meet our leadership team

Candace Babcock

candace@aimmontessori.org
executive director 
Candace started with aim in Spring of 2021 in what was supposed to be a part time position as the Educational Technology Director. Her drive, organization, and affinity for leadership proved her to be the perfect candidate for the position of Executive Director which she was promoted to in December 2021.

Candace has always had a passion for education and while being in the classroom wasn’t her calling, she learned a great deal from her post-secondary education at Eastern Washington University where she earned her Early Childhood and Secondary English Education degrees. She also spent 2 years attending Boise State University earning part of her Master’s in Educational Technology degree- a degree she hopes to complete when she figures out a way to increase the number of hours in a day!

After moving to Bozeman, Montana in 2011 Candace worked as a program administrator for a local nonprofit, then took a job at Zoot Enterprises as a developer and later a Quality Assurance Analyst and Business Analyst. After the arrival of her two children, Audra and Wade, Candace decided to put her career on hold - only to capitalize on her “extra” time to write and create a preschool curriculum for her children, which she also sells online.
This time with her children reignited a love for education, curriculum development, and technology, which eventually led her to where she is now- helping to lead a team that develops curriculum and programs for other people that love children and their many gifts!

Karen Walton

karen@aimmontessori.org
program director
Karen is AIM's Program Director.  She has been working at AIM since 2018 as the Level Coordinator for Early Childhood, Internship Coordinator and Residency Instructor.  Before that, she owned & taught at her own Montessori school in rural Montana. She has a Bachelor of Music in Music Education, an Early Childhood certificate and a Master's of Education in Advanced Montessori. Karen is newly certified in American Sign Language. 

She has taught music in the public-school sector in addition to teaching in Montessori classrooms since 2007 both in Rhode Island and Montana. At AIM, she works with interns, observes Montessori classrooms, and participates in webinars. 

When she is not working, she can be found gardening, trail running and cooking. She enjoys long walks with her dog, Jax and camping trips with her husband. 

Carolyn Sweet

carolyn@aimmontessori.org
marketing & communications director
Carolyn holds a bachelor’s degree in art history from The Ohio State University, a master's degree in art history from Bowling Green State University and has completed all of the coursework and comprehensive exams towards a doctorate in American culture studies from Bowling Green State University. She is also certified in advanced online teaching. Carolyn has been teaching courses in the arts and humanities at the college level since 2006 and has been a marketing professional for over a decade.

Passionate about supporting Montessori educators in their journey, Carolyn has been an active contributor to Montessori schools since 2013. Her roles have included serving as a marketing and admissions coordinator, a board member, and a volunteer.

At home she has the honor of raising two fiercely independent children who began their Montessori journey as infants. Her husband holds a Montessori Secondary Credential and has led and founded Montessori adolescent programs in Ohio and South Carolina. Carolyn has been promoting Montessori education as part of the AIM team since 2022.

meet our admissions team

Randall Klein

randall@aimmontessori.org
registrar & admissions officer
Randall holds a bachelor’s degree in German from Carroll University (Waukesha WI).  He received his Montessori early childhood teacher certification from American Montessori Internationale (AMI) in 1977 and taught in multi-aged Montessori preschool classrooms for sixteen years.  

In 1986 he received the Master Teacher diploma from the Pan American Montessori Society after conducting numerous teacher training courses with his mentor Dr. Elisabeth Caspari, who was a friend and student of Maria Montessori. 

In 1993 he left the classroom to focus on developmentally appropriate early reading instruction as a reading coach, consultant, and seminar leader. Randall finds great satisfaction in the many opportunities he has each year to deliver the Montessori message and methods on early reading instruction to parents and to public and private school teachers throughout the country. 

In 2012 Randall joined the faculty of Authentic Institute of Montessori as assistant program director. He is currently the Aim registrar and admissions officer. 

Kirsten Guisto

kirsten@aimmontessori.org
sales and customer service manager
Kirsten joined the aim Team in March of 2022. She has a bachelor’s degree in Anthropology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from San Francisco State University. In addition to her background in education, she has worked at a University, sales and the hospitality industry.   

