PYC Staff

Heather graduated from George Mason University with a BS in Early Education and a minor in psychology. She then continued her education at Shenandoah University with 30+ credits towards a Masters in Education. For 12 years, Heather taught Kindergarten and then First Grade in VA before moving to England for 5 years with her young family. While in England, she partnered with local British Primary School to learn about and study their system of Play Based Learning for young children. In 2008, her family moved back to the US to Illinois. Heather joined PYC in 2012 as the PreK Lead Teacher and established the STEAM prorgram with the assistance of awesome coteachers. Her love of learning continues in taking online courses and seminars in topics to share with her colleagues and incorporate in her classroom. 

Kristin has an Early Childhood Education degree with a minor in psychology and a Special Education endorsement from the University of Illinois. She also has completed master’s classes in Project Construct/Project Approach and Autism. She taught PreK/Inclusion in the public school system for 3 years. At PYC and Faith Lutheran Church, she has taken on many roles. She has been the Nursery Manager for Faith Lutheran Church since 2008, facilitated Playgroups from 2009-2020, been a Parent Educator for PAT from 2009-2016, BabyTalk Family Support Specialist from 2016- present, and teacher of the Enrichment Program from 2011- present.

Kacey graduated from Truman State University in 2009 with a Master’s of Arts Degree in Special Education.  She began her teaching career at Valley Park Elementary in St. Louis County teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. After 7 years there she took time to stay home with her daughters Jovie (6) and Tessa (3). After sending Jovie to PYC she could not wait to join the teaching team in the Toddler Time classroom! Kacey and her husband Keith are on a slow but steady mission to take their girls to all of the U.S. National Parks.

Penny graduated from Springfield College with an Associate Arts degree and a diploma in nursing from St. John’s Hospital School of Nursing. Upon graduation she and her husband Dave moved to St. Louis where she worked at St. Louis Children’s Hospital for several years before starting a family, moving to O’Fallon and becoming a member of Faith Lutheran Church.  When PYC opened in 2002, she enrolled her youngest daughter Madelyn and loved the play-based, nurturing environment that PYC provided. This prompted her to begin her journey at PYC in 2004 as a teacher’s assistant in the PreK classroom where she taught for many years before transitioning to the preschool classroom as a teacher’s assistant and eventually a teacher in 2018. Though she has taken a non-traditional route to become a preschool teacher, her background in pediatric nursing and many years of experience in the classroom have shaped her love for teaching and being a source of comfort for children, and she couldn’t be happier to be at PYC.  

Kelly has a degree in Elementary Education from St. Louis University. Over the years, she's taught Pre-K through 4th grades in Illinois, Missouri, and Tennessee, including five years in St. Louis City schools. She feels incredibly blessed to be a part of the PYC Family - first as a PYC parent and then jumping on board as a staff member. Kelly and her husband have two children and an energetic pup named Cosmo. She's active in church and loves to cook, hike, walk, and read in her spare time.     

Stephanie started her teaching career at PYC in  2019. She first started in our Two Day Preschool Class as an Assistant Teacher and then transitioned to assisting in the PreK Enrichment class for the past two years. She is extremely excited to be returning to preschool and becoming the lead teacher for this class! She loves working with children of all ages and enjoys seeing them grow into their wonderful personalities each school year. Stephanie loves spending her free time reading or doing fun family activities with her husband, Chris, and her children, Olivia and Auggie. 

Fun fact - Ms. Stephanie is Ms. Susan's granddaughter. PYC teaching runs in the family! :)

Erin grew up in St. Louis, has a BBA in Finance from the University of Notre Dame, and spent over a decade in corporate finance before becoming a stay-at-home mom. Working with her own young children, Erin discovered the joy of teaching. As a long-time PYC parent, she became increasingly involved at the school - as a volunteer, a substitute and now, an assistant in Toddler Time. Erin and her husband, Colby, have two elementary-aged children. She’s a St. Nicholas parishioner, a podcast enthusiast, an epic party planner, and a loyal fan of the Fighting Irish. 

April recently joined the PYC teaching team as an assistant after feeling called to pursue her passion of working with and teaching young children. It's been an incredible experience to encourage our toddlers to learn and grow through PLAY. Outside of teaching, April has been a hair stylist for 16 years, owning her own loft for four years. She has a daughter (15) and two bonus sons (18, 11) and married to a very God loving, wonderful man named Dustin. April along with her family and their four-legged babies love to camp, hike, and explore the U.S. in their Jeep.    

Susan has been teaching at PYC since it first opened in 2002. Over the years, she's served in various roles including Preschool, Toddler Time, and PreK Enrichment Assistant. She is now our Godly Play facilitator, teaching our Preschool and PreK students Bible stories using manipulatives and storytelling techniques. Susan has been married to her husband Elmer for 57 years. Together, they have 4 children, 7 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren.  Susan enjoys reading by the fire, gardening, birds, butterflies, and baking.  Most of all, she loves to have fun and laugh.

Megan and her husband Peter have lived in O'Fallon for twelve years after spending a majority of their childhood and collegiate years in the Chicago area. They are proud that their four children Gwendolyn (12), Gabrielle (10), Colin (9), and Cathryn (7) are PYC graduates! Her past professional experiences include various roles in elementary and secondary education in Illinois and Florida, as well as a recent internship in cardiac rehabilitation at Memorial Hospital in Belleville. She is blessed to be a part of the PYC staff and has enjoyed working with a remarkable community of teachers, students, and parents!