Ms. Van is the owner of the Goddard School on Higley Road since 2011. She has over twenty-five years of experience in the education field in various capacities, from being a lead-teacher in premier private preschools to being a vice-principal of a public elementary school. She won several best-teacher awards in her career. Ms. Van strongly values education. She believes children have an incredible capacity to learn in the early years. A day we waste in teaching something new to a child is a day lost forever. Children who enter kindergarten should have firm concepts of basic math and science/technologies without sacrificing their appreciation for the Arts. That is why the STEAM curriculum at this school is very robust. Ms. Van also believes having fun is a much-needed component to promote a life-long love of learning. Ms. Van earns a bachelor's degree in elementary education. She has two daughters who read before four years old. One of the daughters went on and graduated from UC Berkeley University. The other one graduated from Stanford University.

Ms. Mykelanne is our wonderful Director of Education. Ms. Mykelanne joined our Goddard School on Higley Road in August 2012. She has extensive experience as a teacher as well as a successful administrator at a high-standard preschool before joining The Goddard School. Mykelanne has a solid record in providing training to teachers and serving the children and parents with dedication and care. Ms. Mykelanne attended Cerritos College in Early Childhood Development/Child and Family Organizations and Management and a CDA from Successful Solutions Professional Development.

Ms. Annaliese has extensive experience as a preschool teacher in the 2 to school-age groups. She loves working with children because she feels happy when helping them learn and grow. She still keeps her fond memory of when her 4th-grade teacher taught her how to garden. She loves the children's song “Roar Like A Lion” because her son always jumps to that song. It makes her laugh! Ms. Annaliese’s favorite place on earth is a cabin surrounded by tall, green pine trees.

Ms. Ashley earns an AA degree from Mesa College and currently aiming for a Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Development. She has extensive experience working in premier preschools in the valley as well as running her own childcare center for a while. Ms. Ashley came to our school is “how inviting the school is the friendly staff gave her a very good first impression”. One thing she learned from her Mom was you should always treat everyone equally. She has lived by that mantra her whole life. Ms. Ashley’s favorite book is The Rainbow Fish and her favorite children’s movie is The Little Mermaid. We can see that aquatic life is her thing.

Ms. Christine's single focus at the Goddard School is to prepare our students to be in the top tier of their Kindergarten class next year. She has been with The Goddard School on Higley Road since 2014. She has over 18 years as a "Kindergarten Readiness Teacher & Specialist". She also has many years of experience in management as an Assistant Director of a national preschool in the Valley. Ms. Christine is an avid reader. Her favorite children's book is "The Lorax". From her students, she learns "to be more open and live in the moment. It's all about right now".

Ms. Beth earns a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Sorsogon State College. She has extensive experience with 2-y to Pre-K age groups. Her approach to teaching is to build a good relationship and provide interactive, fun, and appropriate learning activities. Ms. Beth loves working with children because their laughter and innocent humor make her happy. One thing she learns from her Mom is that “being humble and kind is important”. Ms. Beth’s favorite book is The Giving Tree.

Ms. Riley loves high-energy teaching and hands-on learning, and gives lots of love to create a fun learning environment! Her favorite children’s book is Where The Wild Things Are. Her favorite place on earth is a sunny beach – with a plate of nachos. From her Mom, Ms. Riley learns that resilience is critical in life. With her daughter, Ms. Riley watches the movie Encanto several times a week.

Ms. Alisa has extensive experience in leading students in the 1-3-year-old groups. She recognizes each student is different and requires a different learning style thus the teachers need to have different approaches for the students. She loves to read Dr. Seus’ books and loves anything Disney. No wonder her favorite children’s movie is Mullan. She also loves the song You Are My Sunshine since her Mom always sang that song to her at bedtime. She still finds herself humming the song without even thinking.

Ms. Aubrie loves the children’s book The Giving Tree and her favorite children’s movie is The Polar Express. Her approach to working with children is patience and unconditional understanding. From that, she loves to see her students learning new things and watching them progress. Ms. Aubrie's favorite sports team is the UA Wildcats!

Ms. Jessica is attending Mesa College to pursue a degree in Early Childhood Education. Before coming to the Goddard School, she has more than 3 years of experience working with children in various age groups. Ms. Jessica loves working with children because of their innocence and honesty. She feels they say anything that comes to their minds with the best intention. Her favorite children's movie is Zootopia!

Ms. Eliz earns a BS degree in Elementary Education. She has over 10 years of experience working with children in various age groups. She believes that as an educator you should focus on creating a plan that is both intentional and fun. Her favorite children’s song is It’s A Small World and her hero is Abraham Lincoln.

Ms. Tania has over 4 years of experience in teaching pre-K to 6th grade when she came to the Goddard School on Higley Road. Her success was due to her approach to teaching: teaching must be interactive and based on clear communication with the students and the parents. She learned one important thing from her Mom: Always be honest no matter what. She feels happy when she makes someone’s day special. Her favorite children’s book is The Giving Tree. After reading the book, Ms. Tania felt like someone was always there for her even though she might feel lonely at the moment. Her favorite children’s movie is “The Land Before Time” because it shows you how strong friendship could be.