After college, Kirsten and her husband spent three months back packing through Europe and caught the “travel bug.” She has spent the past five years traveling with her husband, 3 children and their dog in an RV. They have been to 49 states as well as 9 of the Canadian Provinces(although home is on the Central Coast of California). She believes travel is one of the best educational experiences and feels blessed to be able do this with her family. 

meet our infant toddler faculty

Nancy McNabb

nancy@aimmontessori.org
infant-toddler level coordinator 
Nancy McNabb is a parent of four adult children, a grandparent of nine grandchildren, a Montessori teacher and school administrator, a Montessori consultant and parent coach. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and a Master’s Degree in counseling from Florida State University. Her love for children led to her pursuing the Montessori Early Childhood certification where she was trained by Dr. Elizabeth Caspari and Mary Ellen Maunz in 1983.

Upon graduation, Nancy founded her first school in the Twin Cities and later taught in and directed a large Infant/Toddler Community. Being in the classroom with these young children inspired Nancy to complete her Montessori Infant/Toddler certification with the American Montessori society in Boulder, Colorado in 1994. She has taught in and been the administrator of two other successful Montessori schools in Montana over the past 39 years. 

Nancy helped to develop the Montessori Infant/Toddler Teacher Course for aim which launched in September 2021. She is the main instructor of the course, and oversees and mentors the students and interns. She is delighted to work for aim fulfilling a long-time goal of training teachers and parents to observe children, prepare the environment and themselves to meet the children’s needs, and to become loving, peaceful, and positive role models for the children in their lives.  

In her spare time Nancy enjoys gardening, taking walks and playing with her nine grandchildren. 

Courtney Reed

courtney@aimmontessori.org
infant-toddler assistant level coordinator 
Courtney found her passion for working with children in her college years. While studying Mathematics at The University of West Georgia and competing in the world of collegiate tennis, she found her true passion in working with children. Through her nannying career, her work for a Montessori family grasped her attention and she heavily pursued her desire to be in a Montessori community. After assisting in a pre-toddler classroom for 2 years, she learned the true basis of a Montessori environment and what intentions Maria Montessori had in creating the Montessori philosophy. Courtney chose to join Cool Springs Montessori as a toddler guide in 2019 and has accomplished many things in the last five years, including her IMC Montessori certification from The Center for Guided Montessori Studies that is also MACTE accredited.

A human can find joy in few things in life like Courtney has found in educating children, but her love for her family trumps it all. Courtney was born and raised in Bowdon, Georgia and was the middle of 3 sisters. Primarily raised by her mom, responsibilities and real-life experiences were introduced early. She became an independent and driven young woman. Through USTA tennis tournaments, she met her husband, Grant, and the rest is history (cliche--I know!). Grant and Courtney moved to Nashville in 2015, soon became engaged, and married in May of 2016. Since then, they have welcomed 2 children into their family, Tripp (6 years) and Charlie (2.5 years). They now live in a beautiful 1905 home in Eagleville, Tennessee and really enjoy all the beauty that Tennessee has to offer. Treasure hunts (antiquing), hiking waterfalls, and family movie days are just some of the things that they enjoy.

meet our early childhood faculty

Kara Renick

kara@aimmontessori.org
early childhood level coordinator
Kara is the Level Coordinator for Early Childhood. Before working at AIM Kara received her Montessori training through Age of Montessori (AIM) and started her teaching journey. She taught in  Montana as well as Colorado.

In her time in Colorado Kara had the wonderful opportunity to help open a new Montessori school with the goals and passions to have a truly authentic and positive cultured school .Kara has visited Mexico and Honduras to visit schools in several different rural cities within both countries. In those schools she worked with teachers to empower them to teach the children with all their passion as well as provided them with new materials for their classrooms.

Kara has had a passion for children since high school. She discovered the Montessori philosophy and began her journey leaning and developing herself as a teacher and guide to the children and later on other teachers as well. She hopes to inspire and empower more teachers as she works at Authentic Institute of Montessori.

Outside of school, you can find Kara looking for adventure outside, climbing cliff sides, and enjoying time with her husband, two kids, and family dog, Whiskey River.


Liz Goodman

liz@aimmontessori.org
early childhood professional development coordinator
Liz currently teaches in a primary classroom at King’s Wood Montessori School in Foxboro, Massachusetts. She lives in Sharon, Massachusetts with her husband where they raised two children, a recent college graduate and rising college junior. Liz holds a M.Ed. in Montessori Education from Xavier University, a Montessori Early Childhood Certification from aim, and a B.A. in U.S. History from Central Connecticut State University. Her experience as an educator spans over 20 years both as a high school teacher, and for the past 11 years in an early childhood Montessori classroom.  
 
