Originally from Arcadia, California, Sarah moved to Breckenridge in 2012. Sarah completed her Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education through the University of Arizona. Sarah began working at Timberline Learning Center in 2014 where she served the youngest population of learners as the Sprouts Mentor Teacher. After six years in a classroom, Sarah accepted the position of Operations Director in 2020, then in 2023 became Executive Director. Even though she is not directly in a classroom, Sarah finds great fulfillment in her role as executive director, representing Timberline Learning Center to external stakeholders and playing a key role in shaping its mission and vision.
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Sarah Young - Executive Director
Originally from Scranton, Pennsylvania, Maria moved to Breckenridge in 2015 after completing a Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education at Wilkes University. Maria had been working in the ECE field for 8 years before starting at Timberline as the Acorn mentor teacher then moved classrooms and became the Pinecone mentor teacher. After six years in the classroom, Maria became Timberline's Education Director. As she continues to utilize the beautiful nature she feels lucky enough to be surrounded by, Maria can often be found snowboarding, mountain biking, rock climbing or camping with her husband, Ben and her dog Bert.
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Maria Niedenfuer - Education Director
Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Agus relocated to Summit County in 2015. She holds Bachelor's degrees in ESL and Education. Agus joined Timberline in 2016, gaining experience in every classroom and serving as a Mentor in Acorns and Pinecones. In 2023, she transitioned to the role of Operations Director. Fluent in both English and Spanish, Agus brings over 15 years of experience in education to her role. Although she is no longer in the classroom, she remains passionate about supporting our families and community from her new position.
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Agus Ditzend Woodward - Operations Director
Originally from the cornfields outside of Chicago in Northern Illinois, Ms. Alyse moved to Breckenridge with then boyfriend, now husband, Joey in January of 2013, after he was offered a position with Summit County in the I.S. department. An adventure that was supposed to be a year has turned into a life and building a family in this beautiful community. In August of 2013, after a few months in retail, Ms. Alyse decided to get back to her passion of working with children and joined the TLC team. Shortly after learning about the philosophy at TLC, she knew she wanted to raise a family here. Starting in the Acorn classroom as a Co-Teacher then a brief stint as Co-Mentor, she then moved up to the Pinecones. After a couple years in the toddler wing, she moved up to the Little Grove and eventually took over the Mentor position. Ms. Alyse was a mentor in the Little Grove for four and a half years before moving up with her class after the pandemic to the Big Grove. After her first child, Emilia (Emi), a year mentoring in the Big Grove and then her second child, Eli, she moved once more to a brand-new role, Resource Specialist. This new role allows her to be in all the classrooms and work with all the teachers, children, and families. She loves it!
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Alyse Moulis - Resource Specialist
Ms. Jessie became a part of the TLC team in June 2021. Originally from Southern California, Summit County has been home for nearly 20 years. Jessie began working with young children as a swim instructor as a teenager and later studied Spanish education at the University of Northern Colorado. She worked at the Family Intercultural Resource Center as an Early Childhood Educator for 4 years. Jessie currently volunteers for the children's programs at her church. For the past year, Jessie enjoyed working in the two toddler classrooms and is now working in both infant classes. Ms. Jessie is very happy for the chance to love and nurture our tiniest students in this coming school year.
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Jessica Hall - Seedlings Mentor Teacher
Taylor Adcock, a Kansas City native, comes to Timberline Learning Center with over six years of teaching experience. Starting as a preschool teacher, she found a strong passion for teaching infants over time. She has now has over 3 years of experience working with young and older infants. Taylor’s favorite part of teaching infants is watching them grow in their abilities and figure out this big world around them. |
Taylor Adcock - Sprouts Mentor Teacher
Ms. Melissa joined TLC in November of 2017. She is a Colorado native growing up in the Denver suburbs and frequenting the Summit County area. She has a bachelor's degree in Art History from the University of Colorado Boulder. Before teaching at TLC she taught 3-6 year olds skiing at Keystone for 10 years. This is her 5th school year in Acorns and holds a level 3 teaching credential. In her free time she loves to be outdoors whether its skiing, hiking, biking, tending her garden or walking her cat.
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Melissa Miersch - Acorns Mentor Teacher
Ms. Ashley started working at TLC in spring of 2014. Ashley is from Goodrich, Michigan. She studied elementary education and has a license in cosmetology as well. During her time in Colorado she has studied Early childhood education at Colorado Mountain College. She is lead teacher qualified and strives to some day be a director. She has worked as a teacher in the toddler wing for many years before moving to the preschool classroom in 2020. Ashley strongly values the relationships she makes with teachers, parents and children.
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Ashley DeGrouchy - Big Grove Mentor Teacher
Ms. Sophia joined the TLC family in May 2022. She has lived in Colorado her whole life, living in Sterling while earning her associates degree. Then moved to Gunnison to earn her bachelor’s degree in sociology and psychology. She has spent her time here in the preschool wing, enjoying both Big and Little Grove, but found a home in the Little Grove classroom. She is so excited to spend more time here growing and enjoying the journey with the children, hopefully for a long time!
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Sophia Privette - Pinecones Mentor Teacher
Miss Sydney joined the Timberline family in April 2021. She is a Colorado Native, who grew up in Grand Junction. Sydney attended Colorado Mesa University in her hometown, where she studied Musical Theatre and Music Education. During that time, Ms. Sydney participated in the Disney College Program, acting as a ‘Fairy Godmother in Training’ as well as a Jungle Cruise Skipper. She fell in love working with families and children around the magic of Disney, and when returning to Colorado, began her studies in STEM & Early Childhood Education. Most of her time at TLC has been spent in the toddler and preschool classrooms, and she is so excited to continue to grow with these families!
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Sydney Elliott - Little Grove Mentor Teacher
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About Timberline:
We are a school for young children from ages 6 weeks to 6 years. Our approach is Reggio Emilia inspired. The following principles guide our approach and curriculum: The child is an active, strong, competent collaborator in the evolution of their learning. The teacher is a guide, rather than an instructor, who observes, questions, researches, documents, reflects, and interprets. The classroom is a teacher unto itself! The relationships that develop between the children, their families, and the teachers create opportunity for growth, reflection, and support. Long-term projects are at the core of our program, using the children’s interests, and the teacher’s observations, as the guide.
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