Hollis Montessori School

Dedicated to authentic Montessori education, all Hollis Montessori teachers hold an AMI diploma — the same training standard Dr. Montessori herself set, and 80% of the teaching staff have advanced degrees.

Administration — Children’s House
Elementary — Junior High — Specialists

Kari Headington - Head of School

After nearly 40 years in Montessori education, 17 of them at Hollis Montessori, Kari still considers the children her greatest teachers. Their honesty, curiosity, and authenticity continue to inspire her every day.
She is passionate about dignity-centered work and values partnering with parents as they discover the depth—and occasional surprises—of the Montessori journey. Kari believes school should be a place where children, families, and staff all feel heard, valued, and at ease.
Montessori is both her career and her family story. Her two sons attended Montessori school from age three through ninth grade, graduating from Hollis Montessori's Junior High program. These days, she’s fully embracing her favorite role yet: grandma to four granddaughters and delighting in watching their independence and curiosity unfold.
Kari holds a B.S. degree in Special Education, an AMI Primary Diploma, a Whole School Leadership certificate and serves on the Board of Directors for the Montessori Schools of Massachusetts. Before finding her home here, she taught in Montessori communities in Minnesota, Texas, and Massachusetts. Kari is originally from North Dakota-where the skies stretch forever, the winters build character, and no matter where life takes her, it will always feel like home.

Carli Ford - Admissions director

Inspired by Dr. Montessori’s belief that “the child is both a hope and a promise for mankind,” (Education and Peace) Carli is passionate about guiding children to reach their full potential and fostering environments that support independence, curiosity, and growth.
She brings nearly 14 years of experience in Montessori education and leadership, including previous roles as a Co-Director and Assistant Head of School at other Montessori schools. Carli holds her Primary Montessori teaching certification, AMI Montessori Administrators Certification, and National Administrator’s Credential. She joined the HMS community in 2022. 
Carli and her husband reside in Hollis with their three children. She enjoys spending time outdoors, including gardening, running, and exploring new hiking trails with her family.

sarah shor - Director of business Operations

While getting her B.A. in History from Hampshire College, in Amherst, MA, Sarah learned how amazing it was for an educational institution to allow a student to follow their own interests, and to teach students how to learn as opposed to asking them to acquire a specific set of facts. This sparked a passion for student-centered learning that led her to an Ed.M. in Technology in Education from the Harvard University Graduate School of Education; to help found two charter schools in Manchester, Polaris Charter School, and Kreiva Academy; and to send her daughter to the Jr. High program at Hollis Montessori.
As she says to the HMS faculty, she has a completely different skill set than everyone else in the building. Sarah joined HMS in 2019, and enjoys the many hats she wears at the school, including Development, Finance, HR, IT, and Marketing—while appreciating from a distance those whose passion leads them to work directly with children. 
Sarah is lead singer for a basement band, and in winter, is a Cross Country Ski Instructor. She also creates things with paint, paper, colored pencils, rocks, wire, beads, and any other material that looks interesting.

Joanna Perron - Office Manager

Ever since she was in kindergarten, Joanna knew she would become a teacher!  Her kindergarten teacher’s soft and quiet manner and love of learning inspired her so much at the young age of 5.
Joanna joined the HMS community in December of 2024.  She has a BA in Psychology/Education from Mount Holyoke College and an M.S. Ed in Educational Leadership from Simmons College. Before joining the school, Joanna worked at the Hunt Community in Nashua as a Life Enrichment Assistant planning programs and activities for the residents.  Prior to that work, Joanna was an elementary teacher for children in grades 3-5 in Westford, MA and then moved into the role of Assistant Principal for two elementary schools (K-2, 3-5) - both in Westford, MA.  She lives in Amherst with her two daughters and enjoys reading, relaxing by the water and playing pickleball.

John Schulte - Facilities Manager

John’s focus at the school is to maintain, repair and improve the facilities so the Guides, Assistants and Office Staff can focus on the students and teaching. He enjoys the process of diagnosing, understanding and fixing each issue, as there is always something new requiring his attention.
John came to Hollis Montessori in 2021, to join his daughter, LE2 Guide Sarah Gilleeny, and his three grandchildren who attend the school. A true family affair!
When he is not at the school, he can be found putting his Horticulture Degree to good use by moving garden rocks for his wife Marsha, whose hobby is building rock walls. He also uses his MBA degree when he tries to balance their checkbook. He and Marsha also enjoy long rides in their convertible, and during the winter he ventures north to explore the snowmobile trails.
During his time at the school he has come to deeply appreciate the dedication of the staff who work with the children, and the benefits the students enjoy from the Montessori method, like independent thinking, caring and respect for others, and a sense of community and personal growth. He is grateful for the opportunity to play a role in providing an environment where that can take place.

