The STAFF AND teachers are devoted to daily prayer for the children and the school.
Virginia Davis has been the Preschool's director since January, 2021. Long before serving in this role, Virginia was first a parent to four children who attended our preschool, served as chair of the preschool’s board at two different times and was the preschool’s interim director in the fall of 2019. She is a graduate of George Mason University in Fairfax, VA with a degree in Government and Politics. Virginia and her husband Brett have been members of Narberth Presbyterian Church since 2007, and they live in Wynnewood. She is committed to working alongside our wonderful teaching staff to provide a loving, joyful school foundation for our children and a supportive community for our parents and caregivers. She loves connecting with families so feel free to reach out anytime to preschool@narberthpres.org.
5-Day Pre-Kindergarten (Room 109)
Melissa Callan has been our Lead 5 day PreK teacher since September, 2021. She graduated from West Chester University with a degree in Elementary Education and taught PreK for four years before taking some time off to raise her two children and take on some other ventures. Melissa loves being in the classroom and preparing our oldest preschoolers for kindergarten. In her free time, Melissa loves to read, take long walks and spend time with friends. She is mom to Alice and Owen and lives in Gladwyne.
Maureen Russell (Miss Maureen) has been assistant teacher in 5-day PreK since September, 2022, and she loves being part of our school’s loving Christian community. Maureen graduated from Temple University with a Fine Arts Degree, and she enjoys working with Melissa helping to prepare our PreK children for Kindergarten. In her free time, Maureen enjoys yoga, taking long walks with her dogs and spending time with her family, especially her four children.
3-Day and 5-Day Younger Threes (Room 107)
Seble Ze
in is our Lead teacher for our three year old class. Prior to her current role, Seble served as an assistant teacher at NPC Christian Preschool with our Early Years class for eight years where she worked closely with our youngest preschoolers in their first school experience. She also has led our Junior Camp group in the summer. Seble was previously a flight attendant before taking time off to raise her two children who are now college and high school aged. Seble loves working with our preschoolers to ensure they have a nurturing and fun early education experience. When she isn’t in the classroom, Seble enjoys cooking and spending time with her family.
Leigh Haakenson (Miss Leigh) is an Assistant Teacher at NPC Christian Preschool for our Young Three Years class. Leigh has been part of the preschool since 2019, and she also led our summer camp as Camp Director for 3 years. Leigh grew up in Narberth then worked in Washington, DC, as a Human Resources professional for several years before returning Narberth in 2018. Leigh graduated from Penn State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and English, and she is a single mother of two elementary-aged children. Leigh loves working with children, and when she isn’t in the classroom she enjoys gardening, attending church at NPC, and supporting local organizations and efforts to protect open space in Narberth.
Gaby Kasmer (Miss Gaby) is one of the assistant teachers in our Younger Three Years class. Prior to her current role, she was a substitute teacher at NPC for several years and also taught at Penn Wynne Presbyterian Preschool. In her free time, Gaby enjoys running, hiking with her family and dog Bella and loves to travel!
3-Day and 5-Day Pre-Kindergarten (Room 303)
Dee Fulginitti leads our 3-day PreK class, and has been a devoted teacher at NPC Christian Preschool for more than 25 years. Dee and her husband Tony have two children and one grandchild. After retiring from a career as a pediatric nurse, Dee spent some time home raising her children before joining the staff at NPC Christian Preschool. Her own two children and her granddaughter attended here. Dee loves working with children, and she finds much joy in watching them grow and learn as they prepare to move on to Kindergarten. When she’s not at preschool, Dee enjoys cooking, gardening, knitting and spending time with her family.
Maggie Hook (Miss Maggie) is the assistant teacher in our 3-Day and 5-Day Pre-K class and worked at NPC Christian Preschool from 2010-2018 and returned in 2023. She lives in Narberth and in her free time enjoys spending time with her family and cats, taking long walks through her neighborhood, and visiting the beach and local arboretums.
5-Day Older Threes (Room 302)
Liz McAnally (Mrs. Mac) is the lead teacher of the 5-day Older Threes/Young Fours and the afternoon PreK Enrichment class. She will be starting her fourth year here at NPC Christian Preschool, but Liz has taught preschool and kindergarten enrichment for over 25 years. She attended Cabrini College and received her Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood/Elementary Education. In her free time, Liz enjoys spending time with her husband, three boys, and adorable dog, Molly!
Liliana Mironidis (Mrs. M) is the teacher’s assistant in the 5-day Older Threes/Young Fours class. Lil has been at NPC Christian Preschool since 2010 working with our three year olds and preK aged children. She loves watching our preschool children grow, and she believes we can learn a lot from preschoolers! Lil has been married for 34 years and has two adult children. She loves spending time with her family, her dog, cooking, gardening, walking and traveling to new places near and far.
Early Years (Room 104)
Lisa Paninos (Mrs. Paninos) is the lead teacher for our Early Years program for children who are entering preschool for the first time. Lisa was born in Louisville, Kentucky and grew up in Southern Indiana, where she studied early childhood education at Indiana University. Lisa and her husband Greg live in Narberth and have one son, Alex. Lisa has been working at NPC Christian Preschool since 2007 and in the toddler program since 2009! In her spare time, Lisa loves interior decorating, alternative music, gourmet cooking, movies and going to the beach, but most of all she loves babies and little ones! She really loves teaching our littlest preschoolers.
