LePort Montessori

A native of Orange County, California, Mrs. Wendy DeCosta began her career with LePort Montessori in 2013 as the Administrative Director for the Huntington Harbor campus, bringing a new level of excellence and service to our cherished families and staff. In 2015, Mrs. DeCosta took an opportunity to join the team at LePort Orchard Hills and serve as Administrative Director of this young and vibrant campus. With her expertise, professionalism, and warm, caring personality, Mrs. DeCosta is a true asset to the Orchard Hills students, families and staff.

Prior to joining LePort, Mrs. DeCosta operated her own successful, licensed, in-home family day care for 2 years, offering high quality, nurturing care for a number of wonderful children, including those with special needs. As any of the parents she has worked with will attest, Mrs. DeCosta’s caring warmth, compassion, and love for children is a true gift. This, coupled with her rich palette of business management and operational experience from the spa/salon and apparel industries, makes Mrs. DeCosta uniquely suited to foster the continued success and growth of our Orchard Hills campus and offer her wholehearted support to all LePort students and their families.

In her free time, Mrs. DeCosta enjoys spending time with her husband of 18 years and their two children, as well as camping, hiking, running, and spending long days at the beach.

Neda was born in Iran. She holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Psychology from Bahai Institute of Higher Education. She also received credit for the practicum course regarding children with learning disorders. She has worked as a teacher, counselor for youth and teenagers, and a university professor instructing courses such as Teaching Methods, Principles of Education, and Developmental Psychology. In the last five years of her stay in Iran, she had been working as an education director of a child development center. She also worked as a consultant and specialist to help children with learning disorders. Neda immigrated to the US with her husband and two children in 2013. She joined Leport Montessori schools in 2014 as an assistant teacher. In May 2017 she obtained her Montessori diploma for the age group of 2.5 to 6 years from the Montessori Institute of San Diego (MISD). Then she continued her work in Leport as a primary head teacher. Neda updated her knowledge for assisting children with special needs by participating in the Inclusive Education Course at MISD and received her certificate in the Summer of 2019. Shortly after that, she went to Italy to attend a Music Therapy course and obtained yet another certificate to enable her further in her career.
Neda found her job compatible with her innate passion for working with children and serving the society.

In her free time, Neda enjoys spending time with her family and doing various activities such as going for hikes and being in nature. Furthermore, she enjoys reading, playing the guitar, watching movies, and being actively involved in community services.

Ms. Inoka is a certified Montessori teacher with several years of full-time experience in Montessori programs. She has a love for children and a commitment to their continuing, holistic development. Ms. Inoka was inspired to become an educator when she discovered the beauty of Montessori philosophy. Ms. Inoka successfully completed her diploma in Montessori in 2011. She has taught in many Montessori settings, finding success in organizing and maintaining prepared environments for young children. Ms. Inoka strives to create an environment to help children become independent and guide them to be peaceful leaders in their communities. Ms. Inoka loves spending time with family and friends. She loves traveling around the world with them. In her leisure time, Ms. Inoka enjoys painting and crafting.

Karyn holds a Master of Arts degree in German from the University of Oregon, and has over 15 years of experience teaching in English as a Second Language and early childhood classrooms. She also served as Head of School at Montessori preschools in the Atlanta and Portland metropolitan areas for over a decade.

Karyn became intrigued by the Montessori method during her undergraduate studies in education. She maintains a deep interest for this unique approach due to its profound respect for each child’s individuality, careful nurturing of each child’s curiosity, and on-going encouragement allowing each child to reach his/her greatest potential. She joined LePort in 2014, and is thrilled to be taking part in the invaluable work being done to guide children’s learning and development from infancy all the way through middle school.

In her free time, Karyn enjoys spending time with family, movies, music, cooking, and exploring the gorgeous natural surroundings in Orange County.

Mrs. Greaux was first introduced to Maria Montessori’s method in college while assisting an AMI teacher in a lower elementary classroom. Throughout her college career, Mrs. Greaux continued to work as an assistant at both the primary and elementary levels. Inspired and curious she then became motivated to pursue her certification. Mrs. Greaux received her AMI Primary Diploma from the Montessori Education Center of Arizona in 1999. She also holds a B.S. in Speech and Language Pathology from Arizona State University.

Mrs. Greaux possesses a deep admiration and appreciation for the Montessori Method, believing that it is very fulfilling to help children develop, acquire knowledge, and build character.

