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. ​​​

Carla Lynch, Director

Ms. Carla has been a part of the Sand Hills family for the past eleven years in many different capacities.  She started out as a parent, as all four of her children attended preschool at Sand Hills.  For the past seven years, she has taught the Toddler Time class.  She is thrilled to now be 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!

Mrs. Goddard, Assistant Director

Mrs. Goddard has served Sand Hills Preschool for twenty-five 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!”

Ms. Jones, Lead Teacher

Though this is Ms. Jones’ second year with us at Sand Hills serving as a Lead Teacher,  she has been in the classroom for eight years now.  Ms. Jones has two daughters.  In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her girls and going on trips with them.   Ms. Jones has an Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education and a Bachelors in Sociology.  Ms. Jones loves to sing and dance with the kids in class.  She is our very own “Karaoke Queen”!  

Mrs. Saha, Lead Teacher

Mrs. Saha has been a Lead Teacher at Sand Hills for the past three years, but has been in Early Childhood Education for twenty-seven years!  Mrs. Saha actually was one of the original teachers who helped to start Sand Hills Preschool twenty-five years ago.  She left for a while, but three years ago, she returned “home”.  Mrs. Saha has two grown daughters, one granddaughter and another one on the way!  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.    

Mrs. Symon, Teaching Assistant

This is Mrs. Symon’s twenty-third 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.”

Mrs. Thomson, Teaching Assistant

Mrs. Thomson has been working as a Teaching Assistant here at Sand Hills for three 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!”

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.