Imani Cleveland (Miss Imani) joined our preschool staff in 2022 serving as an assistant teacher in our Early Years class and in lunch bunch. Imani graduated from Harriton High School and is currently attending Moore College of Design. Imani loves working with children, especially our youngest preschoolers to help them feel safe and secure in their first school experience.
Tajah We
st (Miss Tajah) came to NPC Christian Preschool in 2023 and works as assistant in our Early Years class in the morning and as the PreK Enrichment assistant in the afternoon. Tajah lives in Philadelphia and is currently a student at Cheyney University working towards a Bachelors Degree in Psychology. She has a passion about working with children and inspires to be a child psychologist in the future.
Demure McKenzie (Miss Demi) is a Philly native and currently lives in Plymouth Meeting, PA. She is a sophomore at Temple University currently pursuing a Bachelors in Science in Neuroscience with future dreams of becoming an OBGYN. On campus, Demi enjoys participating in community outreach whether it’s community service or volunteer projects. She come from a big family and her love of children stems from Demi’s upbringing. In her free time she enjoys reading, listening to music, and spending time with family and friends.
3-Day Older Threes (Room 105)
Jennifer Toland (Mrs. Toland) teaches our 3-day Older Three/Young Four year olds. She has been a dedicated staff member at the preschool for 27 years and is a member of Narberth Presbyterian Church. Jen attended the Art Institute of Philadelphia and Delaware County Community College. She lives in Havertown with her husband Michael and has two grown daughters and one grandson. In her spare time, Jen enjoys gardening and all types of art media.
Kishori Fernandes (Mrs. Fernandes) has been part of NPC Christian Preschool since 2012 as an assistant with our older threes/young fours class and kindergarten enrichment. Kishori loves working with young children and finds her experience as an assistant teacher joyful and rewarding. She lives in Merion Station with her husband Terence, and they have two daughters currently in college. In her spare time, Kishori enjoys travelling, cooking and yoga.
Afternoon Classes
Jennifer Roykouff (Miss Jennifer) joined the staff of NPC Christian Preschool in 2023 and serves as our Art Club Teacher and Lunch Bunch Assistant. Jennifer graduated with a degree in Business Management from Saint Joseph's College of Maine and spent 30 years in Corporate Banking serving the Small Business Community. In August 2023, Jennifer felt called to leave Banking and pursue her passion for working with kids. Jennifer has been actively involved in the Children's Ministry Program at NPC for over 20 years, teaching Sunday School, participating in the Children's Ministry Committee and supporting program initiatives. She loves working with the kids on creative crafts and activities. She has been a Member of NPC for over 25 years, meeting her husband, Tim Roykouff, NPC Business Administrator, at the church. They reside in Upper Darby. In addition to finding joy in working with the kids, Jennifer loves spending time with her family, cheering her son, Liam, on at his Football and Lacrosse games and more recently becoming a first-time grandmother to her beautiful granddaughter, Evie Rose.
Kirsten Sams (Miss Kirsten) has been part of NPC Christian Preschool as a parent, board member and most recently a teacher. She was part of our Kindergarten Enrichment program for the last three years and now serves as the lead teacher for our PreK Enrichment program. Kirsten has her Bachelors of Science degree in Early Childhood Education from the University of Scranton, and taught first grade for 11 years. She also teaches a summer program at Merion Mercy Academy for girls entering 8th grade year. Kirsten, and her husband Troy, reside in Narberth and have 3 children who all ) attended our preschool.
Erica Sovin ( Miss Erica) joined the staff of NPC Christian Preschool in September, 2023 and serves as an assistant teacher in our afternoon PreK Enrichment program. Erica is a graduate of Rider University and lives in Ardmore with her husband and three children. She is enthusiastic about working with children and is committed to helping our oldest preschoolers develop the skills to be ready for Kindergarten. Erica is also an avid animal lover and spends time working with rescues and fostering dogs.
Karin Waller (Mrs. Waller) is our school bookkeeper and floater. Karin has been part of NPC Christian Preschool for 20 years in several different teaching and administrative positions. She is your resource for tuition questions at kwaller@narberthpres.org, and as floater she may be in your child’s classroom helping out over the course of the school year. Karin has two adult children and two grandchildren that she enjoys spending a lot of time with. Karin and her husband also operate a small church out of their home.
Sarah Comstock (Miss Sarah) lives in Narberth, PA, with her husband and their 3 daughters. She has been experiencing the joy of working with the children here at NPC Christian Preschool since April, 2021. She is passionate about helping young people discover the sounds of music and where they come from, not only from instruments we hear around us, but also the ones within our bodies: our voices, heartbeats, lungs, hands and feet etc. In addition to working with the children, Sarah also leads the contemporary worship band at NPC during Sunday morning services. She believes that God gave music to all of creation, so we might experience closer connection with God, within ourselves, and in community. For over a decade now, she and her husband Colin have been hosting benefit Christmas concerts, here at the church with their band Found Wandering.
Danielle Kauffman (Miss Danielle), NPC’s Children’s Director, leads monthly Bible classes with our preschool children. As Director of Children’s Ministries, Danielle helps children learn more about God’s amazing love for them. Through Bible stories, scripture, song and play children have fun while learning more about who God is and how He cares for them.