Our Teachers

Sean and Whitney are the Owners of the Goddard School located in Grand Rapids (Knapp's Corner). Whitney graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Hospitality Business and before opening the Goddard School had a career in Sales and Event Management for Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Park and the JW Marriott Grand Rapids. Sean graduated from Western Michigan University with a degree in Business Management and worked in Outside Sales for a traffic control company. As parents of 7 year-old daughter, Eila, and 3 year-old, Iris, Sean and Whitney understand the importance of creating a safe, nurturing environment and want the Goddard School to be a child's home away from home. Both Sean and Whitney were born and raised in the Grand Rapids area and look forward to giving back to the community by educating it's future leaders. Sean and Whitney look forward to welcoming you to the school and introducing your family to the amazing faculty!

Ms. Ali is our Executive Director. She holds her Bachelor's Degree from Indiana Wesleyan University in Christian Education and Children's Ministry. She has 5 years of experience as a lead pre-k teacher in the Detroit area, over 14 years of working with children and 5 years as a dance instructor. Ms. Ali was a Day Camps Director with SpringHill Camps where she traveled throughout the midwest with a team of counselors to provide a fun week of camp for children in their hometown. Ms. Ali loves to do arts and crafts with the children, as well as watching them discover new ways to move and play! She loves teaching science and guiding them through curious play and experiments. Ms. Ali loves children and teaching them new skills. She enjoys seeing children realize and discover their new talents. You will usually find her smiling and being creative, and always finds joy in the little things!

Ms. Michelle is our Director of Operations. She has a wide range of work experience in many different fields. Ms. Michelle worked at SpringHill Camps for over 22 years where she had many different roles including store manager/purchaser, registration professional and in-house designer. Ms. Michelle is a mother of 5 kids who all live in the Grand Rapids or Kalamazoo area. Ms. Michelle recently moved back to Grand Rapids to be near her kids and grandsons. She loves doing anything creative with kids including coloring, painting, baking or photography. Ms. Michelle joined the Goddard Knapp’s Corner Family because she loved the idea of supporting a school that is dedicated to providing quality education in a safe environment.

Ms. Lauren is our Infant/Toddler Education Coordinator. She majored in Youth Ministry and Creative Writing at North Park University in Chicago, IL. She has been working with kids since she turned 18, and has worked with all ages! Ms. Lauren was raised in Grand Rapids, and then lived in Chicago for 7 years before moving back in 2019. She has two younger brothers, and in her free time she loves to bake, read, write, and kayak. Her favorite activities to do with children are art projects and signing songs. She's got lots of verses to go with the Itsy Bitsy Spider and Row Your Boat! She is also known as the bug catcher in her class, and watching children react and learn about nature is always a fun experience all around! Ms. Lauren became a teacher because she had some very special people who were influential to her when she was a child, and her desire has always been to be that person for others. She absolutely loves the ways children perceive the world and want to share it with us.

Ms. Ashley is one of our Co-Lead Teachers in our Infant classroom, Sleeping Bears. Ms. Ashley just graduated from Wheaton College with a double major in psychology and International Relations. She did an internship at World Reset with the youth and children’s department where she worked with young immigrants, refugees, and their mothers. Ms. Ashley has also nannied and babysat for many families with children aged 6 months to 12 years old. In the fall she is starting on another degree in counseling, with which she hopes to continue her work with children. Ms. Ashley has the most experience and enjoyment teaching about music. She was a piano teacher in high school and loved teaching her students how to make and appreciate music. She grew up as a musician and has been playing piano since she was 4! She also plays the ukulele and sings and does some writing and storytelling as well! Ms. Ashley is passionate about psychology and development, so teaching is a huge part of that. She

Ms. Brittnee is one of our Co-Lead Teachers in our First Steps classroom, Tiny Turtles! She has a bachelor’s degree in social work from Northern Michigan University. She also has 6 years’ experience working in childcare centers, primarily with infants and toddlers. Ms. Brittnee has a daughter named Jaynee! They have a small family consisting of themselves, their dog Loona and 2 cats named Pancake and Simba! Ms. Brittnee loves spending time with her family and friends and much as possible. Ms. Brittnee became a teacher in 2016 because she loves watching kids grow through learning, exploring, and trying new things. Her favorite activity to do with her students is to sing songs and get messy with art or sensory! She loves seeing the process of watching a child figure out how to complete a difficult task and then having that "light bulb" moment!

