Cottonwood Buds
Open Monday-Thursday 9-3 - CURRENTLY FULL
Though my young childhood was spent in the Midwest, I moved to Alaska when I was ten and I call Alaska home. New to Homer, I was thrilled to find my way to Tiny Trees and be given the opportunity to start my own partner program this Fall!
Over the years, I have worked with children and youth of all ages. My journey with the LifeWays approach to early childhood education began at Palmer LifeWays in Palmer, Alaska, where I worked off and on for six years. After graduating with my Bachelor’s in Child and Family Studies, I lived in Ireland for a year where I worked as an au pair, putting into practice LifeWays, Waldorf, and RIE-inspired philosophies. After returning from Ireland, I spent some time in Central Wisconsin, working as a substitute at a Waldorf-inspired charter school. In 2018, I made the move back home to Alaska, where I taught at Head Start for one year. At Head Start, I participated in a variety of trainings, including an extensive training on working with kiddos with trauma.
One day my best friend asked me if there is a job that I am always interested in researching, and when learning more about it, it feels fun and not like work at all. For me, forest preschool/LifeWays-inspired early childhood education is that job.
This summer I was granted an opportunity to start a Tiny Trees on the beautiful plot of land where I live in Fritz Creek. After some soul searching (I had been working at Fireweed Academy, an awesome charter school here in Homer) I decided to go for it. Quickly, things started to fall into place and I knew it was time. I’m beyond excited to start Cottonwood Buds this Fall and to share this beautiful space with my Buds (and lots of kid songs, too!).
