Ms. Heather was born in New Jersey and migrated down south after living in New York City. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in dance from Rutgers University and has been a ballet teacher for twenty years. Ms. Heather worked as a teaching artist/ arts educator with a nonprofit arts organization while living in New York. She found her passion here for little ones during teaching residencies at many schools throughout the tri state area. Heather received her Montessori Teacher Certification in 2019 and has been a teacher in the preschool classroom since 2018. She is also a certified yoga instructor, nature lover, and enjoys planting veggies in her garden. Heather loves her role in guiding children towards finding their independence in the classroom and enjoys seeing their growth and confidence build each day. Ms. Heather resides in Covington with her husband Ryan, daughter Harper, chicken Zebra, and cat Dr. Honeydew.
Meet the Team - Main Campus
"One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of the child." -Maria Montessori
“The First duty of the educator, whether he is involved with the newborn infant or the older child, is to recognize the human personality of the young being and respect it.’ -Maria Montessori
Lora began her journey with Montessori when she attended Kinder Haus Montessori in Metairie, as a child, many many years ago. She joined our Kinder Haus in 2020. Lora is a NAMC Montessori Certified teacher for birth to age 3. Her daughter, Tori, attended University Montessori in Hammond, when Lora was completing her Bachelors degree in Art Education from SLU. Her other studies have included photography (Brooks Institute of Photography, CA), graphic design (LSU), psychology and biology (Louisiana Tech).
In her free time, Lora enjoys volunteering with START (St Tammany Animal Rescue Team), making art and exploring the world with her daughter. For her, education is a never ending process and Kinder Haus has given her the greatest opportunity of all; to learn from the children.
Vireya joined Kinder Haus in 2023 and is currently working in the preschool classroom. She recently moved to Louisiana from Chicago, where she was born and raised. Before joining the Kinder Haus team after high school, she attended the city colleges of Chicago via Zoom, where she was studying to be a paralegal, but soon found herself babysitting for various families. That’s when she realized she loved caring for little ones and decided to put a pause on her education. She enjoys working at Kinder Haus; it’s a great place for both educators and students to grow and learn. She hopes that, in the near future, she will be able to resume her education in a field that allows her to work with children.
Ali has been working at Kinder Haus since February 2020. She started working in Primary aftercare and subbing in other classrooms. When she subbed in the Bridge Room she found her soft spot for that age group. This is now her second year as the lead teacher in the Bridge Classroom using her Montessori Certification through NAMC for ages 3-6.
Ali comes from a big, close-knit family. Even as a child, she was drawn to caring for the younger ones in her family. This is what encouraged her to become a teacher.
As a child she was independent to almost a fault. Seeing an environment that encourages kids to be independent made her love the Montessori teaching approach just as much as she loves the kids. She loves seeing a child grow their confidence in themselves and how much they can do.
When Ali isn’t working she is most likely traveling. She also enjoys swimming, live music, and spending quality time with family and friends.
Merhawit grew up in Ethiopia Africa. When she was 8 years old she was adopted by her family and moved to the United States. She has spent the last 10 years enjoying the local cuisine, spending time outdoors in the sun, hanging out with her friends and traveling the world. In 2015 she had the opportunity to return to her roots in Ethiopia to see her family who are still there. It was an amazing trip and a pivotal moment in her life. Merhawit joins the toddler room daily in the afternoons when she is done with her own studies. She shares with us her caring heart, her playful spirit and her grasp on youth. In the future she plans on attending college and major in Radiology.
Annie Chernoff is so grateful to be a part of the team at this beautiful school, working with people to respect children and honor each individual’s gifts and potential. She was born in California and moved to Kansas City at age 7. In 2018, she relocated to Louisiana.
Working with children is her "ikigai": it gives her days meaning, purpose, and joy. Her experiences with young people include working as a Girl Scout camp counselor; leading art museum tours, designing corresponding curriculum, and teaching art history-inspired projects to groups of children; co-teaching a lively mixed-age classroom at a Reggio Emilia early childhood center; working as a lead teacher in a Montessori-inspired environment for two-year-olds; and creating curriculum and teaching all academic subjects as a middle school Montessori guide.
She holds a Bachelor’s in Visual Art Education from the University of Kansas. She is CLASS certified by Teachstone. She holds an International Montessori Teaching Diploma from the North American Montessori Center for the Early Childhood Program ages 3-6. She has received extensive training on Montessori methodology and materials from both the Center for Guided Montessori Studies and the Montessori World Education Institute.
