teachers

Andrea Powell

Director & Lead Teacher of 2 Day and 3 Day Classes

Eight years ago Andrea realized her dream of opening a dynamic program for early learning. With the help of church leaders from Christ Lutheran Lower Saucon Church, School House Christian Preschool was founded and the doors opened wide! Her years at School House were preceded by four years of teaching at St. George's Christian Preschool in Hellertown. Prior to this she was a substitute teacher at The Children's School in Burlington, VT. Andrea has a BA from the University of Virginia in Political and Social Thought and an MS from the University of Maryland Baltimore County in Policy Sciences. She discovered her calling to be an early childhood educator while her own children were in preschool and began pursuing an Associate Degree in Early Childhood Education soon after arriving in Hellertown 11 years ago. Andrea completed this degree in the Fall of 2010 and plans to obtain a Masters in Early Childhood Education. Andrea is devoted to a holistic approach to early childhood education that recognizes all of the domains of childhood development; social and emotional, as well as physical and cognitive. Her goal is to give children the opportunity to learn the way God designed them to learn -- through play, exploration and interaction with others. She LOVES spending her mornings with the children at School House! Andrea is the mother of two terrific children. Her son is a Senior at Saucon Valley High School and her daughter is a Sophomore at Gettysburg College. She is married to Terry and in their spare time, they love to attend their kids' concerts, games and meets. They all love coming home to their puppies, Gracie and Cooper!

Debra Gross

Assistant Teacher of 2 Day and 3 Day Classes

Debbie Gross was raised in Palmer Township. She graduated from Easton Area High School in 1982. Her empathy and compassion for people led her to Shippensburg University where she earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Social Work. After graduating from college, she moved to Boston and worked in the Student Services department at Newbury College. When Debbie came back to the Lehigh Valley she became the Youth and Family Program Director for the Upper Bucks YMCA in Quakertown. Her responsibilities there included planning and executing the summer day camp, as well as offering a variety of enrichment programs to families in the community. The best thing about working at the YMCA was meeting her husband, Ed. Debbie and Ed were married in November of 1989, and have three wonderful children. Debbie has homeschooled her children for the last twelve years. She taught a Circle Time class for kindergarten through second graders at Fireside Academy, a homeschool co-op her family attended. Her two daughters, Eliza and Kiersten, are now attending Freedom High School. Her son, Isaac, is in sixth grade at East Hills Middle School. This change offered Debbie the wonderful opportunity to be a part of the School House team. Debbie was inspired by Andrea and her early education philosophy, and is extremely thankful for the opportunity to work with such amazing teachers, families, and children. Debbie’s favorite things to do are spend time with family and friends, read, and watch inspirational movies.

Amy Marker

Lead Teacher of 4 Day Class

Once her two children reached the appropriate age to attend school full time, Amy Marker realized it was time to return to her career love of working with young children! Having been born and raised in Bethlehem, Amy attended Moravian Academy for a solid fourteen years of education. She then continued on to study at Lehigh University, where she earned her Bachelor's degree in Arts & Science with a minor in Sociology. Amy's joy for children and passion for education drove her back to school to pursue a teaching certificate at Moravian College. After successfully completing the program, Amy accepted a teaching posotion back at Moravian Academy as a full day Kindergarten teaching assistant. In 1998, Amy married her husband Tom and rather quickly gave birth to their first born, Matthew. She was thrilled to be able to remain at home to raise her son, and in 2002 they were blessed to welcome their daughter Katie into the Marker family. After the thirteen wonderful years of being a stay-at-home mom, Amy is extremely excited to be a working mother. Amy is very grateful to have the opportunity to inspire those precious little minds once again!

Emily Doll

Lead Teacher of Friday Class and Kindergarten Extension Support Staff

This is Emily's 8th year at School House Christian Preschool! She started volunteering in the classrooms at the age of 12, and realized immediately that it was the place God was calling her to. Over the years, Emily has continued to volunteer in all of the classes, as well as serving as a substitute teacher. This will also be her second year teaching the Friday class, and she is very excited for this opportunity! Inspired in part by all the incredible experiences she has had at School House, Emily is now a senior at Moravian College, where she is majoring in Psychology and minoring in Education. She is particularly interested in language development during the early childhood years, so after graduating in Dec. 2011, Emily plans to pursue a PhD in Speech Pathology or Developmental Psychology. Currently, Emily is working on two fascinating research projects with her professors; one focusing on language acquisition in children with cochlear implants and the other focusing on bullying and victimization behaviors in public and private schools. When she's not studying or working, Emily tries to teach herself to play the guitar, practices American Sign Language, writes poetry, goes for long walks in the rain, wanders aimlessly through libraries, and drinks enormous amounts of coffee. She also loves teaching Sunday School at her church, where her 1st and 2nd graders continually remind her how beautiful God's love is and how many blessings He has given her.

Jill Schaffer

Kindergarten Extension Support Staff

Jill Schaffer joins the preschool staff this year with great enthusiasm. Her love of teaching began at the age of seven when she had the opportunity to instruct her stuffed animals all summer long with the leftover dittoes provided to her by her second grade teacher. Jill earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Juniata College in Early Childhood/Elementary Education. She has enjoyed teaching in a variety of settings including: nursery school, vacation Bible school, Sunday school, day care, day camp, overnight camp and public school. Prior to having children, Jill taught for several years at the first grade level in the Central Bucks School District. Her most challenging role as an educator came as she worked with teachers in Mali, West Africa, during her experience as a Peace Corps Volunteer. More recently, in the summer of 2008, Jill instructed teachers and children in Bamenda, Cameroon on a missions trip with her church. Serving the Lord, through loving His children is a source of great joy for Jill. She and her husband Ted have been married for 21 years and currently reside with their four wonderful daughters, Rory the dog, Rosa the guinea pig, Suzie the pot-bellied pig, a turtle, and chickens.