Ms. Emily graduated from Michigan State University in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Studio Art. She has assisted in early childhood education classrooms as a volunteer while she was in high school and is excited to be back in the field. Teaching wasn’t always her plan, but she is passionate about guiding children and creating an environment that is safe, inclusive, and inspiring. She had some amazing teachers that left lifelong impressions on her, and she wants to be that person for other children as well. Ms. Emily loves all things related to art and art history. She believes that art encompasses a bit of every other subject within it, and that it is a powerful and exciting subject. After all, who doesn’t like making art? Ms. Emily loves cooking and being hands on and has two cats at home!

Ms. Amanda is one of our Teachers in our infant classroom Hoppy Hares! Ms. Amanda had her own in-home daycare for many years caring for children 6 weeks to ten years old. She is a natural caregiver and happiest when she is taking care of others. Ms. Amanda believes that children are our future, and that each child is unique. We can learn something from each and every one of them! She is most interested in children’s emotional intelligence, having studied and read a lot about it.

Ms. Sara loves learning and being in learning environments. She’s curious in nature and enjoys nurturing children’s natural curiosity. She has an associate degree in arts of science and is also a licensed esthetician from the Douglas J in East Lansing. She studied elementary education at GRCC for 2 semesters in 2017 and has over 2 years of experience in babysitting children from 1-12. She is very patient and loves being around children because there’s never a dull moment when you’re with them! She became a teacher because she was always inspired by her teachers in school, as well as her dad, who have a passion for learning and teaching. She’s excited to learn more from seasoned teachers here at Goddard and even more excited to apply and pass on her knowledge to future leaders!

Ms. Kloie is one of our Co-Lead Teachers in our Young Toddler Classroom, Darling Deer! Ms. Kloie is currently in school working on her degree in Psychology. She also has experience baby sitting and working as a Behavior Technician for children with Autism. In the future Ms. Kloie hopes to complete her degree in Psychology and continue being a teacher or school counselor. Her favorite activity to do with children is anything outside. Ms. Kloie loves being outside with all the activities. Ms. Kloie became a teacher because she wants to know more about the way children learn and be a part of their growing process. She most enjoys getting to know children and their individual personalities.

Ms Annie is one of our Co-Lead Toddler teacher in our Darling Deer classroom! Ms. Annie graduated from GVSU with a BA in sociology and worked in social work for 2 years before switching her focus to early childhood education. She was the lead teacher in the 3s room at another center before coming to Goddard. She became a teacher because of her experience in the social work field. Her calling has always been to nurture and care for young minds, but it wasn’t fully realized until she had the experience in social work. Ms. Annie loves anything that has to do with music, songs, and nature! She loves how easily joy is found when engaged in song or experiencing nature, and both encompass wide topics in the world and human experiences. Ms. Annie spends most of her free time outside- she loves hiking, camping, and hammocking. Her love of fun helps her engage with children and come up with creative curriculum ideas!

Ms. Sadie is one of our assistant teachers in our Toddler Classroom, Darling Deer! Ms. Sadie is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University with a degree in Criminal Justice. She has worked with kids of all ages in the foster care system, as well as in the church nursery. During summers in college, she worked at kids’ camps at Indiana Wesleyan University. Ms. Sadie didn’t plan wasn’t always to be a teacher, but after working at a middle school during her senior year internship, Sadie fell in love with the job. She hopes to imitate what a good role model is, just like teachers did for her in the past. Each child is unique, and she looks forward to helping them grow! Ms. Sadie has lived in 8 states, traveled to 36, and visited 5 countries To learn new perspectives and cultures. She loves to be creative with drawing, painting, and arts and crafts. She also played college basketball and loves being able to be outside and active with kids!

Ms. Liliana is one of our Co-Lead teachers in our Get Set classroom Pleasant Pheasants! Ms. Liliana has 4 years of experience working as an infant and toddler teacher. She is currently studying Early Childhood Education at Grand Rapids Community College. Ms. Liliana enjoys working with young children and helping them grow. She loves providing hands on experiences for children, especially in the science subject. Ms. Liliana became a teacher because she enjoys working with young children. She loves developing relationships with the children and families to help them grow and see all of the potential they have within them.

