Our educators are certified Early Childhood Educators by the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care. Our entire team is CPR and First Aid trained and all participate in ongoing professional development. Many of our educators have advanced degrees in the field. Our team is comprised of a Director, a Community Coordinator, a Business Manager, and classroom Teachers, who work in teams. 

• Yellow Door Room (3’s)

• Red Door Room (4’s)

• Blue Door Room (4's & 5's)

• Afternoon Program (Mixed age 3-5)

 

Joanne Pressman, Interim Director (2023-2024)

Joanne received her Bachelor of Arts in Education from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, followed by her M.Ed from Lesley University. CNS has been a very important part of her life for over thirty years. She has had the privilege of seeing Community Nursery School through the lens of a parent (1986-1988), a teacher (1988-1991), director (1991-2010), grandparent (2017-2019 ), and educational consultant (2011-2023). She is currently serving as Interim Co-Director. "One of the very best things about working at CNS is having the daily opportunity to watch and listen closely to children, and try to see the world through their eyes. There is so much to be learned from them! Collaborating with parents and teachers for the benefit of the children makes CNS a very special place. These partnerships serve to support the healthy growth and development of children -– and all members of this nurturing learning community." 

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Robbie Blackett, Community Coordinator

Robbie started her CNS tenure as a parent, 20+ years ago. Her daughter Caroline was in both Yellow and Blue Doors. Robbie was a permanent substitute before becoming a co-teacher in the Yellow Door where she taught for six VERY joyful years! Robbie transitioned to the role of Community Coordinator for the next two years and loved getting to know every single parent and child that came through Community Nursery School. After some time away, she returned to CNS in the fall of 2021 to reprise her administrative role. She is a parent to three grown children and a new grandmother!  Robbie looks forward to welcoming everybody who comes through our door at CNS.  Please stop by and say hi!

 

Jill Beguhn, Yellow Door Teacher

Jill first developed a partnership with CNS as a parent when her own children attended, and she quickly became a regular substitute.  With a background in Special Education, she was intrigued with how Reggio Emilia offered beautiful and natural human interactions that were respectful of children and their development. Workplace relocation brought her family to the Marshall Islands for 3 years.  On Kwajalein, her tiny and remote island home, she immersed in simplicity and expanded her personal definition of community.  She became the island Pre-K teacher and it was her great privilege to work alongside the talented Marshallese staff. Culturally, they approach child rearing with little interference, a steady presence when needed, and so much joy.  In that classroom setting, on the opposite side of the globe, CNS surfaced in her mind and heart as she drew connections between the Reggio Emilia philosophy and Marshallese culture. Upon her return to the United States, she picked up where she left off with substituting at CNS, and an eventual transition to the afternoon program, and now, a yellow door teacher in the core program.  She is passionate about lifelong learning, travel, music and her role as a mom to her 3 children.  She is also passionate about guiding with kindness, love, an open mind and an open heart. She is thrilled to be a member of the CNS faculty!

Rebecca Marken, Yellow Door Teacher
Becky received her Bachelor of Science in Family Studies from Ohio University and her Master of Science in Human Development, studying Child Life, at Wheelock College. It was while in graduate school, Becky first experienced the pure joy of CNS as she nannied for a child enrolled in the Yellow Door classroom. Fast forward years later, after working as a Child Life Specialist in Boston, Becky returned to teach in the Yellow Door Classroom for 3 1/2 wonderful years until the birth of her first child. She then had the pleasure of watching her own two daughters thrive and blossom as they transitioned through each of the classrooms. 18 years later, after sending her oldest daughter off to college, Becky has returned to teach in the Yellow Door Classroom. Returning to CNS after all these years is like receiving the most warm, welcoming hug…watching children explore, discover, make friends, and develop their independent self-help skills is so heartwarming.   