Carla Carney - Children's House Teacher

What Carla loves most about working with young children is the chance to stay with them over multiple years. She enjoys watching each child grow in confidence, curiosity, and independence, and helping them feel comfortable and capable in the classroom.
Carla’s connection to Montessori is both personal and professional. She was a Montessori student herself and is now the parent of three daughters, one HMS graduate and two currently at the school. This perspective shapes the way she partners with families and supports each child’s experience.
Carla completed her Montessori teacher training at the Montessori Institute of Atlanta and holds a BA in organ performance from Agnes Scott College. She has been part of the HMS community since 2010.

Megan Lacasse - CHILDREN'S HOUSE Teacher

A Montessori child herself, Megan began teaching at the same school she attended in Marin County, California from ages 2-6. As a child, she was always eager to care for her younger cousins and friends, a passion she would follow through her educational journey. With her husband and daughter, Megan moved last year from Maui, HI to a quintessential cape in Amherst to begin her journey at Hollis Montessori. Embracing the cold and the New England climate, skiing, skating and hiking are among her family's favorite activities. 
Megan is a lifelong learner—a seed that was planted during her Montessori years. She graduated from UC San Diego with B.A. in Human Development, and acquired a M.S. in Child Development from UC Davis. She earned her AMI Assistance to Infancy (0-3) and Primary Diploma (3-6) from the Montessori Institute of San Diego. She has taught in Montessori classrooms for the past 16 years. Megan is certified in Parenting the Positive Discipline Way, the Orton-Gillingham approach, and holds an AMI Administrator's Certificate.

Jessica Enquist - Children’s House Assistant

Jess joined the HMS community as the CH1 assistant in 2024 after being a lead guide in a Toddler House classroom for two years at her former school. She is an expert at inspecting the many rocks and sticks the children have found on the playground and untangling the knots that mysteriously appear in the children’s embroidery floss. Jess loves to create a fun and cozy environment for the children to feel comfortable, safe, and ready to learn.
Outside of the classroom, you can typically find Jess reading a good book, crocheting, going on nature walks, or talking about her love of jumping spiders. She is fueled by silly jokes, a love of wanting to learn new things, and mostly caffeine. Jess is excited to be a part of this community and looks forward to many more adventures and discoveries!

Katherine Skinner - Children's House Assistant

Katie grew up in a Montessori home, with a mother who spent many years as a Children’s House teacher, and she herself attended Montessori as a child. Katie has been part of the Hollis Montessori community since the school opened in 2008, serving as a Children’s House assistant. 
Katie holds a BA in psychology from Saint Anselm College and is also a published children’s book author. Her book, Ada and the Moon, was released in November of 2025. Outside of the classroom, Katie enjoys writing, reading, gardening, and spending time with family. One of her favorite parts of the day is welcoming each child in the morning with a warm handshake or hug, helping them begin the day feeling seen and valued.

Zoe Castro - Lower Elementary Teacher

Zoe has deep roots in Montessori that began when she was four years old and attended the Montessori program at the local public school in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan. After receiving her Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature and a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education from the University of Michigan, she decided to return to Montessori so she could pair her love for teaching and learning with a philosophy that truly honors the whole child. 
Zoe moved to New England in 2008, and has been the Lead Guide in the Lower Elementary 1 community at HMS for 16 years. When she’s not sharing her love for learning and storytelling with the children, you can find her gardening, baking, quilting, and exploring nature with her Yellow Lab mix Henry.

Katie Brown - Lower Elementary Teacher

Katie brings a unique blend of scientific curiosity and musical appreciation to her work with children, having earned a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Conservation and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance before joining Hollis Montessori. 
She joined the school as an assistant in 2023 and quickly developed a deep admiration for the Montessori approach, completing her AMI Elementary training for guides at the Montessori Training Center Northeast in Hartford, Connecticut in 2026. She is passionate about nurturing a love of learning, fostering independence, and honoring the dignity and potential of every child. She values creating a peaceful, supportive environment where children feel respected, capable, and inspired to follow their interests while growing academically, socially, and emotionally.
Outside the classroom, Katie enjoys kayaking, hiking, and spending quality time with her family.