Ms. Lillian is one of our Co-Lead Teachers in our first steps classroom Pleasant Pheasants! Ms. Lillian has experience from babysitting nieces and nephews, as well as helping out with after school daycare in middle school. She loves the energy that children have and wants to help shape the minds of future generations. Ms. Lillian loves math and art. Having the freedom to create and express creativity with no wrong answers is so important to your inner self and becoming who you want to be. Ms. Lillian is a very positive person and treats all children as if they were her own because we are all human and everyone deserves the same love and respect.

Ms. Courtney is the Co-Lead in our Get Set classroom, Pleasant Pheasants. She Graduated with a bachelor’s degree in early childhood development from CMU. Since college, she's had experience in multiple daycare/preschool centers as well as working for Walt Disney World right after college, getting tons of one-on-one child experience! Ms. Courtney is the biggest Disney fan, and she loves incorporating Disney magic into her classroom and lesson plans. Her favorite activity to do with her students is arts and crafts. She says that, getting a little messy with some paint or play-doh is so fun and great for sensory, fine motor development, etc. She became a teacher because she has a huge love for helping children develop the skills needed to grow. The thing Ms. Courtney enjoys most about working with children is seeing their faces light up when they see her it's unlike anything else!

Ms. Elizabeth is one of our Co-Lead teachers in our Get Set classroom, Busy Bees! Ms. Elizabeth is new to this field but has experience caring for children at an in-home daycare setting. Ms. Elizabeth has a son, who she loves supporting by going to all of his school and sporting events! She thinks it is always amazing watching children grow and learn while doing the things they love and enjoy! She decided to become a teacher because she believes a child's mind is so imaginative! There is no limit to what they can do. In her opinion, her favorite part is seeing a child's eyes light up when they see or experience something new to them. Ms. Elizabeth's favorite activity to do with her students is anything to do with arts and crafts or dramatic play. She thinks its so fun to watch their imaginations run wild!

Ms. Maggie has been substituting at the elementary school where her family went. She has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and took lots of child development and education courses as well. She has done babysitting and spent time working as a behavior technician helping children and young adults with autism. This will be Ms. Maggie’s first assistant teacher experience, but she always loved helping students and seeing all the progress they make. She loves teaching English and thinks it’s so cool to hear children forming words and eventually sentences to be able to communicate. Math is also one of her favorite subjects because of the exact answers but different techniques used to get those answers.

Ms. Amber is one of our Co-Lead Teachers in our Preschool Classroom, Loving Loons! Ms. Amber has 4 years of experience working as a lead preschool teacher and over two years of experience working in ABA therapy. Ms. Amber has been working directly with children for over 7 years and has loved every minute of it. In her free time Ms. Amber volunteers at Hope Network. Ms. Amber has a dog named Walter who was a calendar model for Kent District Library 2023’s calendar. Ms. Amber loves teaching the children about pretend/dramatic play, reading books and art. She became a teacher to help children build/discover the foundations of themselves and help prepare them to succeed in life.

Ms. Rachel is a Co-Lead teacher in our Preschool classroom, Mighty Moose. Ms. Rachel graduated from Cornerstone University with a Bachelor's in Elementary Education and TESOL. She has 6 years of teaching experience at the Elementary/Preschool lever. She found her passion for working with young learners when she taught for GSRP. Ms. Rachel loves working in early childhood education. She believes that young children have innocent imaginations and are so eager to learn. She became a teacher because she loves seeing the extraordinary growth each student goes through. She also loves to see the development of each child's unique personalities. Her favorite activity to do with her students is to read silly and entertaining books. Her favorite part is to see how her students faces light up and when they ask for the story to be reread over and over again. Ms. Rachel strives to make her classroom an environment where young learners can express their creative endeavors and learn to grow!

Ms. Erin is a Co-Lead teacher in our Preschool classroom, Mighty Moose! She is currently working toward her bachelor’s degree in teaching at GRCC and GVSU. She worked at a daycare for three years with infants and toddlers, and then nannied for a year. Erin moved from Connecticut two years ago to see a new city. She has three nieces and has been an aunt since she was seven. She has two cats named Ollie and Luna and spends most of her time at Reeds Lake, where she loves to read. Ms. Erin loves watching children grow and learn how unique and special each child is. Ms. Erin loves to learn herself and grow as a teacher alongside the students. She loves science and English related subjects and finds science so interesting to learn and experiment with in the classroom!

