Our 2s Teacher

Bailey Zurita  joined CHT last year as a full time teacher in our two’s classroom.  She has over seven years experience working in early childhood.  Bailey graduated in 2017 from Albertus Magnus College with a B.A. in psychology and a concentration in child development.  Bailey is also the Director of the Children’s Ministry for Christ & Holy Trinity Church.  She loves spending her free time with family, most importantly her husband Kevin and 18 month old son Lorenzo.  

“Let all you do be done with love” 1 Corinthians 16:14

Maia Kloepfer joined CHT two years ago as our Special Education Consultant and then as a teacher in the Caterpillar Class last year. Maia holds a dual certification in Elementary/Special Education from Providence College as well as her Master’s Degree in Literacy. She has over 20 years of working as  a Special Education/Applied Behavior Analysis therapist for various early intervention agencies with children birth-3 years old diagnosed on the autism spectrum and just recently started her own practice Above and Beyond Early Intervention. Maia lives with her husband Chris and their two sons, Robert (13) and C.J (11) and their Golden retriever Tessa in Fairfield. In her spare time, she is often found on the sidelines at lacrosse or soccer games or freezing in a hockey rink. She also loves working out, interior design, and working on her hand knit blanket business.

"There is always more to discover."- Winnie the Pooh

Hilary Cummings started as a substitute teacher at CHT in 2018 and taught in the 2s for three years. This will be her third year teaching in the 3s. Hilary earned her Education Specialist Degree at the University of Colorado Denver and worked as a School Psychologist for six years at the elementary school level. She also worked for Child Find in Colorado, an organization focused on connecting children age birth to 5 with community resources. 

Hilary lives with her husband, two boys and dog Lulu here in Westport. In her free time she loves being at the beach with her kids, exercising and cooking with her husband.  

"Every child can learn, just not in the same way." - George Evans

Lori Murray has been a teacher at CHT since 2016. She has taught in both our Twos classrooms and Threes classrooms. She has also taught our ones program, Small Blessings, for the last two years.  Prior to CHT,  Lori spent 10 years teaching for another preschool in Westport as a Twos teacher. Lori has a degree in Psychology from Southern Connecticut State University with a concentration in Early Childhood Education. Lori lives in Trumbull with her husband Kevin and their 2 children Kylee and KJ. She enjoys outdoor running, riding her Peloton and spending time with her family.  

"Teachers who love teaching teach children to love learning." - Anonymous

Sandy Farber is starting her fourth year at the preschool, having taught in both the 2s and 3s.  Prior to her time at CHT, she spent many years as a Threes teacher in a preschool in Fairfield. She truly believes 3s is her sweet spot! She also has experience as Paraprofessional in the public school system. Sandy and her husband live in Fairfield with their two daughters and their dog Boomer. Her favorite place is the beach. She also enjoys going for walks, working out and spending time with her family and friends.

"Intelligence plus character - that is the true goal of education."  - MLK Jr.

Liana Borges was born in Connecticut, grew up in Portugal and returned to the U.S. as a young adult. She joined CHT last year as a teacher in the Sky class and is very excited to be joining Bailey in the Twos this coming year. Prior to CHT she spent the last eight years teaching at another preschool in town.
Her dream of working in the field of Early Childhood Education is evident as she dedicates herself to her class.
in her free time she enjoys spending time with her family, volunteering, buying collectible items and watching movies.

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."              -Benjamin Franklin 

Jennifer Cordella joined us at CHT in 2021 in the Threes and is very excited to be part of the Fours team this year in the Sun Class. Before joining us at CHT, Jennifer worked as a Speech Language Pathologist in Merrick, NY.  She has a BS and MS in Speech Language Pathology and graduated from Towson University and Loyola in Maryland.  Jennifer and her husband Rick live in Westport with their 5 children ranging from ages 7 to 18. Her two youngest are CHT Alumni. In her spare time, Jen likes to read, cook, ride her peloton, as well as, runs a charcuterie business.

