Lili Rembold, Assistant Director: Operations and Development, Lead Teacher, Forest Class: Ms. Rembold is an AMS Certified Montessori teacher and Assistant Director of our school . She earned her AMS credential through the Age of Montessori training facility. This is her fourth year at Bambini Village, and she was the director of the 2021 Summer program. She has been teaching for 6 years at Barfield School of Dance in Murfreesboro and has been volunteering and working with children for 10 years. She has lived in Murfreesboro her whole life and loves the community and any opportunity to grow and foster love within it. She believes one of the most important skills in life is emotional intelligence and that early childhood is the perfect place to start that development.

Lydia Vallee, Assistant Director: Community and Development, Lead Teacher: Lydia is a Louisiana native and is from the Baton Rouge area. She studied Communication at Southeastern Louisiana University and graduated with her Bachelor's Degree in 2012. Lydia attended the AKCENT International House in Prague, Czech Republic in 2017 and completed her CELTA certification from Cambridge University. She has taught English as a second language to children in France, Bulgaria and Poland. While living in Warsaw, she received a professional development opportunity to earn her qualification in Positive Discipline. Since 2019, Lydia has been living in the United Kingdom. Most recently, she has been assistant teaching in a primary school where she received training in Health and Food Safety for Allergens through the International Bodyguard Associates to complement her First Aid certification. She is currently pursuing her Early Childhood Montessori Teacher Certification. As a teacher, her top three values are independence, creativity and kindness. She believes a Montessori environment provides the best atmosphere for teaching these values to children.

Kelly Pope, Lead Teacher, Meadow Class: Kelly Kimbrough (soon to be Kelly Pope) was born in Chattanooga and raised in Murfreesboro, TN. Educational background includes: Bachelor of Science in Integrated Studies-Early Childhood Education and Family Studies, MiddleTennessee State University; Associate of Applied Science in Early Childhood Education, Motlow State; Certification in Early Childhood Education by the Department of Education, Motlow State; AMS Certification 3-6 Montessori Training Center of Brentwood. She was introduced to Montessori by a family friend 15 years ago, and from that moment, she never looked back. She fell in love with Montessori's "follow the child" philosophy which allows for all children to receive an individualized education and meets each child's different learning styles. Montessori is an extension of the home and not only creates a strong educational foundation but also builds good character and strong life skills. This timeless educational model is rooted in Child Development that prepares the whole child for the demands of tomorrow. She believes that each child has a unique gift, and her goal is to observe and help them grow into independent, responsible, and compassionate human beings. When she is not in the classroom or the pool, she enjoys being around her family, hanging out with friends, or being outdoors with her two huskies. Her favorite pastime was swimming competitively and cheering in high school at Riverdale. Therefore, she started running a Montessori-based swim program three years ago, called MontiSwim, during the summers to combine her passion of swimming and Montessori together. The program offers beginner and intermediate swim lessons and private coaching for competitive swimmers. She is excited to guide the next generation of young minds at Bambini Village!

Ashlyn Bratcher, Lead Teacher, Forest Class: Ashlyn Bratcher grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. She attended the University of North Carolina, Greensboro and graduated with a degree in Human Development and Family Studies with a concentration in Child, Youth, and Family Development. She has worked with children for the past three years and loves it! Her favorite part of working with children is seeing the growth and progression of their development as they reach their developmental milestones over time. She has had the opportunity to work with all different ages of children ranging from birth to 6 years old, with all different backgrounds. Her goal is to foster an environment that allows children to grow and experience the world at their own pace. Ms. Bratcher is becoming certified through Age of Montessori.

Elisabeth Gay, Teacher, Mentor, Elisabeth Gay is a certified Elementary Montessori teacher who has taught in both public and private Montessori schools for over two decades in four states: SC, NC, AL, and TN. Her certification is through the Center for Montessori Teacher education in North Carolina. She is married with three children: 19, 16, and 13. She received her BA from Wofford College as a German and French double major in 1995. She has travelled and lived in multiple countries, including study abroad stints in Germany, Switzerland and Austria, and mission work in Ukraine and Honduras.

Her hobbies include reading and writing (especially fiction), gardening, cooking, quilting and travel. As a former Montessori student herself, she has always loved the Montessori environment where children explore guided by curiosity. Some favorite Dr. Montessori quotes:

“The greatest gifts we can give our children are the roots of responsibility and the wings of independence.”

“One test of the correctness of educational procedure is the happiness of the child.”

Mary La Frenz, Assistant Meadow Class: Ms. LaFrenz was born and raised in Tennessee and graduated from Cookeville High School in 2011. She has been an assistant in childcare for the past 3 years and will be beginning her second year in Montessori. She earned her Assistant Certification in November of 2022 with the Center for Guided Montessori Studies. Her favorite part of teaching is bonding with the child and seeing them progress throughout the year. To her, nothing is better than seeing that first successful rolling of the mat in the classroom. In her spare time, she's an

Jane Asprelli, Suzuki Piano Teacher, Jane Asprelli has been a Suzuki Piano Teacher since 2004 and has completed all but her dissertation for a Ph.D. in Music from the Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati. She has enjoyed teaching all ages, mostly from 5 and up, and lives minutes from the Bambini Village campus where she conducts Suzuki lessons in her home. Since she moved here three years ago, she has been teaching piano classes at MTSU as well as private lessons in her home. We are pleased to offer our students the opportunity to take Suzuki Piano lessons. The Suzuki philosophy of teaching is similar to the Montessori philosophy of teaching and is an outstanding way of learning how to play a musical instrument. She is excited to offer these lessons to our Montessori students! If you would like to read more about the similarities between the Montessori and the Suzuki methods:

https://suzukiassociation.org/news/montessori-suzuki-comparison/