Jamie Sellhorn: Founder and Director of Education
Jamie Sellhorn's Montessori journey began in her daughter Haley's Toddler Class at Chesterton Montessori School. She fell in love with the Montessori method as she volunteered in Haley's class and saw the incredible learning taking place.
Jamie did her undergraduate work at Duke University in Family and Child Psychology and did her graduate work at Indiana University in business and technology. She also taught in several Waldorf Programs and did her Waldorf Teacher Training at Arcturus in Chicago. Jamie has experience working with children with Autism and other special needs. She taught for several years at a Montessori School for children with Autism.
Jamie holds two AMS Montessori Credentials: Early Childhood (ages 2.5-6) and Infant and Toddler (Ages Birth-3). She received both credentials from the Columbus Montessori Education Center.
In 2006, after the birth of her daughter Brooke, Jamie started MGA so Indy's Southside would have a Montessori environment for our youngest children.
Tosha Ward-Janni: Infant and Toddler Director
From an early age, Tosha has always worked with young children. For many years, Tosha was involved with the Vivian Smith House, a program that provided infant and toddler care for teenage mothers who were attending school. Tosha also volunteered as an assistant to to Bridget Huffman working with severely handicapped children, helping them with hygiene, feeding, crafts, and music.
Tosha home schooled her son Ashtin until he was four years old. Tosha incorporated many of Montessori's hands-on learning activities while teaching Ashtin.
Tosha graduated with her AMS Infant and Toddler Montessori Credential in the Spring of 2009. She also attended the Columbus Montessori Education Center. Tosha is also an avid photograher and coaches Pee Wee baseball for Lowell Little League.
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Nadine Kwok: School Administrator
Nadine Kwok is mom to Molly and wife to Yip. She has a B. S. degree in Secondary Mathematics Education and brings seventeen years of office administration and database management experience to Montessori Garden Academy.
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Susan Caskey: Aster Class Lead Teacher
Susan Caskey holds a bachelors degree in Early Childhood Education from Purdue University. She has worked with children at the preschool level as a nanny, preschool teacher and in childcare. She has also worked with older children at the Perry Meridian Middle School library, the Marion County library bookmobile and as a Kindergarten aide.
Susan had first learned of the Montessori Method while an undergraduate at Purdue when she visited a Montessori school in West Lafayette.
Susan found that Montessori's educational philosophy really resonated with what she had observed in children. She especially has been an advocate of individuality in art expression. She has always believed the process, not the product, was the important thing. She enjoyed seeing how each child, when given the same materials as every other child, would create something unique in a unique way. That is why she feels the Montessori philosophy is so important. It allows each child to be self-expressive and to learn what that individual needs to learn in their own time.
Susan has discovered that teaching at Montessori Garden Academy is not just a learning experience for the children but for the adults as well. Over the Summer of 2009, Susan attended the Montessori Paraprofessional Training from Meca-Seton in Chicago.
In her spare time, Susan enjoys quilting, gardening, vegetarian cooking, Yoga, Pilates, and reading mysteries and non-fiction. She has a certificate in Feng Shui training from the Nine Harmonies School of Feng Shui and is very interested in how a person’s surroundings affect them in all areas of their lives.
E-mail Ms. Susan!
Philomel "Mhel" Mamot: Sunflower Class Teacher
Philomel "Mhel" Mamot is originally from the Philippines. She graduated in March 1996 with a degree in Medical Technology. Mhel used to work in The Philippine National Red Cross Blood Bank as a Phlebotomist and Laboratory Technician.
Mhel has experience working with both Toddlers and Preschoolers. Since Mhel had her daughter, Nathalia, teaching children has become one of her passions. She is so glad to be a part of the Montessori Family now. Over the Summer of 2009, Mhel attended the Montessori Paraprofessional Training from Meca-Seton in Chicago.
E-mail Ms. Mhel!
Katherine Rogers: Gardenia Class Lead Teacher
Ms. Katherine Rogers became the lead teacher in the Gardenia Preschool class over the summer of 2011. She has a degree in English and Spanish from Franklin College, where she also played on the women’s volleyball team. Ms. Katherine still enjoys playing in volleyball leagues with her dad. She worked as a teaching assistant at a Montessori school where became interested in pursuing her Montessori credentials. She is in the process of earning her Montessori Early Childhood Full Credential at the Center for Guided Studies.
E-mail Ms. Katherine!
Brandy Schroeder: Lower Elementary Lead Teacher
Brandy Schroeder has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education from Northern Kentucky University. After graduation Brandy began as an assistant teacher in a Montessori 3-6 classroom in Cincinnati, Ohio. She knew then that she wanted to be a Montessori teacher.
Brandy and her husband moved to the Indianapolis area 4 years ago. She became an assistant in a lower elementary Montessori classroom. The following year she was asked to become a lead teacher in a lower elementary classroom, where she taught for 2 years.
In the three years Brandy taught she had two wonderful boys . After her second child was born she decided to stay home for a year. Now that he is old enough to be in Montessori, Brandy is ready to go back to teaching.
E-mail Ms. Brandy!
Carly Gossett: Aster Class Co-Teacher
Starting early in childhood, it was obvious that Carly Gossett was driven to nurture and teach. As an adult, while her own family grew and matured, she realized the impact an educator has upon the lives of the children she teaches. After taking a more traditional route for her two sons’ education, she began looking for a better way to go about schooling her young daughter. In turn, she found Maria Montessori‘s philosophy and fell in love with the method. Desiring to be a part of that process, she sought to join the Montessori Garden Academy family.
Since coming to be a part of MGA, Carly has garnered experience within the school through a wide range of involvement. She is now a part of the Aster, Dahlia and Daisy classes, and she appreciates the different perspectives and opportunities each class experience has to offer. Carly has had paraprofessional training through the school, and desires to further her education in the very near future. She looks forward to growing with MGA and being a part of the Montessori process with which she’s fallen in love!
E-mail Ms. Carly!
Michelle Browning: Extended Day Teacher
Michelle Browning is a Senior at Perry Meridian High School. She has both professional and volunteer experience with children of varying ages. Her my passion is teaching. She loves the opportunities she has at MGA both in teaching and in learning about children's development and learning styles. She plans to attend IUPUI to study Elementary Education next fall. Michelle will work every week day at MGA after school in the Extended Day Program. She cannot wait to have a positive impact on your child's life at Montessori Garden Academy!
E-mail Ms. Michelle!
