Donna Spear
Director

Ms. Donna is our Preschool Director.  She has been passionately working in the early childhood field for almost 30 years.  She loves the relationships that are formed with each family, the staff, the church members, and, of course, the children.  She was born and raised in New Jersey, but moved to Virginia 37 years ago with her Navy husband.  After his retirement, they decided to call Virginia Beach home for their son, rescue dog and the sweetest cat ever.  Ms. Donna enjoys reading, gardening and watching her New York Yankees.

Kenda Morris
Assistant Director

If you’ve called our school, had a tour, or paid tuition, you know Ms. Kenda!  Ms. Kenda has been with CCPA for 13 years now and is basically the piece that keeps us all running smoothly.  She’s from Duncan OK, where she earned her Associate’s degree in Secretarial Administration.  She loves that her position lets her get to interact with both the preschoolers and their families.  In her spare time, she enjoys reading, crafting, and spending time with her family.

Julie Riegle
Fine Arts Teacher

Ms. Julie is our Fine Arts teacher.  She first experienced CCPA as a parent, and then joined 15 years ago as a music teacher.  As we have moved toward a Reggio-inspired school, Ms. Julie has added “Fine Arts Teacher” to her resume.  Ms. Julie is originally from Lubbock, TX, and earned her BSEd degree from Texas Tech University.  Upon moving to the Virginia Beach area, she became a kindergarten teacher with Virginia Beach City Public Schools.  After taking a break from teaching to raise her two youngest children for a few years, she enrolled them at CCPA, and joined the staff shortly thereafter.

About her job, Ms. Julie says, “I love that I get to work with all of the children at CCPA.  Their enthusiasm is amazing and fills me up every day.  I love my job and feel I have the best job in the school!”  Ms. Julie also loves spending time with her family at the beach and trying new restaurants.  In addition, she enjoys shopping thrift stores, flea markets, and antique stores to find treasures she can turn into projects.

Two Year Olds

Two, Three and Five Day Classroom

Kaitlyn Simmons
Two Year Old Lead Teacher

Tracey Boyett
Two Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Tracey attended Kempsville High School in Virginia Beach and graduated in 1989.  She began working in a Daycare Center locally right after high school. She has been working with children now for over 30 years. She has worked in Family Daycare’s, Private Daycare Centers, and as a Nanny.

She was born and raised right here in Virginia Beach where she lives with her husband of over 25 years,  She loves to travel and spend time with her families here in Virginia and Texas. She also loves to read, cook and fish.

Mckenzie Knutson
Two Year Old Assistant Teacher (Tuesday/Thursday)

Brett Searls
Two Year Old Assistant Teacher (Monday, Wednesday, Friday)

Three Year Olds

Five Day Classroom

Mellissa Altemara
Three Year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Melissa is from Pittsburgh, PA but has lived in Virginia Beach for the last 23 years.  She has earned her Associate’s degree from TCC this past fall, and we are thrilled for her!  She started out as an assistant in the 2 year old room for two years, then moved into a lead position with 3 year olds four years ago.  Her favorite part of teaching is developing relationships with the families and watching the kids develop and grow over the school year.  Ms. Melissa says, “It’s amazing how much they change in nine months!”  In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her family, camping, and scrapbooking.

Christy Straub
Three Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Christy is a mother of three and originally from Murrieta, California.  She began at CCPA as a preschool parent.  All three of her children attended and that where she fell in love with the school and its staff.  Her favorite part of working with children is talking with them and hearing what they think about the world around them.  She also enjoys reading, going to the beach and spending time with her family.

Three Day Classroom

Lindsay Lane
Three Year Co-Lead Teacher

Ms. Lindsay has both her Bachelors degree in Communication with a Minor in Spanish and her Masters degree in Elementary Education from George Mason University.  She taught elementary school in Fairfax County, Virginia for seven years before having children of her own and moving to Virginia Beach.  She and her wonderful husband, Chris, have three children.  Not only is she a teacher at CCPA, but this is her sixth year as a CCPA parent. 

In her spare time, she loves working and volunteering with various children ministry programs.  She also absolutely loves living in Virginia Beach and trying to get in as much beach time as possible!  Her other passions include family time, reading, being outdoors, and running.

Kaitlin Gibson
Three Year Old Co-Lead Teacher

Ms. Gibson has a Bachelors degree in Elementary Education from Lynchburg University.  She is happily married to her husband of 10 years. Together they share three young children. Their first two children both attended CCPA and her third child will begin his first year at our school this Fall. 

Before becoming a mother, she was a full time 2nd grade teacher in the Suffolk Public School System. She took time off to focus on being a mom to her kids, but always missed teaching. She is so excited to be back in the classroom working with you and your sweet children.

Two Day and Three Day Classroom

Kim DeWitt
Three Year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Kim is originally from Plainfield, IL.  After serving in the Navy as a Hospital Corpsman, she returned home and earned her associates from Joliet Junior College and began pursuing her Bachelors degree.  In 2006, she and her family moved to Virginia Beach.  She has been a Preschool Teacher for over 8 years and also taught in a Spanish Immersion classroom.  When not at school, her family keeps her busy with Band, Girl Scouts and finding different adventures.

Meghan Morris
Three Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Meghan has an Associate's degree in Liberal Arts, a Bachelor's degree in English and is currently working on her Master's of Arts degree in Humanities.  She has also spent many years working with children as a babysitter, mothers helper, and childcare assistant.  

