencing different cultures from Alaska to the southern coast of the U.S. In all of these adventures I attended 8 different schools. This experience is what sparked my interested of being a teacher. All of my teachers welcomed me into their classrooms with open arms; even if this was in the middle of the school year and treated me as if I was there from the first day of school. Finally, after all of our moves I settled back into my home state of Georgia where I graduated from high school and attended college. I graduated from Berry College in Rome, GA in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Early Childhood Education with an ESL endorsement. While I was attending Berry College, I worked as an assistant teacher at the Berry College Child Development Center working with 3-5 year olds. After graduating from Berry College, I accepted the Private Kindergarten teaching position at Primrose School of Huebner Village, where I worked for four years. I met my husband when I was 8 years old in my Nana’s Sunday school class. You could say it was love at first sight! We married in August of 2012 in Castroville, TX. Even though Georgia is our forever home, we have enjoyed Texas and the adventures it has brought us thus far. We enjoy traveling, taking cruises, visiting our home state, playing co-ed soccer, and enjoying the outdoors together. We also have our “dog daughter,” a Maltipoo named Snowflake who we adopted in October of 2013 and in February of 2016 we were blessed with our daughter, Georgia. I am very excited to be a part of the Little School of Keystone and getting to know the families new and old! This year will be fantastic!

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Lizzie Perez-Wences

Rainforest “Frog” Room Teacher

Hi! I am so excited to be fulfilling my dreams at The Little School of Keystone. I will be a part of your child’s life in the classroom by nurturing them and teaching them during the school day. I was born and raised in Mexico City. I am fluently bilingual and bicultural. I am proud to call UTSA my Alma Mater and very happy to be living in San Antonio. I have two little dogs that I love very much. They make my life fun and interesting. I enjoy reading, practicing yoga and golf every opportunity the weather allows. I consider myself very lucky to have the opportunity to work with your children during this school year. I hope to get to know each and every one of you.

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Melissa Bidault Dance Teacher

My name is Melissa Bidault, my students call me Ms. Melissa. I was born and raised in San Antonio. I graduated from UTSA with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics. I have been dancing for 11 years and working with children for 10 years. I joined the Kinderdance Company 3 years ago, which combined both of my passions. This will be my fourth school year working at The Little School of Keystone. I love being a part of children's lives, watching them grow and making/sharing special memories.

I enjoy social activities, outdoor adventures, learning new things, and caring for my dog, Peedur.

I look forward to getting to know your children more throughout the coming school year!

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Jackie Shepherd Music Enrichment Teacher

Greetings! My name is Jackie Shepherd and I am thrilled to be returning to The Little School of Keystone. I am retired from a 32 year career in public school education. Retirement allows me to pursue my passions, which include making music with young children! This is truly a dream job for me.

I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Master of Arts in Elementary Education from Austin College, a Master of Arts in Music Education from Stephen F. Austin State University, and a Doctor of Musical Arts from Boston University. (Can you tell I love school?) My doctoral research focused on early childhood music education and music education policy. In addition to my academic degrees, I am certified in Orff-Schukwerk and Dalcroze Eurhythmics music methods.

I was born and raised in San Antonio. My husband Scott and I, along with our five dogs and five birds, live in the house my parents moved into three days before I was born. I am the proud mother of two adult sons, a precious 5 year-old granddaughter, and 11 month-old joyful grandson.

In addition to making music with the children of the Little School of Keystone, I lead Music Together® classes for The Children’s Chorus of San Antonio, serve as a Correlations Specialist for Quaver’s Marvelous World of Music and an adjunct faculty member at Stephen F Austin State University. In my off-time, I teach Les Mills BodyPump™ and Pound™ fitness classes in several San Antonio gyms.

My goal for our Little Keystone music classes is to help your children experience the joy of musicmaking. We will engage in all types of music, experiencing them through active participation. My philosophy of music education for young children is influenced by the Dalcroze philosophy that active music making develops musicianship through singing, improvising, and purposeful and creative movement. I look forward to sharing these experiences with your children! You are always welcome to join us

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Jackie Litofsky

Spanish Enrichment Teacher

Hola! My name is Jackie and I am so excited to be the Spanish Teacher. I was born and raised in Mexico City. I have a degree in Communications. I moved to San Antonio in 1996 when I got married to my wonderful husband, Martin. We have two fantastic boys Alec, 20 and Jordan, 17. I worked for Dena as a Spanish teacher for 7 years at her former school and now I am thrilled to be part of The Little School of Keystone. I really love when I see the kids learn and absorb another language. As the year goes by it is really impressive to see how much the children have learned. You are more than welcome to come and be part of my class or to ask me any questions. Looking forward to meeting everyone! Adios!

