Natural Start Preschool Teacher Bios for the 2024-25 Preschool Year

Preschool Director and Co-Founder, Assistant Teacher

Stephanie is a Naturopathic Physician specializing in pediatrics and family medicine. She graduated from Seattle’s Bastyr University in 1998 and has spent the past 25+ years working with children and teaching families about health and nutrition. As one of the co-founders of Natural Start Preschool, Stephanie is passionate about fostering young children's learning and development through age-appropriate curriculum, outdoor exploration and play, and daily interactions with the natural world. She considers it an immense privilege to be able to experience each child's innate sense of wonder and curiosity come alive as they explore the forests and meadow surrounding our preschool, learn about insects and animals, plant seeds in the garden, and discover the other natural habitats of our preschool home. Stephanie lives in Bellevue (where she also grew up!) and is an avid hiker, gardener, and birdwatcher. She has a college-aged son with whom she loves traveling, going for runs, and sharing a variety of outdoor adventures. In her spare time, she also enjoys reading, cooking healthy meals, spending time with family and friends, and going on long nature walks.

Explorers Class, Lead Teacher (M/W/F) 

Jodi earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Advertising from Washington State
University. While working in e-commerce for 6 years, she taught gymnastics to kids as her side
job. She loved everything about working with kids, so she decided to go back to school and earn
her Master’s Degree in teaching from Heritage University. As a certified elementary education
teacher, Jodi has worked as an elementary school teacher, reading specialist, gymnastics
teacher, and dance coach. This will be her fifth year teaching at Natural Start Preschool and
she can’t wait to explore with all of her new students! She has a passion for learning and
helping others learn, especially in nature. Jodi lives in Newcastle with her husband Wes, two
boys, Etcher (10) and Helix (7), and their energetic dog, Hazy (4). She and her family love
spending time traveling, camping, hiking, skiing, going to parks, and exploring the outdoors. Jodi also enjoys bird watching, baking, reading to the kids, checking out new coffee shops, and trying
new educational activities.

Junior Explorers Class, Lead Teacher (M-F)

Mirsa received her Bachelor's Degree (Cum Laude) in Early Childhood Education at Trinity Lutheran College. This will be Mirsa’s eighth year at NSP, and she is excited to continue fostering her preschoolers' connection to the outdoors through play and exploration. Mirsa loves spending time with children because of their curiosity and their unique perspective on the world. Because her father took their family out every week, Mirsa grew up exploring and playing in different natural environments that helped foster her love for nature. She currently lives in Bellevue with her husband and two children, Danny (age 12) and Ahri (age 7), with whom she enjoys playing and exploring the outdoors. Some of their favorite activities are watching the stars and clouds, rolling down hills, gardening, hiking, and playing Roblox and Minecraft. When not playing, Mirsa enjoys reading, listening to rock, training in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and knitting. 

Explorers Class, Lead Teacher (T/Th), Assistant Teacher (F)

Victoria has been proud to call the Pacific Northwest her home for the past 25 years. Originally from Michigan, Victoria obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Michigan State University and has teaching experience from preschool up through the middle school level. This is Victoria’s eleventh year at NSP and her fourth year team-teaching with Ms. Jodi. She feels fortunate to be able to share the wonders of the outdoors with her preschoolers. Like her students, Victoria is always learning and has taken many courses and workshops over the years to keep her up to date with the latest practices as she continues building her “outdoor preschool repertoire.” She is excited to explore and share new activities with her students while facilitating a love and appreciation for nature. When she’s not teaching preschool, Victoria enjoys hiking, traveling, gardening, thrifting, listening to live music, and strumming the guitar. Victoria lives in Issaquah with her husband David, teenage sons David and Dane, and rescue lab-mix Loki. 

Junior Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (M)  

Hi! My name is Jennifer Bean, but you can call me Jen. I have three kids who all attended Natural Start Preschool – their current ages are 18, 16, and 11. My husband and I both grew up south of Bellevue and we love going to Whidbey Island and enjoying the beautiful Pacific Northwest. I’ve volunteered with children for many years, both at my church and with the Bellevue School District. I was a preschool teacher in college and also worked in the Pre-K program at Samena. I have 24 nieces and nephews, so I spend a lot of time around kids! I’m looking forward to getting to know all of your adorable children! 

