Biography:

Ms. Bernard joined The Woods Academy in 2019 after working as a Substitute Teacher there during the 2018-2019 school year. Prior to coming to The Woods Academy, Ms. Bernard worked as a Montessori Assistant at Manor Montessori School in Potomac for ten years and Apple Montessori School in Bethesda for five years. Ms. Bernard attended both George Mason University and Frostburg State University and holds a B.S. Degree in Marketing. Ms. Bernard grew up, and currently lives, in Potomac, Maryland. She loves spending time with friends and family, travel and attending music events/concerts.

Biography:
Ms. Lyndsey Canter joined The Woods Academy in 2010 as an assistant teacher in Montessori III and is now the lead teacher in that classroom. She is a graduate of Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart and holds a BA in Psychology from American University. While attending Stone Ridge, Ms. Canter volunteered in the Montessori class rooms at The Woods.

Biography:
Ms. Carpenter joined The Woods Academy in 2015. After graduating from the University of Dallas with a BA in Spanish, she taught English in southern Spain. Upon returning to the United States, she moved to the DC area and began working in The Woods Academy Extended Care program. The following year she earned her Montessori Certification from the Institute of Advanced Montessori Studies.

Biography:

Ms. Marcela "Marci" Falck-Bados has lived most of her life in Bethesda, MD. She graduated from Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda and went on to Texas A&M University where she completed a BA in International Studies and a double minor in Chinese and Psychology in 2018. She decided to return to the Washington DC area and spent two years working as a Preschool Teacher at AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School in Columbia Heights. While she was working full-time as a Lead Teacher, she was also going to school and earning her Master's in Teaching in Early Childhood Education, along with a certification in teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.

She graduated from the Relay Graduate School of Education in August 2020 but decided that she wanted to continue her studies. She is currently going to American University where she is earning an MA degree in International and Intercultural Communication with a focus in Education. Ms. Bados loves to read, travel, and learn about other cultures. She hopes to continue to have many more travels in the future.

Biography:

Ms. Liz Feeley returned to The Woods as a teacher’s assistant in Montessori III in 2018, having previously been an assistant in Montessori II and served her Montessori internship there. Ms. Feeley holds a BA in English from Georgetown University and a Masters in Teaching Secondary English from Trinity College. In addition, she has a graduate certificate in drama from the Weber Douglas School of Speech and Drama in London, England. She has taught middle school and high school English as well as fourth grade.

Biography:
Ms. Monica Fernandez-Oriach joined The Woods Academy in 2009 as a Montessori Assistant Teacher. She is originally from the Dominican Republic and is the youngest of ten children. She moved to the United States in 2000 after spending two years in Italy and Switzerland where she studied theology at an international school. Ms. Fernandez has a degree in accounting from Santiago University in the Dominican Republic.

Biography:

Ms. Kayana Guerra joined The Woods Academy faculty in 2017 as Extended Day Teacher. She moved to the United States from the Caribbean Island of Trinidad and Tobago in 2000. She has worked with children since 2005. Ms. Guerra is currently attending Montgomery College and will be graduate in 2019 with her Associates Degree in Business. Ms. Guerra has completed her Child Development Associate credential and several other certificates which pertain to child care. Ms. Guerra is the mother to a beautiful daughter. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, singing, traveling and spending time with her family.

Biography:
Mrs. Patty Horn joined The Woods Academy in 2015. Mrs. Horn is originally from Massachusetts, but spent her middle and high school years in Bridgewater, New Jersey. After a 20 year career in corporate marketing, Mrs. Horn chose to start a second career in early childhood education. She holds an Association Montessori International (AMI) diploma and completed her MEd at the Washington Montessori Institute at Loyola University. Mrs. Horn also holds a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Delaware and an MBA from Loyola University. In addition to teaching during the week Mrs. Horn has taught religious education classes at St. Bartholomew’s Church and will continue as a substitute teacher this coming year. Mrs. Horn lives in Bethesda with her husband Tom, daughters Sarah, Gracie and Charlotte, and their golden retriever Sadie.

Biography:
Mrs. Christina Kornegay began teaching at The Woods Academy in the 2007-2008 school year. Through the years she has served in the school's Extended Care program, assisted in MII, and is currently teaching in MIII. Mrs. Kornegay was born and raised in Connecticut, she moved to Maryland in 1999, where she attended college at Bowie State University.She received her Bachelor's degree in Psychology with a concentration in Early Childhood Education. During her college career she was an active member of a program that was directed towards gaining early awareness and readiness for underprivileged students. She also studied behaviors at The Behavior Therapy Center of Greater Washington.She has received her certification from the Institute for Advanced Montessori Studies at The Barrie School. Prior to joining The Woods Academy community, she worked for five years as a therapist for children with autism.

Biography:

Mrs. Myriam (Susy) Levin joined The Woods Academy in 2017 as an Assistant Montessori Teacher. She is originally from Ecuador, but has lived in the United States since 1970. She has completed her 90 hours in early childhood education at Montgomery College and has also taken numerous classes on several different subjects, including classroom management. Mrs. Levin previously worked as a Teachers Assistant at Apple Montessori for 15 years where she also taught Spanish.

Biography:
Ms. Michele Roome (1987) returned to The Woods Academy to teach in 1997, ten years after graduating from eighth grade. Ms. Roome is a long time Maryland resident and attended Connelly School of the Holy Child. She holds a B.S. in Social Work from St. Francis University in PA. In her time as a teacher at The Woods, Ms. Roome has been an assistant in first grade, worked in Extended Care, and coordinated the Hands On Science Program. She has a passion for cooking that she shares with the OWLS each week and she has held a summer camp for Montessori students at The Woods since 1998.

Biography:

Ms. Weber joined The Woods faculty in 2018 as an Associate Teacher. She received a BFA in Theatre Arts from East Carolina University in Greenville, NC, where she performed in a dozen productions, including several Theatre for Youth productions. After most recently working as a nanny in New York City, Ms. Weber discovered a passion for childcare and academics, and came to The Woods to pursue that passion and to grow as an educator.