Meet The Team
Administration
Aparna Bagdi, PhD
Director of School
Aparna describes herself as a “creative and enthusiastic individual driven by the aspiration of lifelong growth and learning”. Many of her professional experiences have taken the shape of a teacher, trainer, instructor, and facilitator. But what she really likes to do is work with people, engage in new opportunities for personal and professional growth, and learn.
Aparna holds a doctorate in Child and Family Studies, specializing in child development and early childhood education. She is a certified Infant-Toddler Montessori Directress and an experienced yoga teacher for children. Aparna also holds certifications in Infant Massage instruction. As the lead toddler teacher at CACC Montessori School since 2018, she prioritizes building strong relationships with children, families, and fellow teachers.
When she has the time, Aparna enjoys listening to music, reading, cooking (and eating), and traveling. She has lived in Delaware with her husband and two children for over twenty years. Both her children are CACC Montessori School alumni and have enjoyed the benefits of a high-quality Montessori education. With her son at The Ohio State University and her daughter in Cab Calloway High School, Aparna is now focusing on her new baby – a gray tabby cat named Tofu!
Kristin Miller
Administrative Assistant
Kristin is originally from Newark, Ohio. Her academic career started in early childhood education at The Ohio State University while she worked at a local Montessori school. She ended up taking Business Management courses so that she could assist with the family business. Since then, Kristin worked for a major corporate IT company for several years until her son was born. While her son, Michael obtained a first-class education at CACC Montessori School, Kristin herself was intrigued and so she started volunteering and then working in different classrooms.
This will be Kristin’s 18th year at CACC. She has worked in both the Toddler and Pre- primary classrooms and has run summer camp, after-school and school closure care for several years. Kristin is passionate about providing a safe, fun learning environment for all children. Seeing students smile and constantly learn new things makes her happy. Now Kristin is putting her previous administrative experience and knowledge of children to use in her role as the Administrative Assistant at CACC Montessori school.
Teachers
Christy Hofmanner
Lead Teacher, Pre-Primary
Christy Hofmanner has been a lead Montessori teacher here at CACC for 21 years! Along with her Montessori training, Christy has a Masters degree in Elementary Education from Widener University. She enjoys film, traveling, and spending time with her teenage son. Christy’s dedication to education and her diverse interests contribute to her well-rounded approach to teaching and her ability to connect with students on multiple levels.
Danielle Eckrich
Lead Teacher, Pre-Primary
Danielle has a BA degree in Sociology from Queens College, NY and completed her Montessori Teacher certification at the Montessori Institute of Teacher Education in Delaware. After many years in the corporate world, she chose to go in a different direction and joined the CACC Montessori School in 2006. In her spare time, Danielle enjoys spending time with her family, hiking and kayaking.
Soni Saha
Lead Teacher, Older Toddler
Ms. Soni is incredibly excited to begin her 7th year at CACC Montessori School as the Lead Teacher in the Older Toddler classroom. Her primary commitment is to foster high-quality, nurturing, and respectful relationships between students and their families. Soni’s son is a graduate of CACC Montessori School. Along with her family, Soni likes traveling to new places and she especially enjoys cooking food from various cuisines.
Jennifer Lex Wojnar
Lead Teacher, Young Toddler
Jen has been at CACC Montessori School since 2016. While she started as our art instructor, over the years Jen’s role has evolved as she worked as a long-term sub, our before and after school teacher, and now as our Young Toddler teacher. Young children seem to be drawn to Jen’s warmth and obvious delight in the little ones. Outside of her role as an educator, Jen and her husband embrace a vibrant household, complete with a son, a daughter, two cats, six chickens, a snake, anda a bearded dragon.
Indermeet Kaur Tethi
Lead Teacher, Infant
Ms. Indermeet is no stranger to the infant classroom, having previously worked at the International Montessori School and Hockessin Montessori School for a few years. A law graduate from India, Indermeet found that her true calling is working with children, especially babies. She claims that she understands infants better than she understands some adults! And the infants are drawn to her pleasant demeanor and warmth as well. Outside the classroom, Indermeet’s hobbies include baking and doing arts and crafts.
Paula Dohl
Lead Teacher – After School
Paula has spent the bulk of her career caring for and teaching children from toddlers to 1st graders. She has a BA in Education from Glassboro State College (now, Rowan University). Ms. Paula worked at Caravel Academy before moving to Maryland, where she taught Kindergarten and First grade in the Kent County Public School system for 23 years. Ms. Paula enjoys reading, needlepoint, and watching Netflix.
Assistants
Beth Zimmerman
Assistant Teacher
Beth has been a member of the CACC Montessori team for over twenty years. A Delaware native, she holds a degree from the University of Delaware and initially taught secondary English and special education. Beth discovered her passion for working with younger children early in her career and has been dedicated to our school ever since. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her husband, son, and three beloved “foster fail” dogs.
Kim Donovan
Assistant Teacher
Kim has been working with children for over 17 years and she says she has loved every minute of it! The things children say and do never fails to bring a smile to her face. Kim considers teaching young children as an extension of being a parent. A native Delawarean, Kim enjoys spending time with her adult son, playing with her dogs, running and walking in the great outdoors.
Sudha Mandapati
Assistant Teacher
Christine Van Cleaf
Assistant Teacher
Ms. Christine holds a bachelor’s degree in English Writing and Education from the College of Staten Island, CUNY, New York. With nearly 30 years of experience in education, she is a fervent advocate for the underdog and has a deep passion for teaching reading and writing.
Miguel Zuniga-Bedolla
Intern – University of Delaware
Miguel, our assistant teacher intern, has been with us for two years. He is a senior at the University of Delaware, majoring in Economics with a keen interest in teaching. Outside of the classroom, Miguel enjoys collecting records, listening to music, and going to the gym.
Girija Parmeswaran
Assistant Teacher
Ms. Girija has been with CACC Montessori for the past year and loves working with children. Originally from India, Girija has lived in the US for more than 50 years. She has worked in painting design as well as retail and banking and was a longtime volunteer at Christiana Hospital. After retirement, Girija realized that she was not ready to retire after all and has since joined our after-school program. Girija is the proud grandmother to three grandchildren.
Iryna Plysiuk
Assistant Teacher
Iryna came to the United States from Ukraine just a few months ago. She was in medical school in Ukraine but had to leave suddenly due to conflicts in her native country. While studying, she worked as a nanny and also took care of her baby brother (from infancy until she left Ukraine), almost all by herself. Her brother is now 6 years old. Ms. Iryna has a lot of daily life experience with young children and enjoys taking care of them.
Lana Ambanwela
Assistant Teacher
Siva Narendra
Assistant Teacher
Nisha Jain
Assistant Teacher
Ms. Nisha was born in India and has lived in 4 different countries before moving to Delaware with her husband and two daughters. She has an engineering degree from India. Nisha’s hobbies include and love reading and cooking. Nisha enjoys the challenge and rewards of working with toddlers and is currently in her second year at CACC Montessori School.