Isabel Jacobs grew up in Los Angeles, California. From a young age, she knew she wanted to teach and incorporate music wherever she landed. She made a decision to obtain her Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Redlands. Shortly after, she learned about Maria Montessori and fell in love with the philosophy. Ms. Jacobs worked as a Lower Elementary guide and found that, while she loved the younger group of students, teaching Upper Elementary was her true calling. She then pursued her Association Montessori Internationale Montessori Elementary credential through Montessori Northwest. In her free time, Ms. Jacobs enjoys playing in string quartets, spending time with her family,
and cooking.

Ms. Emma earned her B.A. in Marketing from the University of Thailand, and received her primary diploma from MISD. She has worked with children from 3 to 6 years old for over a decade. Ms. Emma has traveled abroad throughout the Middle East and Southeast Asia, and volunteered at the United Nations Organization. She enjoys learning about different cultures and has studied many languages including French, Japanese, Turkish and Arabic, in addition to her native Farsi. Ms. Emma has a son and husband that make her life colorful, and she enjoys skydiving, biking, skiing and writing in her free time.

Masha is a passionate educator with a strong background in mathematics and economics. She holds a Master’s Degree in mathematics from Moscow State University and a Master’s of Arts in Economics from New Economic School in Moscow. While working as an IT and business analyst at Accenture, Masha discovered her true calling in education. Over the years, she has been involved in various teaching roles, including English instruction for adults and young children. Additionally, she has served as a math teacher and Montessori teacher in different Montessori schools in Ithaca, New York. Her dedication to the Montessori Method led her to earn Elementary Montessori credentials in 2019. Beyond the classroom, Masha is an active member of her community. She runs a math circle for local children and volunteers as a leader for a competitive math club. She also serves on the board of her children’s swim team. In her leisure time, Masha enjoys running and handwork hobbies, and is always eager to learn something new. Spending quality time with her three children is one of her greatest joys as they explore the world of knowledge together.

Ms. Jamie Kim earned her B.A. in Mathematics for Secondary Education from San Diego State University in 2007. She had taught students in middle schools and high schools for several years. While Ms. Kim was taking the teaching credential program to become a Mathematics teacher, she realized her love and passion for the young children. As she raised her children, she realized the importance of early childhood education. Ms. Kim learned about the Montessori method from a family member and was immediately interested. She researched more and more, and ultimately decided to pursue a career in Montessori education. She earned her AMI Assistants to Infancy Diploma and Primary Diploma from the Montessori Institute of San Diego. Ms. Kim joined LePort Schools in 2012 and has been working with the children from infancy to 6 years old as a head teacher. She lives with her husband and her three children in Orange County. Ms. Kim and her family enjoy spending time together indoors and outdoors which gives a variety of experiences and fun memories to her three children.

Mrs. Kolacinski was born and raised in Orange County. She received her B.A. degree from the University of California-Irvine in Psychology and Social Behavior. After working for a year for a sales and marketing company, she decided to go back to school to pursue her true passion of teaching. She went back to the University of California-Irvine and graduated with her M.A in Teaching, along with a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential. She later added a Single Subject Mathematics Credential.

Mrs. Kolacinski has taught Math 6, Pre-Algebra and Algebra 1 in San Diego County and Los Angeles County, she is ecstatic to have returned to her native Orange County! She is very excited to be working at LePort and truly believes in their teaching principles and approach. Mrs. Kolacinski hopes to create a love and excitement for learning in her students, by making learning meaningful, relevant and enjoyable!

Outside of the classroom, she enjoys traveling, trying new things and spending time with her husband and dog, Layla.

Vidya received her Bachelor of Science in Microbiology, Biochemistry, Food and Nutrition from Nagarjuna University in India. She previously worked as a Microbiologist prior to entering the field of education. She has been working in Montessori education since 2019.

Ms. Olivia Lacefield was born and raised in Southern California. Wanting to be a teacher from a young age, Ms. Olivia studied at Western Governors University and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education. Ms. Olivia has been working in Montessori settings since 2018. She is currently in the process of completing her certification in Lower and Upper Elementary Education at the Prepared Montessorian Institute. Ms. Olivia has over 10 years of experience educating children ages 0-12 years, most recently with a concentration in teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) students within the Montessori community. Outside of the classroom, Ms. Olivia loves art and has managed community art projects within Orange County, including mural painting and set design. In her free time, she enjoys reading at the beach, shopping for plants and snacks at Trader Joe’s, crafting, and studying American Sign Language.