Pat (he/him) is the Co-Lead Teacher in the Preschool (Aspen) Room and started working at Kidspace in 2007. Previously he worked at Able Child Children’s Center for 17 years. While at Able, Pat worked for several years as a lead teacher in the infant and toddler classrooms, then a lead teacher in the preschool classroom. Over the years he has been a very active and well-known member of the Seattle early childhood community. Pat has 32 credits in ECE from North Seattle Community as well as a BA in Biology from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga.

Shamali (she/her) is the Co-Lead Teacher in the Preschool (Aspen) Room. She has been with us since January 2020.

Tracey (she/her) is the Co-Lead in the Young Preschool (Dino) room. She is an east coast native who moved to Seattle in 2004. She was born and raised in New Jersey and attended college and graduate school in North Carolina where she received a Master’s degree in Child Development and Family Relations from East Carolina University. Tracey’s early career was focused on early intervention services for preschool children and shifted after moving to Seattle to nonprofit work focused on advocating for families in crisis (homelessness, domestic violence). Tracey balanced that work while also being a live-in nanny for a few years and eventually decided to refocus on her Early Childhood. Her favorite interests in her spare time are road trips, the beach, music, astrology and photography

Yvette (she/her) is the Co-Lead in the Young Preschool (Dino) room. Yvette has been at Kidspace for an indeterminate period of time. She started in the Dino Room, moved into Aspen, and stayed for ten years. She then came back to work in the afternoons, and finally returned as an Apple teacher before circling back to Dino. Her favorite part of working with preschoolers is when they ask difficult questions. When not moving rooms at Kidspace, Yvette likes to perform, read, write, and travel. One memorable trip was getting to tour preschools in China with then Washington State first lady, Mona Locke. Yvette feels promoting her '80s teenage angst-driven high school novel, The Last Year of the Rest of My Life is a completely acceptable way to end her bio!

Jennifer (she/her) is the Lead Teacher in the Young Preschool (Treefrog) Room and has been working at Kidspace since 2001. She previously worked with children as a nanny and as an assistant teacher in Alaska. Jennifer has an AA in visual communications from the Art Institute of Seattle. She enjoys the community-oriented atmosphere and the high level of parent involvement at Kidspace. She also likes that children are treated as individuals and with respect. Jennifer’s interests include anything arts-oriented, music, hiking, camping, snow boarding, and exploring Seattle.

Michi (she/her) is the Assistant Teacher in the Young Preschool  (Treefrog) Room and has been working at Kidspace since 2021. She's  had the opportunity to work in each classroom. She recently graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a BA in Psychology and a minor is Sociology. Michi was a student at Kidspace as a child and had Pat as her teacher in the Aspen room. "I love Kidspace because it really is like my family. They have have seen me tackle obstacles and celebrate my successes, both of which have shaped me into who I am today. I love how nurturing our community is and how every single individual puts in the work to continuously improve our space. I love working with children because they remind me that staying playful and child-like at heart is very important. They teach me so much and I'm so glad that I have Kidspace as a place to call home! "