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Rhonda Payne

Afterschool Martial Arts Instructor Hi, my name is Rhonda Payne, but my students call me Master Payne. This is our 4th year teaching here at the Little School. I was born in Longview, TX and have lived most of my life in San Antonio. I am a 7th degree Black Belt in both Taekwondo and Hapkido and own the House of Payne, Inc. known as the U.S. Martial Arts Training Center in Converse. I was fortunate enough to compete in Olympic Taekwondo and won the National and World Championships from 1986-89 and 1993-94 and a Gold medal from the 1993 Olympic Sports Festival that was held here in San Antonio. I have always loved teaching and coaching and making a positive impact on my students. I have a daughter, Angelique. My hobbies are ceramics, woodworking, leather tooling, drawing and fishing. I teach self-defense and safety awareness and authored the book, Get REAL, A Safety Guide for Women and Girls.

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Rozalia Ravitsky European Piano Academy Owner

Hi, my name is Rozalia. I opened European Piano Academy over 25 years ago. I worked with Dena at her previous school and I have been at The Little School of Keystone since its inaugural year in 2012. After growing up and finishing Piano School in Moldova, I attended Piano College and completed my Masters at the Music Conservatory. I started European Piano Academy in 1991 and taught a successful “Piano by Color” program developed to teach children as early as 3 years old. I currently teach children in San Antonio, TX and in Manhattan, NY. I have two grown daughters, Greta and Marianna. I have four beautiful grandchildren, ranging in age from 4-8. I am a strong believer in quality education and providing a great foundation starting at an early age. One of my daughters is an attorney and the other is a doctor, thanks to Keystone for the start of a great education. I look forward to meeting all of you on Wednesday afternoons! I plan to introduce my young pianists to a beautiful and magical world of piano and music.

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Maria O. Morales Linkenhoger Aftercare Director and Substitute Teacher

Welcome to our school! My name is pretty long for the little ones, so they can call me Ms. Maria. I was born in Tampico, Mexico, a beautiful port right off the Gulf Coast (about 300 miles south of the border.) I love relaxing by the beach just listening to the sound of the sea. I am the proud mother of my 22 year-old twins, Mikey and Heather, who are graduating this year. I have been a teacher for 23 years; ten of these as a third grade homeroom teacher at The American School of Tampico. The last five years I’ve been an administrator and a teacher, teaching Math and Spanish, being the RenWeb Administrator, and Head Coordinator of the Extended Day Program at a private, Catholic school here in San Antonio. I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Pedagogy with a concentration in Educational Psychology, and a Master’s Degree of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies from Buffalo State College, State University of New York. I have experience working with children of different cultures and different ages ranging from PreK3 thru Eighth grade. This year, I am overjoyed to become a part of the community here at The Little School of Keystone. I have been blessed to be in one of the most rewarding professions in life, the formation of children. It is my hope that your child will find our program to be an enjoyable and rewarding educational adventure!

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Rachel Calderon Aftercare Teacher

Hi! My name is Rachel Calderon. I will be one of your child’s afterschool care teachers. I have worked at Keystone School for 4 years. I started with the custodial staff and then joined The Little School of Keystone’s aftercare team. I love working with children and I am thrilled to be part of The Little School of Keystone’s aftercare program. I have two grown children of my own, one son and one daughter. I also have two wonderful grandchildren. I love the outdoors! I really enjoy bike riding and camping. I look forward to sharing some outdoor fun with your child!

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Mary Cogdell Aftercare Teacher

Hello Everyone, my name is Mary Lynn Cogdell and I am 20 years old! I am very excited to be returning to the Keystone staff this year as one of the aftercare teachers. I was raised in Castroville, Texas by loving parents who taught me the importance of being hard-working, respectful, and outgoing. I love spending time with my family, animals, and working at the little school! I am currently the student coach of the Trap and Skeet team at the University of the Incarnate Word and enjoy shooting competitively. I am a Pre-Med student, because from a young age I have had a passion for helping people. I will graduate in May of 2018 with a BS in Biology and a minor in Business Administration. Upon graduation, I will pursue a master’s degree and then Medical School. I can’t wait for another great year at the Little School! I am looking forward to meeting your children and watching them grow throughout the year!

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Mariam Diab Aftercare Teacher

Hello Everyone! My name is Mariam Diab, and I am very excited to be joining The Little School of Keystone as an aftercare teacher! I am 20 years old and was born in San Antonio, but I was raised overseas in a little country called Lebanon. I learned three languages there: Arabic, English, and French. I have two twin siblings that I helped my mom raise, and that’s where my love for children began. Other than taking care of children, I enjoy taking care of animals. I enjoy the outdoors, gardening, dancing, singing, and painting. I am looking forward to an enjoyable and exciting school year!

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Lexi Tenorio Aftercare Teacher

Hello Everyone! My name is Alexis Hope Tenorio, but feel free to call me Lexi! I am very excited to be joining the Keystone staff this year as one of the aftercare teachers here at The Little School. I am 20 years old and was Texas born and raised by my loving parents who taught me the importance of being hard-working, caring, and finding what makes you happy. I love dance, art, animals, and most importantly kids! Helping others is very important to me and I am currently studying at The University of Incarnate Word to complete my bachelor’s degree in Nursing. I will be graduating the fall of 2018! I look forward to meeting all your wonderful kiddos and watching them grow throughout the year!