Staff Qualifications and Training

All staff at The Nest have:

  • Infant/child first aid and CPR card
  • Health and Safety training
  • Safe Sleep training
  • Food handler’s card
  • Enrollment in Oregon’s background registry
  • A minimum of 30 hours of infant/toddler specific training

All staff are required to complete a minimum of 15 hours of training annually in a variety of Oregon’s core knowledge categories, but we are passionate about continued learning, and usually far exceed that number.

Savannah (she/her) is a teacher in odd-numbered cohorts, as well as the owner and manager here at The Nest. She has worked with young children most of her life, including two years at Busy Bee Preschool and several years as a nanny for infants and toddlers. She felt a strong kinship with Magda Gerber’s ideas the first time she read Dear Parent, and did an extensive RIE training in the fall of 2013.

In her spare time she likes to cook, sew, listen to too many podcasts, write trivia, and read speculative fiction and poetry.

Savannah grew up in a small town here in Oregon and graduated from Reed College with a degree in English, before realizing that she really wanted to spend her life working with young children. Her favorite book in middle school was Baby Island by Carol Ryrie Brink, in which two girls get happily stranded on a desert island with four toddlers, so she probably should have known all along!

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Emily (she/her) is a teacher in odd-numbered cohorts. She is a native Portlander, dog lover, and a huge Blazer fan! She lives in NE Portland with her husband Zo and their cat and wiener dog. She loves to garden and read, and she tends our school gardens (and hummingbirds!). Her favorite books are The Song of Ice and Fire series (aka Game of Thrones) by George R.R. Martin.

Em has been working in the field, with infants and toddlers, for more than 10 years, and has been at The Nest since 2014. She studied Early Childhood Education and Family Studies at Portland Community College and earned her Certificate there.

Her education and approach to caregiving is based on Magda Gerber’s RIE philosophy. She believes in building trust, forming relationships, healthy attachment, and respecting every child as an individual.

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Louise (she/her) is a teacher in odd-numbered cohorts. Born and raised in North Wales, Louise has dedicated her life to working with children and families.

Louise lives in SE Portland with her husband Jeff and her cat Misty. Never bored, she brings joy to her days through her many hobbies, some of which include crocheting, cooking, CriCuting, exploring new worlds through reading, and tending to her plot in her community garden – just to name a few!

Louise has been working in the field for more than 30 years and has always been passionate in expanding her knowledge. This love of learning has led her down many paths, from traveling around the globe as the nanny for 90s rock n’ roll legends R.E.M., to training as a postpartum doula.

Introduced to Montessori 20 years ago, Louise became a Guide to infants and toddlers. She is also trained in infant massage and RIE and brings this experience, along with her values of empathy and respect, to work with her every day at The Nest.

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Maya (she/her) is a teacher in odd numbered cohorts. Originally from Texas, Maya moved to Portland in 2021 and has been exploring ever since. A lover of all music, Maya enjoys attending all sorts of concerts and festivals. She fills her days with finding parks and local hikes to go on with her black lab Sprout.

Maya has always had a strong connection with children and their youthful spirit and excitement for life. She recently found her passion working with children and is continuing to learn and grow in the field. She found her home as a teacher at The Nest after working at a daycare and as a babysitter. 

One of Maya’a favorite parts of working with kids is watching them navigate through the curiosities of life and grow along the way. She enjoys sharing her love of nature and taking the time to appreciate the small beauties in life. 

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Dea (they/them) is the lead teacher in even-numbered cohorts. Dea has been working with children and families since 2011. Dea graduated in 2016 from Southern Oregon University with a bachelors in early childhood development. Throughout college Dea focused on infant and toddler development.

Dea believes in the power of relationships, respect and natural consequences when working with young children. When not raising the next generation Dea is usually found knitting, cuddling with their dog Dozer or eating too much granola.

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Vern (she/him) is a teacher in even-numbered cohorts and discovered her love for early childhood education just out of high school. After working at a preschool for several months, she was given the opportunity to apply to The Nest in June of 2017 and instantly fell in love with all things baby, toddler, and RIE. She learned from the best (aka Savannah and the other teachers) and believes in using gentle but firm boundaries to give kids the structure to succeed and the freedom to explore.

Her favorite part of the job is witnessing the intense change and growth the youngest humans go through in their time here and loving them through it all. She also believes mental health is key when it comes to raising children, and it is vital as a caregiver to understand your own mental health so that you can be prepared to give children the support they need with their own turbulent emotions.

When not raising littles, Veronica can be found crocheting, doing yoga, singing along to music of all genres and tending to her houseplants.

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Lonnie (they/he) is a teacher in even-numbered cohorts. They have worked with young children for their entire adult life in a variety of contexts, from science museums to summer camps, and now here at The Nest. Graduating from Reed College in 2020 with a degree in Psychology, Lonnie is particularly interested in how children interact with and are influenced by their environment. They believe all kids bring unique, valuable perspectives to everyday life, and are able to thrive through care and connection. 

While he was born and raised in a suburb just outside of Seattle, Lonnie now lives in SE Portland with his two cats, Worm and Wren. He can often be found sipping coffee and reading, biking around town, or catching a movie at the Hollywood Theatre with friends. Lonnie plans to forever maintain his appreciation of the quiet moments in life (despite being an extrovert with a loud voice) and the power of authenticity (especially as a queer educator). 

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Bethany (she/they) is so excited to join The Nest in Cohort 12!

She began working in early childhood education at a Montessori preschool, in the toddler classroom, in 2017.  Since then, she has assisted in several play-based schools.  As the eldest child of three, however, she has been in childcare her whole life!  From babysitting, to counseling summer day camp, Bethany has worked with age groups from babies-13 years old. 

She holds a BA in Theatre Performance, and is an active member of the local performance community.  She loves to sing, dance, cook, crochet and craft.  If she had spare time between projects, she would spend it adventuring outdoors somewhere, or at home with her wife and two puppies, Sushi and Spam.

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Cameron (they/them)  is a teacher in even-numbered cohorts. They have worked with children for over ten years, in many different avenues. They started working at a play-based children’s center in 2022 and have fully adapted to the play-based philosophy.  Cam grew up in a small town in Eastern Oregon, then went to Western Oregon University. After a long hiatus from school they graduated with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies with focus in psychology and health.

Cam recently moved to the Portland area with their partner and their dog, Goose.. In their spare time they like to go to the movies, walk their dog, and read queer fiction books. They are very excited to be a part of this community!