Elementary Faculty

Charity was born and raised in Raleigh. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical University with a major in Child Development and Family Studies with a cognate in Psychology and Social Work.

Charity joined The New School in 2009 as our After-Care Director. As a result of this experience, it was clear Charity had not only a strong interest in working with elementary-aged children, but with her unending patience and dedication to the students in her care, demonstrated an excellent aptitude in teaching.

Once a classroom position opened up, Charity was hired to work as support staff in our infant, toddler, and Children’s House classes. She then became a full-time assistant in one of our Children’s House classes during the 2010-2011 school year. With this strong experience in our early childhood program, Charity decided take the Montessori Elementary Teacher program. She is expected to graduate in the summer of 2012.

Charity’s interests include many genres of music, nature walks, reading, community service, baking and traveling.

“My main goal is to focus on the holistic needs of each child. As a teacher, I am truly inspired when my children grow both academically and spiritually and are able to realize their true potential. Thus far, being a part of the TNS team has been the most memorable and enjoyable place in my life.” – Charity

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Email: charity@montessoricenter.org

Favorite Montessori Quote

Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future.
— Dr. Maria Montessori

Mary Lou grew up in Rochester, New York, and graduated from Nazareth College with a degree in English and Elementary Education. After college, she did graduate work at he University of Rochester and received her New York State teacher’s license. She taught in traditional elementary classrooms during the school year, but was always drawn to Montessori education.

After she married, she moved to Altoona, Pennsylvania. Her three children were born there, and when her oldest child was three, she sent him to Penn Mont Academy, the local Montessori school. When Penn Mont needed teachers, she took the 3-6 training and taught in Children’s House for ten years. She then decided to enroll in the 6-12 Montessori training and started the elementary program at Penn Mont. Over the past twenty years, she has taught in several Montessori schools. Recently, she moved to Cary to be closer to her daughter, son-in-law, and new granddaughter.

She loves contra dancing, English country dancing and doing plays with children. I enjoy reading, doing puzzles, and learning Spanish.

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Email: marylou@montessoricenter.org

Ashley graduated from Peace College with a Bachelor’s degree in Liberal Studies and a minor in Psychology. She then went on to receive her K-6 Teaching Licensure from meredith College.

Ashley taught third grade for three years in North Carolina schools. She first learned about Montessori from a friend and was inspired by the different and unique ways children can learn in a Montessori school. She started with The New School in 2010 to help in our toddler room and now works in our lower elementary classroom. Ashley also worked as a camp counselor for five years.

Ashley’s son, Austin, is in the Toddler Two’s Community classroom. Her interests include reading, swimming, and spending time with friends and family.

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Email: ashleyf@montessoricenter.org

Nancy was born in Suffolk, Virginia, and has lived in North Carolina since high school. She graduated from Elon University with a B.A. in elementary education. She spent five years teaching K-3 and Head Start in Caswell County. She also worked as an office manager for an engineering company in Cary. She completed her 6-9 AMS credential at the Center for Montessori Teacher Education in July, 2002, and she has taught with her husband, Hank, for ten years.

Nancy has a passion for teaching children a love for learning. She enjoys reading, gardening, strength training, water aerobics, and shelling at the beach.

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Email: nancyf@montessoricenter.org

Favorite Montessori Quote

The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind.
— Dr. Maria Montessori

Hank lived in Miami, Florida, until he moved to Chapel Hill to attend UNC. He served on a U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker that traveled to the the Arctic Ocean and Antarctica. He graduated from Elon University and worked for the IRS for several years. After leaving the IRS, he started a nationwide business helping people with tax problems.

Hank has coached youth baseball, taught children’s church, and been a Special Olympics volunteer for many years, and his love of children led him to teaching. He began teaching at The New School in 1999, and he earned his 6-9 AMS credential in July, 2000. He and his wife Nancy have been teaching together for ten years.

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Email: hank@montessoricenter.org

Favorite Montessori Quote

As soon as children find something that interests them, they lose their instability and learn to concentrate.
— Dr. Maria Montessori

Tatiana studied at UNC Chapel Hill, where she graduated with a degree in geology and Slavic Studies.

Tatiana joined The New School in August 2011 and worked in our Infant/Toddler program. After spending time in our elementary classrooms, Tatiana made the decision to start her training this summer to become a Certified Montessori elementary teacher. Currently, Tatiana works as a teacher’s assistant in our Lower Elementary Program for experience prior to her training.

Tatiana’s work history includes running and coordinating a summer riding camp for elementary children and teaching individual riding lessons.

Tatiana also currently works at a private horse farm, where she keeps her own horse and trains many others. On the weekends, she enjoys teaching riding lessons and spending time with her horse.

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Email: tatiana@montessoricenter.org

Experience is the best teacher.
— Anonymous

Sheldon Clark has been involved in Montessori education since the early 1990s. He is Montessori trained to teach ages 6-12, and has over 15 years classroom experience, mostly at the Upper Elementary level. Sheldon has served in administration as well as in the classroom, and was the founding Upper Elementary Director of Follow the Child Montessori School in Raleigh. 

He has a strong interest in communication and problem solving among children, and is working to expand his understanding and experience beyond the Upper Elementary years and into Montessori adolescent education.

Sheldon joined The New School in 2011 as our Upper Elementary director. His vision for our upper elementary program has been extremely successful and will no doubt be instrumental in the school’s expansion into the middle school ages.

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Email: sheldon@montessoricenter.org

Robyn is a native of Durham, North Carolina. After graduating from East Carolina University in 2000 with a BS in Interior Design, she worked as a designer in commercial environments. Her children began attending The New School in 2007. Beginning in the 2008-2009 school year, she joined The New School teaching faculty as lead teacher in the Lower Elementary classroom. She completed her AMS 6–9 certification in 2009. Starting the summer of 2012, Ms. Robyn will be studying to earn her AMS 9-12 certification. In her spare time, Robyn enjoys gardening and other outdoor pursuits. Robyn is involved in her son’s Cub Scout pack and is a nature lover with several pets. She has three cats, a ball python, and a red claw crab.

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Email: robyn@montessoricenter.org

Stacia Belanger came to The New School Montessori Center with her children in 2010 for their education, and she has enjoyed many volunteering opportunities here, especially with the students’ reading and Junior Great Books. She worked in marketing and technical writing before staying home with her two children, both of whom attend TNS, and has taught students in English composition, expository writing, middle school math, and algebra. With an undergraduate degree in English (practical writing) and minors in math and chemistry, she brings a well-rounded education to the team.

Stacia and her husband Matt and their two children love to ride bikes on the American Tobacco Trail and participate in chess tournaments. Stacia is also working toward her black belt in Tae Kwon Do with her children. In her spare time, she loves to read great books, write, garden, watch period pieces, and grill the Sunday meal. She is very excited to work in a Montessori classroom, to help her students take ownership of their development as thinkers and communicators, especially through writing, which is a process and a product.

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Email: stacia@montessoricenter.org

Ms. Mae has been working with Montessori schools for 13 years, having been 6-12 certified for 10 of those years. Before that she served in various International Schools from 1990 to 1998. She previously been with The New School for four years, and rejoined us in 2010. Mae has a B.A. in English, and many other talents including poetry, storytelling and art. She is also a Wake County Extension Master Gardener.

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Email: mae@montessoricenter.org

Favorite Montessori Quote

This is the first duty of an educator; stir up life, but leave it free to develop.”
— Dr. Maria Montessori