Our Teachers
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Our dedicated faculty (or teachers) is committed to providing an early childhood program that embraces the individual child’s unique learning style. Each teacher tailors our play-based curriculum so that each child will love to learn and seek to find deeper meaning in their play. They regularly participate in professional development to deepen their knowledge and find fresh ways to engage and inspire the children in their care.
Meet the St. Mary's Faculty and Staff
Susan Rawls
Director
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Credentials
- Family and Child Development with an emphasis in Elementary Education - Virginia Tech
- M.Ed, Early Childhood Curriculum and Instruction - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“It’s the things we play with and the people who help us to play that make a great difference in our lives.” – Fred Rogers
Wendy Dixon
Assistant Director
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Credentials
- B.S. Early Childhood Education - Radford University
- Reading Endorsement K-12 - Radford University
Favorite Quote
“If a child is to keep his inborn sense of wonder, he needs the companionship of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement and mystery of the world we live in” – Rachel Carson
Maureen Stepanian
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- B.A., Communications - Mary Baldwin College
Favorite Quote
“Each day of our lives, we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.” – Charles R. Swindoll
Cathy Martin
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- B.S. Business Management - University of Alabama
Favorite Quote
“Children are funny little people. Watching them interact with each other is pure joy!”
Beth Phipps
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- BA in Journalism - University of Richmond
Favorite Quote
“Children cannot bounce off the walls if we take away the walls.” – Erin Kenny
Michele Riley
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- B.S. Early Childhood Education, Radford University
- Masters in Reading, VCU
Favorite Quote
“Children are not things to be molded, but people to be unfolded.” – Jess Lair
Jennifer Britt
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- B.A. Psychology - University of Virginia
- Masters in Education, Counselor Education - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“You are worried about seeing him spend his early years in doing nothing? What! Is it nothing to be happy? Nothing to skip, play, and run about all day long? Never in his life will he be so busy again.” – Rousseau 1762
Dana Johnson
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- B.A., Psychology and Communications - Longwood University
- Special Education Endorsement - Old Dominion University
Favorite Quote
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
Christy Thompson
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- B.A. Early Childhood Education K-7 - University of Richmond
Favorite Quote
“I like being part of a child’s first experience away from home and helping them tell their story.”
Estelle Short
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- B.S., Marketing Management - Virginia Tech
Favorite Quote
“The constant smiles on the children’s faces are the best thing about preschoolers!”
Jayne Dunkum
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- BS Early Disciplinary Education - Radford University
Favorite Quote
“Take chances, make mistakes, get messy” – Valerie Frizzle
Mary Curtis Powell
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- BS in Sociology - James Madison University
- Elementary Education Certification - California State University North Ridge
- Certificate in Autism Spectrum Disorders - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“Know all the questions instead of the answers. Look for the different instead of the same. Don’t walk where there’s room for running. Don’t do anything that can’t be a game.” – Zilpha Keatly Snyder
Lexie Firestone
Assistant
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Credentials
- BA in Dance Performance and Choreography - George Mason University
Favorite Quote
“Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood” – Fred Rogers
Ellie O’Hallaron
Assistant
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Credentials
- B.F.A. Sculpture and Community Art - School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Favorite Quote
“Play is the foundation of learning, creativity, self-expression, and constructive problem-solving. It’s how children wrestle with life to make it meaningful.” – Susan Linn
Shannon Daly
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- B.S. Psychology - Randolph-Macon Women's College
- Master in Early Childhood Education - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“When we treat children’s play as seriously as it deserves, we are helping them feel the joy that’s to be found in the creative spirit. It’s the things we play with and the people who help us play that make a great difference in our lives.” – Fred Rogers
Rebecca Earl
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- B.A. Psychology and Education - Roanoke College
- M.Ed, Reading, Postmasters Certificate, Administration/Supervision - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“It’s delightful when your imaginations come true, isn’t it?“ – Anne Shirley (Anne of Green Gables)
Caitlin Allocca
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- Dual Degree: Psychology and Architectural Studies - Boston University, 2023
Favorite Quote
“Kids go where there is excitement. They stay where there is love.” – Zig Ziglar
Brenna Fetzer
Lead Teacher
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Credentials
- Bachelor of Arts in English and Elementary Education
- Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning: Gifted Education
Favorite Quote
“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.” – John Muir
Eileen Beane
Assistant Teacher
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Credentials
- BS Elementary Education, K-7 - University of Richmond
- M. Ed. Early Childhood Education - Virginia Commonwealth University
Favorite Quote
“Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see.”