In her free time, Liz loves to read, hike, practice yoga, travel, cook, and spend time with family and friends. She is also a huge Boston Celtics fan!

Rocio Rademacher

rocio@aimmontessori.org
early childhood faculty español
Rocio began her career in education over sixteen years ago, with the last eight years focused specifically on Montessori education. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and International Business from Anahuac University in Mexico. As an entrepreneur, Rocio initially worked with an innovative product for Central America's asphalt industry.

Her path took a significant turn when she encountered Montessori education through interactions with Montessori guides and students at a local farmer’s market. The natural rapport she had with the children led the guides to recommend Montessori training. Encouraged by their advice, Rocio pursued her Montessori certification in Costa Rica in 2017 and later completed a Master’s in Education from Loyola Maryland in 2022. Over the past eight years, she has worked in Montessori schools in cities such as Austin, Seattle, Minneapolis, and the Bay Area, developing a deep appreciation for how the Montessori Method supports children’s growth and development.

Outside of work, Rocio enjoys the beauty of nature, residing in the stunning Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina with her husband and their two dogs. This immersion in the serene landscape helps her feel revitalized and provides fresh perspectives on her work. Rocio is eager to join AIM and contribute to the ongoing growth of the program and its community.

Camilla Nichols

camilla@aimmontessori.org
early childhood faculty Sweden
Camilla earned her degree in Early Childhood from the University of Lund in Sweden, where she was also born and raised.  She began her teaching career in 1994 after receiving her Birth-6, as well as her 6-9 Montessori certifications from St. Nicholas Centre in London, England.

With a passion for teaching and traveling, Camilla has since taught in Asia, Europe, and North America. Camilla was responsible for spearheading the development of the MCTD teacher education program at The Montessori Children’s Academy in Chatham, New Jersey in 2014 where she is also an instructor and advisor in addition to her role as The Senior Director of Montessori Development.

Camilla also holds an AMS Early Childhood Montessori Certification and consults to a Montessori School in Malmö, Sweden on an ongoing basis.

Camilla has raised two children who both went through Montessori Education and who are now successful college students in nursing and mountaineering degrees. Camilla was the former Essex County Director of Girls on the Run, a non-profit organization that empowers young girls mentally and physically.

Heidi Tussing

heidi@aimmontessori.org
online faculty advisor
Heidi grew up in Lincoln, NE but lived in multiple states before settling in her current location of Helena, MT. Heidi has a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Nebraska and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Wyoming. She spent many years as a child and family social worker as well as teaching social work students before finding Montessori when researching preschool options for her daughter. This discovery led to her own Montessori journey.

She completed her EC Montessori certification in Kalispell, MT in 2009 and worked in several Montessori preschools in Helena. She was the teacher for the first ever public Montessori preschool in Montana which was funded by the MT Legislature. She went on to obtain her Elementary I certification from Authentic Institute of Montessori and taught a lower Elementary class at a private Montessori school in Helena. Heidi currently is a substitute teacher for the public elementary Montessori teachers.

Heidi, her three children (2 of them adults) and husband love to spend time in Montana’s beautiful outdoors skiing, mountain biking, hiking, and sometimes relaxing in a hammock.

meet our elementary faculty

Suzanne Tipton

suzanne@aimmontessori.org
elementary professional development coordinator
Suzanne Tipton found Montessori while working as a high school Math & Science teacher in Thailand. She completed the Lower Elementary course with Age of Montessori and led her own Lower Elementary classroom at Montessori School of Louisville for four years. She made the difficult decision to leave the classroom in pursuit of her passion for training teachers.

Montessori education changed her life and she is eager to help others realize the beauty of this style of teaching. She lives in Tennessee near her niece, Kathryn, and nephew, David Michael, whom she adores wholeheartedly. (They think Auntie Q is a party!)
She also loves to draw, travel, read, scuba dive, hike, camp, and especially cooking. She has been working on writing her own cookbook for a few years now so if you are interested in vegetarian recipes, look no further!  

Fana Takahashi

fana@aimmontessori.org
elementary I level coordinator
After completing college, Fana discovered Montessori as a teacher in an early childhood classroom. She was immediately convinced by the method and trained with Authentic Institute of Montessori in Early Childhood and Elementary I.

