FACULTY & STAFF
Additional Resources & Support
School Nurse
A school nurse is provided by the Manhasset School District for four hours each day. The nurse is responsible for the maintenance of health records, routine health checks, parent contact regarding health problems, care of minor injuries, and vision and hearing screenings. Parents must contact the nurse if a child is absent due to a communicable disease. When a student has recovered from a communicable disease, he/she must bring a release to return to school from the doctor. If it is absolutely necessary for a student to receive medication while in school the parent may either come to the school and personally administer the medication, or have a doctor complete and sign an Authorization to Administer Medication Form. The nurse will then administer the medication provided that the medication is in the original pharmacy-labeled container.
Special Education Services
If a child is suspected of needing special education services, the District is required by State regulation to send evaluators to our school to observe and evaluate children individually. The evaluative staff include a speech therapist, psychologist, special education teacher, occupational therapist, physical therapist, and others as needed. Students who qualify for services are provided these services on our premises by the Manhasset School District for school aged children and local school districts for pre-kindergarten and nursery aged children.
Sister Kelly Quinn | Principal | Sister Kelly Quinn became the Principal of Our Lady of Grace Montessori School in 1996. Sister Kelly originally taught at OLG for 7 years and then returned to Scranton to study School Administration and teach in a local school for 3 years. As a Montessori-trained teacher Sister Kelly believes that there is no other way to teach young children if we truly want them to love learning. | |
Anne Kaja | Administrative Assistant | Anne Kaja joined Our Lady of Grace in December, 2011. Anne earned her BS in Accounting from St. John’s University. She resigned her position as Comptroller of the Health and Welfare Funds for the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association of the City of New York to raise her children. She worked as a substitute Teacher’s Assistant in the Roslyn School District from 2004 until 2011, and taught CCD at St. Mary's, Roslyn for 9 years. | |
Liz Benn | North Wing | Liz Benn was lucky to begin her teaching career at Our Lady of Grace Montessori School in September of 1998. After a fun, inspiring first year, she attended the College of New Rochelle in the summer of 1999, where she completed her Montessori training. In 2012, Liz was blessed with twin boys who attended OLG through the Fourth grade. Liz is pleased to be part of the wonderful OLG community. | |
Sydney Lonigro | North Wing | Sydney Lonigro received her Bachelor's degree from Adelphi University in 2021. She has been a part of the OLG staff since 2022. Miss Sydney feels very grateful to be a part of the community and looks forward to continuing on the traditions of the school in the years to come. | |
Alejandra Cantillo | North Wing | Alejandra Cantillo Graduated with a bachelor’s degree from South Colombian University in 2019. She has devoted all of her professional experience to teaching kindergarten aged children. She is currently studying play therapy and is an enthusiastic student of conscious discipline. Ale is bilingual and loves to bring her students close to her native language Spanish. She is new to our OLG family and is looking forward to the rewarding experience this academic year is going to bring! | |
Charlie Strecker | North Wing | Charlie Strecker ’10 graduated from Binghamton University with his dual bachelor’s in psychology and music. He is now a music education graduate candidate at Queen’s college. He attended OLG through the third grade and volunteered at OLG summer camp for several summers. Charlie believes that OLG was the pinnacle of his educational career and is excited to now be teaching here. | |
Cate McGinley | East Wing | Cate McGinley has been a teacher at OLG since 2005. She received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Delaware and her Montessori certification from the Princeton Center for Teacher Education. Prior to moving back to New York, Cate taught in a Montessori School in Delaware. When looking for a Montessori school on Long Island, Cate called her former Principal who was, at that time, the President of theAMS. Thanks to her recommendation, she found this incredible school. Cate feels truly blessed every day to be a part of the OLG family and to have been able to give her two children this amazing education. | |
Bailey McBride | East Wing | Bailey McBride '08 Graduated with a Bachelor's degree from Adelphi University in 2021 . She is currently enrolled as a graduate student. Bailey attended Our Lady of Grace through Third Grade and has been a counselor in our summer program for several years. | |
Caroline Adams | East Wing | ||
Thomas Blaney | East Wing | Thomas Blaney graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary and Special Education from Providence College in 2023. He is currently enrolled as a graduate student at St. John’s University for K-12 Education. Thomas attended Our Lady of Grace from 2003 to 2005 and is excited to return to the East Wing for his second year of teaching. | |
Lisa Grippo | Full Fours | Lisa Grippo has been a member of the Our Lady of Grace Montessori School staff since the early 1990's. She obtained an undergraduate degree from St. John’s University and a Master of Arts in education from Adelphi University. She has held a variety of teaching positions including several of the 3-6 year old classrooms and Kindergarten. Lisa is the co-creator of the Full Fours program. She feels extremely blessed to be a part of this wonderful community. | |
Erin Kunkel | Full Fours | Erin Kunkel received her bachelor's degree from City College of New York and her master’s degree from Touro College majoring in Early Childhood Education. She has been teaching in the New York City area for eight years. Erin looks forward to teaching in the 4 Full Four’s program at Our Lady of Grace Montessori School. | |
Jennifer Nelson | Kindergarten | Jennifer Nelson has her New York State certification in Pre-K to 6th grade, and her Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education grades Pre-K to 3rd. She has been married since 1990 and has three children, all of whom have graduated from Our Lady of Grace Montessori School. Jennifer is currently teaching Kindergarten and has been teaching at OLG for since 1995. | |
Suet Cheng | Kindergarten | Suet Cheng graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from New York University in 2001 and currently holds NYS Teaching Assistant Certification. Fun Fact: After receiving her Grand Diplomes in Culinary Arts and International Bread Baking from the French Culinary Institute, she was a worker-owner at a bakery in San Francisco. Though she has worked in a variety of fields, she has found working with children the most rewarding. | |
Jennifer Schulz | Elementary | Jennifer Schulz has been teaching at Our Lady of Grace Montessori School since September 2001. She taught for four years in the South Wing, and has been happily working in the Elementary Program since September 2005. Jennifer received her Bachelor's Degree in elementary education from SUNY New Paltz and her Master's Degree in reading and special education from Hofstra University. In her younger years, she taught religious education and helped create a daycare program in her high school. Teaching has always been in her heart, and she is so happy to be part of the Our Lady of Grace family. | |
Cecilia Rohan | Elementary | Cecilia Rohan has been teaching at Our Lady of Grace Montessori School since 1999. She has a BA degree in English from SUNY Albany and an MS degree in Elementary Education from Hunter College. Miss Cecilia completed Montessori training at the Center for Montessori Teacher Education, and is certified by the American Montessori Society to teach children ages 6-9. | |
Susan Krugman | Elementary French | Susan Krugman |