Interests include thrift shopping, pub trivia, karaoke, trying new recipes, mom-and-pop restaurants, visiting state and national parks, and taking trips with her husband Will.
Cat is our Primary Language and Culture teacher. She joined the Kinderhaus team in 2022 after moving from California to Louisiana and is one of our newest team members to complete her North American Montessori Certification for ages 3-6. She enjoys playing basketball, listening to music, writing songs, playing with her dogs Charli and Willy Jaq, and watching sports. Cat has a particular knack for gardening and loves spending time planting in our school's many garden beds, propagating new plants, and discussing nutrition and botany with her friends in class. Cat also acts as our school's maintenance person so you may see her around campus with a wrench or a hammer. If your child has an interest in tools feel free to say hi and ask what she is working on anytime she is out and about!
Celeste joined the Kinder Haus team in November 2023. She has studied Early Childhood Education as well as Art Education, and will be graduating Southeastern Louisiana University in December 2023 with a Bachelor of Science degree, concentrating in Behavioral Sciences. She is also a certified yoga instructor, and loves being given the opportunity to incorporate mindfulness into the classroom and daily lives of children. Celeste currently lives in Covington, and enjoys spending time with her husband Chance, daughter Juniper, stepdaughter Juliet, and beagle Penny.
Madisyn loves to help the children learn and grow and aspires to bring a good influence to young minds. She is a skilled artist who spent time spent studying at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. She is excited to apply her skills in all mediums of art with the children of the Primary Classroom.
Kinder Haus is a fantastic place to practice teaching and guiding children on how to navigate the world. Lucy has been exploring with the children of Kinder Haus as she imagines her future in education as a teacher. As the middle child in her family Lucy has grown to be patient and flexible. She loves having conversations with the Kinder Haus kids about the most important things like favorite colors and what they see in the sky.
Almost a decade ago, while working at a church daycare, Ms. Linden received a call asking if she would be interested in working at a Montessori school. Someone she knew had recommended her for the position. She jumped at the opportunity and has not looked back. She has been working with children since she was 16. She received her degree in early childhood education and has dedicated her career to teaching and upholding the Montessori principles. In her nine years working at Montessori schools she has worked with every age group from newborn to kindergarten. She has been working at Kinder Haus since 2020.
When she is not teaching, she loves to spend time gardening, doing yoga like it is going out of style, and cooking vegan food. She has a beautiful wife, a giant dog, and three angels in the form of cats. Her family splits their time between the north shore and the south shore.
"I'm proud to be a teacher at Kinder Haus and very excited to get to know your babies and watch them learn and grow!" Tarian joined the Kinder Haus team from a traditional childcare background. She is currently pursuing her degree in early childhood education at Southeastern University.
Emma’s experience with kids started when she was 14 and wanted to begin her own babysitting business. From there, she discovered her love for kids.
She is a calm, quiet, and very positive person and believes Montessori is so impactful to young kids growing up. Emma grew up as the middle child between two brothers and lived in several different cities throughout Louisiana.
She currently does online school and in her free time enjoys being with friends and family, going on adventures and traveling, photography, and playing with her dog, Copper, and cat, Moose.
Cindy absolutely loves being around children. She spends as much time as possible with her adorable 2 1/2 year old granddaughter Josie. Josie enjoys going to a Montessori school in Baton Rouge, where she is always learning new things, singing new songs and telling stories of her day. Ms. Cindy was born in Baton Rouge and now lives in Madisonville. She has a Bachelor's degree from Louisiana State University, where most of her courses were in Psychology and Sociology.
When not spending time with her Granddaughter, her interests include, gardening, arts and crafts, taking walks and visiting with friends and family.
Julie grew up in Terry Town, Louisiana, and moved to Mandeville in 2016. She is currently in school for Early Childhood Education in hopes to become a Preschool Teacher. Julie has been babysitting for the past 7 years, and loves children. She has a passion for Montessori and loves watching the children learn, and grow their independence. She says, “I have always loved babysitting, ever since I was little. I love seeing them grow and learn on their own (and of course the snuggles). I fell in love with Kinder Haus, and the environment is so warm and welcoming. I am so blessed to have this opportunity to be a part of Kinder Haus, and I wouldn’t change it for the world!”
Brie is a fun-loving teacher who brings her youthful energy to the bridge classroom. Her thoughtful and calm spirit comes naturally since she grew up sharing the stage as a triplet in a closely knit large extended family. In her spare time, you can find her at the beach with friends and family. She loves watching her younger cousins and has been babysitting for years. Her favorite thing about Montessori is watching the children grow and become independent in whatever they are out to accomplish.