She also holds a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction and a B.S. in Education K-8 from Montana State University.

Fana has always had a passion for teaching and has been in a Montessori classroom since 2015. Before joining AIM full-time this June she taught Lower Elementary Classroom in Honolulu, Hawaii.

In her free time, Fana enjoys traveling the world, surfing, hiking, cooking, and spending time with family and friends.

Alison Zeglen

alison@aimmontessori.org
elementary II level coordinator
Alison discovered Montessori in 2012 during a student teaching placement and was immediately inspired by the method. Upon graduating from Montana State University with a B.S. in Education K-8, she pursued Montessori credentials in Elementary I and Elementary II from the Houston Montessori Center. Alison also holds a M.Ed. in Montessori Integrated Learning from Endicott College, focusing on Montessori students and environmental education.

With a passion for teaching, Alison has been a Montessori teacher for the past ten years, working in diverse locations including Bozeman, Montana, the Cayman Islands, and Wellington, New Zealand. While she loves Montessori education for all age ranges, her true passion lies with Elementary II (ages 9-12) students.

In her free time, Alison enjoys traveling to new places, snowboarding, surfing, hiking, trying new foods, drinking coffee, and spending time with her friends and family.

meet our parenting team

Lucy Gibson

lucy@aimmontessori.org
montessori parenting consultant
Lucy is a former teacher who has earned two Bachelor’s degrees in Education and is trained in Montessori (ages 3-6) by MACTE, holds two Positive Discipline certifications, both as an Early Childhood Educator and also as a Parent Educator and has also trained in Montessori at Home. She has recently completed an online course on "Family Engagement in Education" at Harvard.

She has been in the education industry since 2004 and worked at international and bilingual schools in São Paulo, Brazil from 2004 - 2018. That is when she noticed that many families could benefit from having someone to support them in their home setting - bridging the gap between home and school -, someone who understood that, to successfully prepare the space, it first needed to be organized.

So, after moving to the UK in 2019, Lucy reinvented herself and created Positively Simple UK, a local business based in Southampton that supports families and individuals through home organising and mentoring in Positive Discipline and Montessori at home. This is when the prepared environment and the prepared adult meet!

Lucy is a self-proclaimed lifelong learner who loves listening to podcasts and audiobooks whenever she is out cycling or going on nature walks! Lucy is an animal welfare advocate and a coffee lover who believes the world is a better place when people are kind to each other and are good to the planet.

Amanda Engelbach

amanda@aimmontessori.org
montessori parenting consultant
Amanda is a Positive Discipline Parent Educator and Mentor and a Montessori Guide and has trained in Montessori at Home. She strongly believes that parents are a child’s First Educator and loves supporting them by providing actionable science-backed tools and accessible Montessori knowledge so they can create thriving environments at home whether their child is attending a Montessori school or not. 

She received her Montessori 3-6 Diploma with Montessori Centre International in London in 1999 and then combined her passion for travel and education and set off on a life-changing adventure working in Montessori schools in Repulse Bay in Hong Kong and in New Zealand with children from 18 months - six years. On her return to the UK, she became the Editor of Montessori International magazine published by the St Nicholas Montessori Charity (London) until 2012. What excited her the most was the fact that there were subscribers in over 90 countries, ranging from the USA to Brazil and Mongolia.  She also worked at St Christopher’s Place, in London, a Therapy Centre for children with communication delays. She introduced some Montessori materials to her classroom and enjoyed watching each child flourish in their own unique way. 

Amanda currently lives in Winchester, UK with a dream to spend more time in sunny Spain. She is learning Spanish and enjoys practising with anyone she can find! She loves yoga, drinking coffee in the sun, being by the sea and spending time with her 6 nephews and nieces.

meet our coaching team

Lynn Cherry

lynn@aimmontessori.org
montessori administration coach
Lynn Cherry has been in education for 23 years receiving her Montessori elementary (6-9) licensure from MMTEC in Rochester Hills in 2001.

Lynn received her BA in elementary education from Bowling Green State University, Master’s of Education from the University of Michigan, and her administrative licensure from the University of Findlay. Lynn taught in the classroom for 13 years before becoming the Advancement Director at Westside Montessori School in Toledo in 2013.

She worked in administration at Lial Catholic School for 8 years where she served as Head of School from 2020 to 2024. Lynn received the Educator of the Year Award for Perrysburg Public Schools in 2013.
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