Sarah Gilleeny - Lower Elementary Teacher

When Sarah saw how much her two older children (then 3 and 4) loved attending Hollis Montessori, she decided to follow suit. When there wasn't room for her to enroll in the Children's House, she enrolled in the training program for elementary guides at Montessori Training Center Northeast in Hartford, CT instead. She began working at HMS in 2016 as an Elementary Assistant. She (and her then newborn) graduated from the training program in 2019, and she has been teaching in Lower Elementary ever since! Now her two older children are teenagers, one about to complete the Jr. High Program, and her "newborn" is an elementary student! 
Ten years later, she is still learning new things daily and getting excited about the big ideas her students bring to life. Her hobbies include cuddling up with a good book, crochet, gardening, chasing her chickens, and going for walks.
In her life before HMS, Sarah worked as a photographer. She got her MFA in photography in 2003 and ran her own wedding photography business. She moved from MA to NYC to Philadelphia before settling back in MA in 2013.

Ileana De La Rosa - Lower elementary Assistant

Born in New York but proudly “Dominicanized” in the Dominican Republic, Ileana De la Rosa has basically been powered by music, art, and creative chaos since childhood. While studying advertising, she somehow also found time to introduce tiny humans to the world of music—because apparently regular college stress wasn’t enough.
She then spent a few years working in accounting with her mom. Did she love spreadsheets and numbers? Absolutely not. Did it build character, patience? Definitely.
After returning to the United States, Ileana finally realized her true calling: working with children. She completed her Assistant Teacher training in Brooklyn and later earned her AMI Assistant Teacher certification, officially leveling up from “good with kids” to “Montessori superhero.”
Now, with 10 years of experience, Ileana genuinely believes working with children is the best job on earth, because kids will humble you, inspire you, outsmart you, and occasionally test your sanity—all before lunch. But for her, that daily challenge is exactly what makes the work so meaningful.
Ileana joined Hollis Montessori School in 2020 as a Lower Elementary assistant and returned after an 18-month break to welcome her twin boys into the world (because one baby clearly wasn’t enough excitement). Her middle son is a graduate of the HMS Jr. High program. She feels incredibly grateful to work alongside such amazing teachers and children, growing both professionally and emotionally every step of the way.

Shannon welsh - Upper Elementary Teacher

Shannon sometimes feels like she’s still eleven years old at heart, which is why she feels so at home as the Lead Guide in our Upper Elementary community with the 9-12 year olds! After attending art school at Syracuse University and earning a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Maine at Farmington, Shannon completed her AMI Montessori Elementary training and Master's in Education at Loyola University in Maryland. Montessori work in many forms (assistant, guide, AMI course assistant, and school administration) have taken Shannon all over the country, from Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon and spots in between. Since joining the HMS community in 2015, she’s felt at home here in New Hampshire with her husband, two children (both are students at HMS), and two rescue dogs. Shannon enjoys knitting, reading, hiking, and traveling with family.

Stevie Mock - Upper Elementary Teacher

Stevie Joined Hollis Montessori in 2026.

Andrew Jeans - Junior High Teacher

One of the questions Andrew is asked most often is, “What do you teach?” The honest answer is: it depends on the day.
He might be deep in a literary discussion with a small group of students, puzzling through a Euclidean proof, or facilitating a seminar on justice. Later, he could be cooking a meal, making candles, tending to honeybees and chickens, canoeing across Dunklee pond, or helping students bring a project to life with a pile of scrap wood and a good idea. The list never really ends.
At the center of all this is Andrew’s belief that his most important work isn’t tied to any single subject. It’s to help adolescents grow into capable, independent people who are curious about the world and confident in their place within it. He is especially drawn to the challenge (and joy) of reimagining what school can look like for 12–15-year-olds—and to building a community where each student feels not just included, but essential. His hope is that students arrive each day with a sense of ownership and belonging, able to say, “This is my school.”
Andrew joined the Hollis Montessori Junior High program in 2014. He holds an AMI 12–18 Diploma, a B.S. in Physical Science Education from Brigham Young University, and a J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law.
Outside of school, Andrew can often be found mountain biking, snowboarding, hiking, or planning his next trip with his family. His son is a graduate of the Junior High program, and his two daughters currently attend Hollis Montessori. 

