Meet Our Wonderful Glasser Preschool Staff
Shalom and welcome! There are many wonderful people here, both at Glasser Preschool and Oak Park Temple to help you in making Glasser Preschool a successful experience for both you and your child.
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Glasser Preschool Staff
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Oak Park Temple Staff
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Meet Our Wonderful Glasser Preschool 2023-2024 Staff!
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Breonna Brown is looking forward to her second year at Glasser Preschool! She’ll be teaching in the Lions classroom. Breonna has 8 years’ experience in the childcare field and is furthering her formal education in Early Childhood at Triton College this fall! Breonna resides in Bellwood with her daughter. She enjoys family time, crafts & cooking! She’s excited to join our team!
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Aisha Ellis is excited to return to Glasser Preschool in the Turtles room again. She began teaching in the primary grades at Chicago Public Schools from 2000-2010, when she moved here from Iowa. She completed her Masters in Literacy in 2005 and recently earned her early childhood certificate. Both of her boys attended Glasser Preschool and are now in 5th and 9th grades. Aisha lives in Chicago with her spouse, boys and two cats and one dog. She enjoys baking, camping in a trailer, scuba, ukulele and singing in a couple of choirs.
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Marci Sperling Flynn was Glasser Preschool’s full-time Director from 1998 to 2025. She received her BA in psychology from Brandeis University (having also spent a semester at Tel Aviv University), received her JD from Georgetown University Law School, completed her course work towards the MA in early childhood education at National Louis University, and received her National Early Childhood Director credential through the McCormick Center. After practicing law for ten years, Marci changed careers to follow her dream of working full time with children and their families. Marci lives in Oak Park with her husband and numerous pets. Marci’s two adult children are both proud graduates of Glasser Preschool. Her daughter Sara is a first year medical student at Loyola University of Chicago. Her son Seth is a beginning a Masters program in Urban Planning at NYU. Marci is an active member of the CFJE Director’s Group, Early Childhood Collaboration’s Director’s Roundtable, and ECE-RJ (Early Childhood Educators of Reform Judaism). Marci enjoys spending time with her family and friends and listening to Ralph Covert music.
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Naomi Garvett is the director of Glasser Preschool. She has been in the field of early childhood education for almost 30 years, including the last 15 years as a preschool director. She has her BA in Early Childhood Education & Psychology from National Louis University. Supporting young children and their families during these important early years is truly her passion, and she is committed to continuing to grow awareness of the importance of education in these formative stages as the foundation for lifelong learning and success.
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Amy Kaufman has been at Glasser Preschool since 2004. She has a master’s degree in Elementary Education and a master’s degree in Social Work. During the summer of 2020 she completed the National Director Credential from McCormick Center. Amy will be teaching in the Lions classroom this year. Amy also teaches third grade at Oak Park Temple’s Jewish School. She lives in Oak Park with her husband Mark. She has two sons. Aaron lives in Detroit and is attending the Collee for Creative Studies. Max is in Iowa City, attending the University of Iowa. Amy likes to curl up with a good book and spend time with her family and friends.
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Nilsa Lasalle joined the Glasser Preschool family in 2022 as a substitute teacher. She is thrilled to be teaching in the Turtles room this year. Originally from the Big Apple, she attended Long Island University working toward a degree in Marketing & Management and retired from a 30 year career in Business Development at UPS. As a second career, Nilsa switched gears and became a private caregiver to the child of a concert pianist in NYC, from birth to 5 years of age. Nilsa is now working on completing her Early Childhood certification coursework at a local college. Nilsa lives in Oak Park and enjoys walking at least 4 miles a day, morning coffee with her daughter, travel, jazz, a slice of pie, and her weekly book club she hosts via Zoom with her friends from around the country.
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Ruth Milstein has taught at Glasser Preschool for nearly twenty-five years with our two and three-year-old children. Ruth will be in the after-school enrichment program this school year. Her grown children even attended Glasser Preschool. Ruth has a B.A. with teacher certification and a Masters in Counselor Education. Prior to teaching at Glasser, Ruth was a junior high teacher and counselor, a substitute teacher and a private academic tutor. She enjoys travel, opera, reading historical fiction, and is a Cubs fan! Having grown up at Oak Park Temple, Ruth served for 10 years as chair of the Religious School Committee, was co-president of Sisterhood and is still currently on the Sisterhood Board.
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Judy Weiss has been part of Glasser Preschool since 1990. She developed and then taught in the Gan Katan program for many years. Judy has been one of our Tigers teachers since 2004. Judy has a BS in preschool/kindergarten from University of Wisconsin, Madison. After completing her degree, Judy stayed in Madison and taught in a day care setting and a preschool. Judy has lived in Oak Park with her husband Marc since 1988 and has three grown children and six grandchildren. She is an active member of Oak Park Temple. Judy likes to ride her bike, take walks, and play mah jongg.
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Gisele Worley has been teaching our four-year olds since she came to Glasser Preschool more than twenty years ago. This year Gisele will again be a teacher in the Tigers classroom. Gisele graduated from Middle East College in Lebanon with a management degree (she speaks Arabic / Syriac / Hebrew/ English) and has taken many early childhood courses locally at Triton College. Prior to coming to Glasser Preschool, Gisele worked in school administration in Lebanon and at Parenthesis Parent/Child Center in Oak Park. Gisele has three children and four grandchildren. Gisele enjoys cooking, knitting, and reading.
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