 

Danielle Millett, Red Door Teacher

Danielle earned her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish & Education from Colby College and her Master of Arts in Spanish from Middlebury College Language School. Danielle was inspired to join the CNS staff in 2012 by the joyful experience CNS afforded to her two children and also to Danielle and her husband as parents in the CNS community. After teaching high school Spanish for 11 years, Danielle saw the cooperative, nurturing, child-centered approach as the next chapter in her journey, and it has been one even more fulfilling than she imagined. The curiosity and the imaginative questions the children bring into the classroom are endless, and the opportunity to encourage their learning about the world around them and to guide them through their own journeys to discover answers brings Danielle joy each and every day. Outside of the classroom, Danielle loves traveling and new adventures, doing yoga and skiing, and cheering from the sidelines of her children’s sports.

Sutton Rockwood, Red Door Teacher

Sutton has been working with young children professionally since receiving her BS in Early Childhood Education from Boston University over 20 years ago. Since then, she has continued to expand her knowledge through master level courses, workshops, and hands-on experience. Before arriving at CNS, she held several roles in preschool settings, including classroom teacher, curriculum director, and summer program director. She also spent time as a Site Manager for Jumpstart, an AmeriCorps program that brings a social/literacy curriculum to preschools in low income neighborhoods, as well as teaching a Child Development course. Sutton arrived at CNS in the winter of 2015 to cover a maternity leave and was grateful to return when a position opened in the Yellow Door Room in the fall of 2016. Since that time, she has returned to the Red Door where she first covered a maternity leave.She can also be found at Summer CNS each year. As a teacher, she can often be found engaging in conversations with children (by doing a lot of listening!), reading books, singing songs, encouraging artistic exploration,  exploring nature, and supporting the process of problem-solving. Each year, she looks forward to creating a classroom environment that fosters play, discovery, joy, community, collaboration, and respect.  

 

Noni Cooper, Blue Door Teacher

Noni received her Bachelor of Arts from Hampshire College. After spending much of her own education in child-centered, inquiry based learning environments, she came to CNS in 1998 as a parent and never left. CNS embodies all that she has learned and that she believes when relating to children. Noni loves the hum of the school, the camaraderie and collaboration of the teaching staff, and the involvement and support of the families. Her spirits are lifted every single day that she is interacting with and observing the children. She believes the future of the world rests in the souls of these young people and believes the atmosphere and philosophy at CNS serve as a stepping stone for their futures. CNS is truly a magical place to be, both as a parent and as a teacher.

 

Nafees Shah, Inclusion Specialist & Afternoon Teacher

Nafees received her Bachelor of Arts in Human Development as well as her Masters in Special Education from Lesley University. Originally from Pakistan, Nafees developed an interest in early childhood while volunteering in various non-profit education centers. Since moving to the United States, she has expanded her educational experience to include Special Education, the Montessori System and the Reggio Emilia Philosophy. She encourages the children’s freedom to find their own identity through exploration and discovery. Her work focuses on providing an open environment where we value diversity, to create a true sense of community. Nafees works to bridge the gap between the natural and cognitive world, creating an enriching and nurturing space for the whole child. She believes children are endowed with “a hundred languages” and CNS is the environment where they are able to create, play, imagine and soar!

Heather Hauser, Yoga/Movement Teacher, Toddler Playgroup Facilitator & Afternoon Teacher

Heather received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Hartwick College and has many years of experience in a Waldorf/ Montessori inspired cooperative preschool prior to her years at CNS. Being part of a community and forming relationships with families has been a very joyful part of her job. She loves bringing her passion for color, beautiful materials, enchanting play spaces, and children’s picture books into her work with the children. Designing vignettes for storytelling and small world play is another way she likes to create magic and spark imaginations. She has an ever growing interest in exploring the themes of emotions, compassion, kindness, and diversity through stories, art and play. She is also a seasoned movement specialist, bringing yoga and creative movement to the children to encourage body awareness, mindfulness, connection, and creativity. The beautiful and holistic education her now grown children received in Waldorf education continues to inform and inspire the magic she wishes to create for all children.

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Amy Miller (Blue Door Teacher): Bio Coming Soon!

 

Denise Healy (Afternoon Program): Bio Coming Soon!