Meet Our Staff
Our staff consists of loving individuals who have a passion for Early Childhood Education and serving young children and families. Every staff member meets New Jersey State Licensing requirements for their position including Early Childhood Education as well as CPR and First Aid certifications. Sand Hills staff is committed to the opportunity to serve and teach each unique child and family with grace and love.
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Carla Lynch, Director
Ms. Carla has been a part of the Sand Hills family for the past twelve years in many different capacities. She started out as a parent, as all four of her children attended preschool at Sand Hills. For seven years, she taught the Toddler Time class. She is thrilled to now be in her second year as the Director of such a wonderful school. She has both a Bachelors in Special Education and Masters Degree in School Counseling from The College of New Jersey. “ When I was a parent bringing my children here, I always felt like I was leaving them with their aunts!” Her favorite part of this job is getting to know the students and families and partnering with them to create this amazing Sand Hills Preschool Community! |
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Mrs. Goddard, Assistant Director
Mrs. Goddard has served Sand Hills Preschool for twenty-six years! She is one of the original teachers who helped to start the school. Serving as a Teaching Assistant as well as the Assistant Director, she also enjoys running Gym class for the students. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, painting and cheering on her favorite baseball team, the Mets. She has two children and three grandchildren. What Mrs. Goddard loves about Sand Hills is the love, kindness, and the feeling of being a part of a family. “My favorite thing is seeing all the children’s faces each morning! My heart melts when they tell me they love me. I just love them, and I also love talking to the parents!” |
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Mrs. Romano, Lead Teacher
Mrs. Romano joins our teaching staff this year as a Lead Teacher, but she has been a part of our Sand Hills family for many years. All three of Mrs. Romano's children attended Sand Hills Preschool, and she has served as a substitute teacher for the past seven years. In her spare time, Mrs. Romano enjoys reading, traveling and spending time with her family and friends. She is a life long resident of Kendall Park. She attended Widener University, and has a Bachelors Degree in Psychology and is Certified in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. She is so excited for a wonderful year together making new friends and exploring the world around us! |
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Mrs. Saha, Lead Teacher
Mrs. Saha has been a Lead Teacher at Sand Hills for the past four years, but has been in Early Childhood Education for twenty-eight years! Mrs. Saha actually was one of the original teachers who helped to start Sand Hills Preschool over twenty-six years ago. She left for a while, but three years ago, she returned “home”. Mrs. Saha has two grown daughters and two wonderful granddaughters! She loves to travel and to see different places. Something that she loves about working with the kids is getting to see the joy on the children’s faces when they are introduced to new experiences or activities. |
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Mrs. Symon, Teaching Assistant
This is Mrs. Symon’s twenty-fourth year at Sand Hills Preschool as a Teaching Assistant. A long-time resident of Kendall Park, Mrs. Symon loves spending time with her family and her dog Harley, reading and gardening. She has two daughters and 4 grandchildren. It is a joy for her now getting to see her grandchildren come to Sand Hills Preschool too. Mrs. Symon has a gift of encouraging kids to create and express themselves through art. She also loves to talk with them and to do music and singing with them. She says, “I really love getting to know them and their families.” |
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Mrs. Thomson, Teaching Assistant
Mrs. Thomson has been working as a Teaching Assistant here at Sand Hills for four years now. Mrs. Thomson has been a member of the church here since 1982. Over the years she also served as a substitute teacher and serves on our school board as well as the Church Session. She has two grown sons, but her “favorite child” is her precious dog, Sadie. Mrs. Thomson loves to watch a child finish a project or a task and see their little face light up with the pride of accomplishment! She loves to hear them proudly proclaim, “I did that all by myself!” |
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Mrs. Puri, Teaching Assistant
This is Mrs. Puri’s third year working at Sand Hills as a Teaching Assistant, but she has been a part of our school for longer since both her children attended preschool here. Before coming to the United States, Mrs. Puri earned her Masters in Computer Science and was an instructor at a College. Mrs. Puri loves working here at Sand Hills because the students and staff feel like family to her. |
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Sara Jones, Toddler Time Teacher
This is Ms. Sara’s first year as our Toddler Time teacher, but she has been a part of our Sand Hills family for many years already! Her youngest son attended preschool here and since then, has worked as a substitute teacher for us. Ms. Sara has her Bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz and her Master’s in Social Work from the University of New England. Before beginning her own family, she worked as a family and child counselor in specialized schools and state family programs. She has been a resident of Kendall Park for the last 6 years with her husband (a local pastor) and her two boys who currently attend Cambridge Elementary School. Ms. Sara says, “I love getting to be a part of this team and getting to know our community’s children and families!” |
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