She was born in Millington, Tennessee, but has lived in Virginia Beach for most of her life and considers it her hometown. When not at school, she enjoys spending time with her friends and family, volunteering; making crafts, practicing yoga, and cuddling with her cat, Margie!

Four Year Olds

Five Day Classroom

Jen Kerstiens
Four Year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Jen grew up in Ann Arbor Michigan and got her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Indiana University.  She has completed several hours toward a Master’s degree from Mississippi State University as well.  Ms. Jen loves to watch her students learn and to experience the learning process with them.  She enjoys spending time with family and friends, watching CNU women’s soccer, traveling, and reading.

Anne Scalzi
Four Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Anne hails from Linthicum, Maryland.  She received a Bachelor’s of Science in Human Nutrition and Foods.  She is a registered dietician and is currently working on her certification for Early Childhood Education at TCC.  Anne’s favorite part of her job is “working alongside children, talking with them, connecting with them, and seeing the ‘aha’ moments.”  In her off time, Anne loves to focus on her family.

Five Day Classroom

Mary Markland
Four-year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Mary is from Norfolk, Virginia and has lived in Virginia Beach for 25 years. She attended Mary Washington University and received a BA in English Literature with a teaching certification in PK-4th grade. She has been teaching at CCPA since 2008.  She also has a wonderful husband and three great children.  Outside of school, she loves to travel.

Monica Levow
Four-year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Monica has her Masters Degree in Early Childhood Education and is entering her 10th year at CCPA.  She is married with three sweet kids, 2 cats and a dog. She loves spending time with her family and friends, shopping and going to the beach.  She excited to be part of the CCPA family and have fun with the kids!

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Three Day Classroom

Stacey O'Connor
Four Year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Stacey is in her 15th year teaching 4-year- olds at CCPA. She is originally from Massachusetts and received her Bachelors in Psychology from Northeastern University in Boston. The Navy brought her to Virginia Beach almost 25 years ago and it’s now her home!

She loves CCPA because of the wonderful teachers she gets to work with and all the children and families she gets to meet each year. Her favorite part of teaching is seeing the look of excitement on a child’s face when they learn something new or master a task they have been working on. When she is not teaching, she loves to spend time with her family and friends at the beach, reading, traveling and watching her favorite sports teams.

Caroline Hamilton
Four Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Caroline was born and raised in Virginia Beach, Virginia.  She received her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts with emphasis in Graphic Design from Virginia Commonwealth University.  While working in design, she met and married her Army husband.  They and their two children have lived all over the United States from Seattle, the Midwest, Northern Virginia, and back to Virginia Beach. 

Ms. Caroline began at CCPA, as a preschool parent for two years and then joined us as a staff member in the Twos and now the Fours.  Ms. Caroline loves working with our CCPA family, but most of all she cherishes her time with the children and all their sweet smiles, funny observations and getting messy with Art.  In her spare time, Ms. Caroline enjoys tennis, bike riding, the beach, spending time with her family and walking her big clumsy black Labrador, Finn.

Two and Three Day Classroom

Jenn Kubica
Four Year Old Lead Teacher

Ms. Jenn is in her 13th year of teaching at CCPA.  During this time, she has brought her creative energy to many classrooms.  Currently, she teaches one of our 4-year old classes.  Ms. Jenn is a dynamic teacher who brings a lot of fun and creative activities to the children.  She especially likes to do amazing science experiments in the classroom!  Ms. Jenn is married and has two beautiful daughters and three dogs who keep her very busy.

Brigette Baldwin
Four Year Old Assistant Teacher

Ms. Baldwin has a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Southern Mississippi, where she majored in Theatre and Dance.  After college, she worked for Walt Disney World as a
dancer/performer for several years before moving to VA Beach. She was a pre-k teacher at VBUMC for 5 years before becoming a substitute teacher for Virginia Beach City Public
Schools, where she has worked for the past 7 years.

She is originally from New Orleans, but has lived in VA Beach for the past 24 years. Her husband is a retired Navy SEAL and they have a daughter and a son, who both attend JMU, and 2 cats named Lucy and Raven. In her spare time, she can be found choreographing musicals and plays for the Kellam High School Fine Arts Department.

Extended Preschool Care

Donna Newman
Extended Care Program Supervisor 

Ms. Donna joined the CCPA staff in 2013 as a teacher with our Extended Care program.  She was born in Biloxi, MS and moved frequently due to her father being in the Air Force.  She earned a degree in Special Education from Lynchburg College and continued, taking several post graduate classes as well.  Ms. Donna taught junior high/middle school special education classes for several years before joining us at CCPA.  

Ms. Donna’s favorite part of teaching is learning from her students.  When she’s not at school, she enjoys spending time with her family and her dog.  Ms. Donna is also an avid supporter of the American Cancer Society.

Mary Kinsella
Extended Care Preschool Teacher

Ms. Mary is currently enrolled in Tidewater Community College and will receive her associate degree in Early Childhood Education this year.  She is originally from New Jersey and moved to Virginia Beach eight years ago.  She has been with the CCPA family for two years and has learned so much. Her favorite part about teaching is listening to the children tell her about their day and how excited they get from learning something new.

When she is not at school, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends and volunteering for Beach Bags for Kids.  As well as, going to the beach, bike riding, swimming, and
anything outdoors.