"Little hands
The world is yours
Hold it close with open arms
Little feet
With miles ahead
Take it slow, see it all. take it in."

Amber McLean joined us in 2022 where she subbed across all classrooms throughout the year. She is now a full-time teacher here at CHT. She has found a real passion and joy in watching the students here thrive and grow as they discover new skills or uncover new challenges. Whether the children are diving into new topics sparked by their own curiosity or simply lightening up as their minds awaken, there's something magical about watching children learn. Amber holds a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing, as her previous career was in Brand Marketing. For the last 10 years, Amber has lived in town with her husband Michael (Mike) and two children, son Callum (18) and daughter, Keira (17). She has a Cavapoo named Freckles, who is known to be the favorite in her household. In her free time, she enjoys running outdoors, taking Orange Theory fitness classes, traveling with her family, and dining out—because any night off from cooking is a great one.

"...a willingness to question all our own abilities, your knowledge, to become humble. Only then will you be able to listen to the child, to set off on a common search to educate each other together."  -Loris Malaguzzi

Janet Duffield is in her fourth year of teaching here at CHT. Janet loves the Emilia Reggio style of teaching so it was a no brainer for her to send her two kids to CHT and then start subbing here when the school needed her help. She is so thankful to have amazing teachers at CHT to learn from, and her hands-on experience has allowed her to really understand the  craft of play-based learning principles.  In her previous life, she used her MBA in the business world running multi million-dollar advertising projects in Connecticut, New York and Los Angeles. Living in Santa Monica for over 13 years, she met her husband John and had Emmerson (Emme 10, 4th grade) then Finn (8, 2nd grade) without any family in LA. They decided to move back to where she grew up to be close to  family. John, her husband, is Australian so they travel often to Australia to see that side of their  family. They have two rescue dogs that they absolutely adore and currently live in Southport.

Althea Heisler has been teaching since 2004; first in Boston where she grew up and then in NYC before moving to Westport. She has a Masters Degree in Education from UMASS Boston. Her focus was on early childhood and special education.  This is her third year teaching at CHT in the 4’s. She is really fond of the Reggio Emilia Approach and believes this age group is spectacular.
"Fostering independence, early literacy, and
collaborating with families are areas that I am really passionate about."
Althea lives in town with her husband Ben and their two daughters Esmé (13) and Emery (11) and an English Mastiff named Mush. In her free time she loves to ski, go to the gym, take family walks with her dog, travel to new places, spend time at her home in VT and watch her kids ski race at Okemo.
"Let the child be the scriptwriter, the director and the actor in their own
-Magda Gerber

Melinda Bell began teaching at CHT in 2003. Melinda is currently the Sun Class teacher.  Prior to joining CHT Preschool, Melinda worked in the Three's and Four's program at the Child Care Learning Center in Stamford, CT, and taught Pre-K to 8th Grade for 12 years at the Westchester Area S.D.A. School in New Rochelle, NY. Melinda's teaching experience spans over 30 years. She received her B.A. degree in Secondary Education from Queens College and her CDA from Norwalk Community College. She is fluent in Spanish and enjoys reading, traveling and gardening. Melinda is married and has two grown children.
"Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it."    Prov. 22:6 NIV

Maria Rosa-Rockoff  joined our C&HT staff as one of our Star class teachers in 2015. Maria has worked in the field of Early Childhood Education in Fairfield County for 26 years.  She holds an A.S. degree in Early Childhood Education from Naugatuck Valley College, and attended UCONN Stamford working towards a B.A. degree in Human Services with a focus on Women's Studies.  She has worked in the field of domestic violence for 14 years in Fairfield County.

Maria and her husband Paul live in Easton.  She has two children and three grandchildren that she loves spending time with any chance she gets.  In her spare time one can always find her running or training in the woods, playing racquetball with friends, attending/teaching a yoga class, or just playing outside in nature immersed in all the elements.                                                          

"We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing."                                  -George Bernard Shaw