Ms. Ana is a Co-Lead Teacher in our Preschool classroom, Rockin’ Robins! She has experience working with children at SpringHill Camps where she taught ages 4-12. She has experience working with large groups of children up to 20 and also has experience working one-on-one with children with special needs. Ms. Ana is currently in school working on attaining her associates degree in Child Development from the Child Care Institute. Ms. Ana and Ms. Jenna have been a co-teaching team for almost 2 years and are excited to continue working together in the Rockin’ Robins classroom. Ms. Ana chose to become a teacher because she has a passion for children and enjoys teaching them the tools to help with social emotional development. She also likes to see the student’s perspective about the world around them and teach them in a way that they understand but challenges them. Her favorite activities to do with students is anything creative, such as crafts and dramatic play!

Ms. Kenzie is one of our Lead Preschool Teachers. Ms. Kenzie recently graduated with a bachelors in Early Childhood Education from Lynn University in Boca Raton FL. Kenzie was a student athlete and part of the Women’s Soccer Team at her school. She believes all children have the agility to learn and succeed in the classroom. She enjoys watching children grow and learn while doing the things they love and enjoy! Ms. Kenzie's favorite activity to do with her students is anything outside because she loves being active. She also loves finding new and creative ways to help children learn through play.

Ms. Jenna is a Co-Lead Teacher in our Preschool classroom, Rockin’ Robins! She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Azusa Pacific University in 2021. She has previous experience working at an elementary school as a teacher aid, and with a before and after school daycare. Ms. Jenna first developed her passion for working with kids as a young teen babysitting and loves watching them develop their own unique personalities. Ms. Jenna and Ms. Arianna have been a co-teaching team for almost 2 years and are excited to continue working together in the Rockin’ Robins classroom. She enjoys being a part of the children's constant creativity. Her favorite activity to do with her students is anything that includes art projects as she loves to see them make their project their own!

Ms. Sarah is one of our Preschool Resource Teachers. Ms. Sarah attended college in Tulsa Oklahoma where she obtained her bachelor’s degree in Theology & Youth Studies. Ms. Sarah received state accredidation and began working in child development and nannying. Currently Ms. Sarah is working towards her bachelor’s in Elementary Education at Grand Valley State University. Ms. Sarah loves anything that involves art and music! She also enjoys hiking, traveling, animals, reading, cooking, decorating, painting and photography. Ms. Sarah's favorite activity to do in the classroom has always been anything that involves art, especially hands-on projects! Ms. Sarah says, teaching has always been her passion, she finds it very rewarding and inspiring She loves giving back in a way she knows will make a difference in the lives of others. She most enjoys seeing the lightbulb moment in children and when they find joy in accomplishing their goals.

Ms Kinzie is one of our Preschool Resource Teachers! Ms. Kinzie’s major driving force is her desire to be a positive role model for children! She wants to be the adult in their lives that encourages them and makes learning fun! She gets inspired seeing how much progress children make in such a short amount of time, and loves seeing their sense of self confidence grow! Ms. Kinzie worked in the ABA field for 2 years and became an RBT in August of 2023. Though she doesn’t have education training, she loves to teach children, especially reading a writing, because she believes that reading and writing boosts confidence and creativity. She wants to go back to college and get her bachelor’s in education, and she is currently learning ASL!

Ms. Brandi is one of our Resource Teachers! Ms. Brandi has a widely varied background to apply to her work here at the Goddard School! She has a BS in biology, as well as a BA in psychology, and has worked as a community mental health counselor and a substitute teacher in K-12 grades. Ms. Brandi finds herself teaching in every day situations, so continues to find jobs that let her teach. She enjoys creating and thinking outside the box, so she loves teaching art and trying new things to the children she teaches. She is a mother to three young men and one spoiled dog!

Ms. Jessica is one of our school wide Resource Teachers! She is the second oldest of nine children and was a nanny in 2013 and 2014. She loves to teach and do art as a way of communicating thoughts and feelings when we can’t find the right words. In high school she was in AP art class. Ms. Jessica feels that there are lots of students who end up getting pushed through the education system without the tools they need to succeed, so she wants to help as many children as she can to be successful adults. She cares about children’s growing minds and wants to help them learn the building blocks that will help them later in life.

Ms. Nicole is one of our Toddler Resource Teachers! She has worked with children her whole life, between babysitting and working in childcare for the past five years. She has always loved children and loves watching them learn and grow. She loves to teach colors and ABCs to younger ages, especially when she can make it fun and use songs to help kids learn.