Susan Holmes Glazier - Junior High Teacher

Susan grew up in a Montessori community in Lansing, MI. Years later, her former Head of School said “I think you should go check out the new Montessori adolescent work happening at Hershey Montessori Farm School in Ohio - I have a feeling you would be interested.” Susan went to visit, had dinner with David and Barbara Kahn; and met exuberant, hard-working, creative, thoughtful students and adults who were reimagining “school” for adolescents. It was what she had been dreaming about and hadn’t known it. 
Susan has worked at Montessori schools on the land for over 23 years: Hershey, Mountain Laurel in Virginia, a little start-up on the Chesapeake Bay, in Traverse City, MI, and now at Hollis Montessori since 2019 where she and her husband are raising their son. As a Montessori Guide, Susan has been Director, collaborator, founding guide, gardener, sheep farmer, writing coach, music teacher, player of speedball, paddler of canoes, teacher of Algebra, mom of an adolescent, AMI and NAMTA lecturer, and too many other “hats” to count. When not doing those things, Susan is making music, walking in the woods with her dog, gardening, making pottery, and doing other creative things. 
Susan has Montessori AMI adolescent (12-18) and elementary (6-12) diplomas, a B.S. and M.S. in Natural Resources from the University of Michigan and University of Vermont, and an M.Ed from Loyola University Maryland. She is an AMI/USA 12-18 Consultant and is working toward becoming an AMI Trainer. Susan is happy to be part of the Montessori revolution and appreciates getting to have both profound moments and opportunities to laugh with students every day.

Meesa Jeans - Junior High Teacher

An adventurer at heart, Meesa spent much of her childhood exploring the ravine behind her home in western Colorado and dreaming of visiting new places and cultures. During her college years, she spent a semester in the Dominican Republic and a year and a half volunteering in southern Brazil.  
After earning a B.S. in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University with minors in Spanish and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, Meesa decided to venture to the east coast. There, she taught at a dual language school for ten years and completed a Masters in Urban Education from Simmons University. Little did she know that her path would lead her to the Hollis Montessori Junior High program in 2014, where she draws from and expands her experiences with teaching languages, trip planning, cooking, outdoor adventures, music, creativity, curiosity about the world, and mentoring adolescents. 
She often wonders how she would explain a typical day in the Junior High to those who are unfamiliar with Montessori adolescent communities because there is such a depth and breadth of opportunities available. Meesa completed the introduction to Adolescence workshop with Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) and has attended and presented at Montessori Conferences in Prague, Bangkok, Wisconsin, and Massachusetts. Her children would agree that Hollis Montessori is their home away from home: two of her children have spent time with the Junior High since their infancy and the third is a recent graduate, having attended since the age of 3.

Andrea Seddon - Language Specialist

Andrea was drawn to Hollis Montessori after a classroom visit as an observer. She was mesmerized by the freedom and self-discipline she witnessed in those young students and could not picture her 3-year-old child in any other setting. 
Andrea has her Master's degree in Teaching from Simmons University and came to Hollis Montessori School 13 years ago after teaching French and Spanish in Newton and Carlisle, MA schools since 1994. 
In the years that she has taught at HMS, Andrea has taken numerous Montessori courses such as Bilingual Montessori and Foreign Language Learning in a Montessori 6-12 Classroom through AMI. Andrea is passionate about using Montessori principles to help her students develop competency in Spanish while witnessing their growth, love of learning, and wonder. 
In addition to teaching, Andrea often has a camera in hand and puts her photography skills to good use producing our school's yearbook. She says that the camera helps her to slow down and really see the magic in front of her.
Andrea is on the Hollis Agricultural Commission and when needed, speaks on behalf of the Hollis farmers. She has a deep reverence for our environment and its stewardship which makes working at HMS a pure joy as our property brings our students in direct contact with forests, lakes, and farms. Andrea's two daughters are both alumnae of HMS.

Hannah Mason - Floating Classroom Assistant

Hannah has worked with children of all ages, from caring for toddlers in a nursery to teaching environmental conservation to middle and high schoolers. She engaged in curriculum building for her son's correspondence school program in New Zealand, where she also learned about the Montessori philosophy. 
Hannah joined the Hollis Montessori Junior High program in 2023. She holds a B.A. in psychology from Bard College with a minor in cognitive science and received her AMI certificate in Adolescent orientation in the fall of 2024. Hannah was drawn to the independence and practical skills fostered by Montessori at the preschool level, and later inspired to see those same qualities develop even further in the Jr. High program at Hollis Montessori. She considers algebra to be her specialty, and helps students build confidence in mathematics.
Hannah currently lives in Hollis with her husband and son. She enjoys doing activities with her family such as arts and crafts, baking, and exploring nature. Her son attends Hollis Montessori.