Junior Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (M-F) 

Liza is married with four children and two dogs. She was a stay-at-home mother for almost 20 years before starting her journey at Natural Start Preschool in 2021. Working with children has always been a great passion of hers, and she has volunteered at children’s hospitals and worked at a pediatric clinic. Liza loves watching kids learn and have fun while doing it! Seeing children’s minds grow and being a part of that brings her joy. Liza currently volunteers in underserved communities through the sport of soccer. In any free time that she has, she enjoys quality time with her family, traveling (especially to Hawaii), exercising, gardening, and listening to audiobooks while on long walks.

Junior Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (T-F)

Madeleine grew up in Munich, Germany where she studied early childhood development and education to become a teacher. She worked with children ages 0-12 years in preschool, Kindergarten and grade school settings for multiple years before moving to the US in 2011. Madeleine has worked with children ever since while raising her own two kids, who are now 6 and 10 years old. Her youngest is a former NSP student. Madeleine lives in Bellevue and volunteered with the Bellevue School District from 2023-2024. She loves the outdoors, especially gardening with her kids and creating “natural classrooms” outside. She also enjoys going on adventures to explore the PNW, bike rides, and long walks with the family dog. Madeleine is excited to meet you and your children and to have a wonderful year of learning and growing together.

Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (M/W)

Maryellen earned her Bachelor's of Science degree at Pacific Lutheran University, which is when she fell in love with the Pacific Northwest so much that she never returned home to Baltimore. While attending PLU, she worked as a research assistant in language acquisition and pediatric neuropsychology. She also collected and organized research data at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium, leading to an educational position at the zoo. She then became Educational Director at the Cougar Mountain Zoo before returning to being a full-time nanny to an amazing pair of “astronaut ballerinas”. In her spare time, Maryellen writes kid lit and portal fantasies, spends lots of time on adventures with her camera, and plays the cello. She lives on the edge of an enchanted forest on Cougar Mountain. 

Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (Tu/Th)

Paige is a college student working towards a degree in elementary education. She is a vegan who is passionate about science, the environment, and animals. She has always loved learning new things and exploring; she loves working here at preschool! She is especially interested in marine life, and the aquarium is one of her favorite places to visit. She loves reading, book collecting, baking, and spending time with her dog, Jetta. If she isn’t doing any of the previous, she is probably talking about Star Trek or growing her Star Trek collection.

Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (Tu/Th); Administrative Assistant (W)

Sarah graduated from William Jewell College with a B.S. in Nursing. As a Pediatric RN, she worked in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, summer camps, and as a traveling nurse in 7 states. She was an elementary school nurse at her children’s school for 2 years in Kansas. When her family moved to Washington in August of 2017, she felt ready for a new career adventure. Her life experiences and passion for working with children influenced the decision to be both a preschool teacher and stay-at-home mom. Growing up in Missouri, she loved camping and water skiing at the lake, helping in her mom’s classroom, and playing on the farm. She enjoys spending time with family and friends, crafting with paper and recycled materials, yoga, and hiking. When exploring nature, her favorite spots are the mountains, beach, lake, and forest, just to name a few! Sarah lives in Bellevue with her husband Scotty, two kids Lillian (16) and Fisher (14), and cat Leonard.  

Explorers Class, Assistant Teacher (M/W/F)

Yuka grew up in Japan and moved to the Seattle area after earning her Bachelor’s Degree in Communications. She worked for several IT companies in this area and did project management until she had her son, who is currently in elementary school. As her son grew up, Yuka became involved in various children’s groups and activities and enjoyed organizing them as well. She volunteered at her son’s elementary school as a classroom and recess assistant from 2020-21. Yuka is passionate about working with young kids and enjoys learning about child development and early childhood education. While she was growing up in Japan, Yuka always played outside, and she chose to live in the Pacific Northwest because of this area’s beautiful nature. In her free time, Yuka enjoys hiking with her dog, doing yoga, swimming, cycling, camping and traveling, playing music, cooking, eating, and trying new things!