Preschool Staff

Role: Executive Director

Bio: Kate Moody has over 20 years of experience working with young children. She grew up in Baltimore, MD and graduated from Frostburg State University with a B.A. in Psychology. This is where she developed a strong passion for working with children. She spent summers during college working at a residential camp for children and adults with special needs in the Catoctin Mountains of Maryland.  After graduating college, she spent the next few years working at Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore. In this role, she was responsible for developing and implementing plans for children who demonstrated severe challenging behaviors.   She then decided to pursue her Master’s Degree in Special Education from Johns Hopkins University. She graduated with her degree in June 2000 and had her first child that same month. After having three more children, Kate returned to the workforce to teach Pre-K class at Katherine Thomas School in Rockville, MD.  While there, she learned how to best connect and teach children on the autism spectrum. In 2011, Kate was hired at the Community Preschool of the Palisades as a classroom teacher. She also held the leadership positions of as Extended Play Coordinator and Special Needs Coordinator during her tenure before being promoted to the Executive Director position. She fully embraces the principles of play-based learning and enjoys collaborating with the preschool's teachers to ensure all children are provided with creative, fun, and engaging early learning experiences.

 

Role: Lead Teacher

Bio: Mrs. Owen earned her Bachelors of Science in Elementary Education from York College and completed a 90 hour course in Early Childhood Education. She has spent her career of over 20 years working in a variety of educational settings. In addition to serving as a classroom lead teacher, Mrs. Owen has served as the Summer Camp Director at CPP, run programming for young children in museums, and worked at the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center. Mrs. Owen has been teaching at the preschool since 2010.  She enjoys discovering alongside children and getting to share in their "aha" moments each day. She loves the sense of community that is fostered at the preschool and appreciates that this is truly a place that celebrates the best of childhood. She hopes that the children in her classroom have a year full of exploration, discovery, creativity, and experiences that support their learning and growth!

Role: Lead Teacher

Bio: Mrs. Komosa has been a member of our school community since 2015.  She worked as Lead Teacher in a long-term substitute position, a one-on-one aide for a child with special needs, as well as the Lead teacher for the school’s Extended Play Enrichment Program.  In 2019-2020, she spent the year at the National Children's Research Center (NCRC) as a Lead Teacher substitute in their 2 year old program. Liz has a BA from the University of Virginia and previously worked as a Program Officer for the Academy for Educational Development. Liz is collaborative, warm, engaging and has been regularly commended for her dedication, reliability and positive rapport with her colleagues, students and families.  We are delighted to benefit from her experience and joy of working with young children as she takes over the role of lead teacher.

Role: Lead Teacher

Bio: Ms. Macedo is beloved by the many children and families that she has served at CPP for the past 30 years. She considers the preschool to be her home away from home and loves the warm and supportive community of children, families, and staff. She enjoys teaching the preschool's youngest learners because this allows her the opportunity to support their autonomy and confidence as they acquire new skills. Ms. Macedo is always amazed at how rapidly young children learn and grow when they have the space to make choices and take initiative. She also helps children understand how to be a good friend and use words to solve problems. Children are always allowed to get messy with Ms. Macedo, as she knows they learn best through hands-on, active exploration. She encourages children to put their hands in the paint and jump in the puddles, and she will jump in with them! She loves to see how children's unique personalities blossom while in her care. Ms. Macedo truly appreciates getting to see each child grow throughout their preschool experience and looks forward to serving your child!

 

Role: Lead Teacher

Bio:

Mrs. Regardie has many years of experience teaching young children.  Having been the Lead teacher for the school’s Extended Play Enrichment Program and having worked as a substitute teacher for several years, she is not new to the Community Preschool of the Palisades.  Most recently, she was a long-term substitute Pre-K teacher at The Beauvoir School and worked for a number of years conducting early childhood admissions play visits at Georgetown Day School.  In addition, she teaches children’s cooking classes and brings her love of cooking into the classroom.

 

Lauren earned her Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from the University of Pennsylvania and completed a 90-hour course in Early Childhood Education.  She is a strong believer in play-based learning, imaginative play, and process art.  Children learn best through hands-on exploration and Lauren wants to nurture the individuality of each child.  At any moment you will see messy hands, hear instruments playing, smell something baking and see Lauren and the Polliwogs dancing in the classroom!

Role: Assistant Teacher

Bio: Mrs. Tabada earned her Bachelors degree in Hotel and Restaurant Management from The De Ocampo Memorial College in Manila, Philippines. She also completed a 90-hour course in Early Childhood Education.  Mrs. Tabada has been working with children and families for over 20 years.  She began her career as a professional nanny and then became a substitute teacher at CPP in 2012.  She taught at Spring Hill Montessori before returning to the Community Preschool of the Palisades to teach.  Mrs. Tabada loves to be a part of children's learning process and to watch them blossom. She also enjoys building relationships with children, families, and colleagues and feels like the preschool is her home away from home. She hopes that the children in her classroom build and share new knowledge that prepares them for their next steps beyond preschool with the support and guidance of the teaching staff!

Role: Assistant Teacher

Bio: Ms. Benamri has served as an Assistant Teacher at The Community Preschool of the Palisades since 2012.  She loves working with young learners and their families in a community-based setting. Ms. Benamri can be found engaging and laughing with the preschoolers in her classroom each and every day. She is also a phenomenal cook and provides children with regular opportunities for cooking and baking in the classroom! She finds that these activities naturally allow her to incorporate learning objectives across various developmental domains.

 

 

Role: Assistant Teacher

Bio: Ms. Sue has been teaching at CPP since 2020. She earned her BA from Columbia College of Chicago in Photography and Art History. She is currently working on a minor in Early Childhood Education. Ms. Sue fosters a love of learning in each child that passes through her classroom; as is evident in their creative art projects, ingenious science activities, and fun classroom atmosphere. Her classroom is a happy and energetic place where her students feel loved, inspired, and intrigued.

Role: Assistant Teacher

Bio: Ms. Navarro joined CPP as an Assistant Teacher in 2022 after being a substitute teacher for the school previously.  She earned her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland. She went on to earn her Master of Science in Math Education in 2014.  She has over a decade of experience teaching elementary school children, and has enjoyed making the switch to younger learners.  She loves helping the children to establish a solid foundation for learning and love of school that they will carry on with them through elementary school and beyond!

Role: Teacher

Bio: Ms. Carmen has many years of experience working with children. She holds a current CDA (preschool) and earned her AA from UDC. Ms. Carmen joined CCP in 2022 as an assistant teacher and currently teaches in the Polliwog class. She is part of our summer camp staff working with our youngest campers. She loves to play with kids because she believes that is the best way to connect with them and help them learn. She is 100% sure that every kid is different so she embraces that “everybody can learn in their own way”. Ms. Carmen enjoys baking, walking, and watching movies in her free time with her daughter and family.

Role: Volunteer

Bio: Ms. Yasmin has been a volunteer with our school since 2020. She hold a BA degree and has many years of experience working with young children as a nanny and in schools. Her fun, caring demeanor is a wonderful addition to our classes and our students love spending time playing and learning with her. She has a wonderful understanding of child development and we are so glad that she brings that knowledge to our school.