Meet the Staff
Lisa Dirksmeier has more than a decade of experience working with young children, nurturing and challenging both their minds and hearts. She has a passion for capturing the joy and wonder of early childhood discovery and deeply believes that early childhood is a unique and meaningful stage of life. She is committed to supporting the creative capacity of children and engaging them in rich experiences driven by their individual interests. Throughout the learning process she puts the utmost emphasis on ensuring positive, authentic relationships with each of her students. In the past year, Lisa has attended three conferences to receive training in the Reggio Emilia approach to teaching and learning. As well, she attended a Love and Logic workshop in the spring. Lisa has owned and operated her own preschool and has lived in the Wood River Valley for nearly twenty years. She and her husband Brian have twin boys, Huck and Ridge, in the third grade. As a family, they enjoy many recreational activities together, especially weekend outings with their pop-up camper and red canoe in tow.
has 9 years of teaching experience at Community School. She has worked as the early elementary science teacher, teaching assistant in grades 1-3 and has taught 3 years at the preschool level. She holds a BA in History from Hobart and William Smith College. Katharine has embraced the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education. She believes in providing a nurturing and engaging environment to support a child’s creative exploration. Most recently through our professional development program, she has attended the 2010 and 2011 Reggio Institute as Leslie University in Boston, MA., as well a Reggio literacy work shop at The Opal School in Portland OR. Outside of school, Katharine is happiest when spending time with her family: husband Jack (Community School class of ’85), John age 9 and Lucy age 4. Other favorite pastimes include skiing, hiking and most of all playing all summer with her extended Weekes family on Pettit Lake and with her east coast family on Cape Cod.
and her family have been a part of the Wood River Valley for the past 6 years. After obtaining an Elementary Education, Physical Education and Health Education degree from Gonzaga University, Suzanne and her husband, Patrick spent the next 5 years moving across the country with the Army. During those years, she taught Kindergarten and Preschool in Washington, Arizona, Texas, Virginia and Idaho. After her first son, Braden (7), was born, she dedicated herself to her family. Shortly after, Elise (5) and Will (3) joined the family in their outdoor and traveling adventures. Suzanne is passionate about young children and active families and finds the Reggio Emilia philosophy an ideal fit for her. She feels tremendously lucky to have attended Reggio inspired workshops through the Opal School in Portland and Lesley University in Boston.