Staff & Students
Ardmore Presbyterian Weekday PreschoolAPWPS staff provides your child with a nurturing Christian environment where their growth is fostered through play and developmentally appropriate curriculum.
Our Staff
Teachers Who Care
The primary task of the staff is to provide care, attention, opportunities, and experiences that will encourage learning through play and creative activities.

Michelle Butera
Preschool Director
Michelle is excited to continue some of the long-standing traditions of Ardmore Preschool while maintaining the nurturing environment APWPS offer.
Michelle has a background in finance and management, 25 years of parenting experience and 25 years as member of APC, 8 years of Sunday School teaching and involved in the preschool for 20 years.
She brings her faith, her heart and her wisdom to help the preschool have an amazing year.
Michelle is originally from Cherry Hill, NJ. and has her undergraduate degree from Drexel University and her Masters Degree from Penn State University.
She loves to see the happiness and joy that comes from each child.
Michelle is the mother of two adult daughters.

Alyce Cerniglia
Three-Day Class Teacher
Alyce Cerniglia grew up in the Philadelphia area and has her undergraduate degree in Finance and graduate degree in Human Resources from Catholic University in Washington DC.
She enjoyed many years using her Human Resources skills while working as an international college admissions counselor and corporate recruiter.
Alyce returned from living in Washington DC shortly after meeting her husband “down the shore”.
Alyce and Joe have three boys who all attended APWPS. Alyce has substituted at APWPS for many years before joining as a staff member.
Alyce enjoys reading and inspiring future readers starting at a young age.
She loves reading during story time or picking that perfect picture book.
Alyce is thrilled to be teaching the three-day class.
Alyce’s family lives in Wynnewood and belongs to St. Margaret’s Church in Narberth.

Sandra Nichilo
Three-Day Class Teacher
Having three children of her own, Sandra is beyond excited to be around young children again. She recognizes how remarkably unique each developing soul is, and the potential for tremendous growth each child has when supported by loving adults.
Sandra lives in Haverford, but was born and raised in Chicago, IL. Sandra and her husband are college sweethearts. They met at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where she studied Fine and Liberal Arts. Their children are 19,16 and 13 years old.
Volunteering at different schools and being a member of a parent association board, Sandra has years of exeprience with young children. She loves helping kids learn how to read, and is most proud of teaching her own. Sandra is also currently on the Benefit Commitee at Legacy Youth Tennis and Education in Philadelphia.
Sandra spends her free time cooking the most complicated meals she can find, diving into various art projects, and getting her daily dose of exercise. But what she most enjoys is watching her kids grow up!

Danuta (Danka) Jablonska-Rauer
Two-Day and Three-Day Class Teacher
Danka is from Poland, where she began her academic and professional career by completing a Master’s Degree in Early Education and becoming a teacher.
She taught preschool children and grade school children for over 12 years and currently is a teacher in the 2-day and 3-day classrooms.
In 2001, Danka moved to the United States, where she met her husband. She now lives in Ardmore with her husband, their two daughters, a bunny rabbit and four goldfish.
Danka loves to involve her little ones in crafts, gardening, baking and creative play (everything she enjoys doing!)
She loves to see each child’s curiosity grow as he or she explores the world.

Irena Reynolds
Teacher and Preschool Administrator
Upon completing her degree in Public Administration from the Technical University of Varna, Bulgaria, Irena Reynolds arrived in the United States in 2003 for a year long internship.
The following year she earned her Masters Degree in Central and Eastern European Studies from LaSalle University.
While rearing three children of her own, she has become a Cub Scouts of America Den Leader and is currently a Troop Commitee Chair Woman.
Residing in Ardmore with her family, Irena very much enjoys being involved at her children’s schools and volunteering.
After her youngest child started attending Ardmore Presbyterian in 2014, Irena began helping as a substitute teacher, and has assisted in most of the classrooms since.
She is currently the preschool administrator and also a two-day class teacher.

Laura Rossio
Five-Day Class Teacher
Laura Rossio grew up in the Philadelphia area, and has a background in nursing.
She has been teaching at APWPS since 2005 and is currently a teacher in the 5-day program.
Laura enjoys the genuine enthusiasm and joie de vivre of the young children in the preschool.
She marvels at the incredible growth from fall to spring as language emerges, skills improve, and the children begin to care about each other.
Laura feels a teacher should be a role model, patient, kind and especially flexible in expectations.
Laura is the mother of a daughter and was raised as a Quaker.

Shannon Smith
5 Day Teacher Aide
Shannon has an undergraduate background in Childhood Education and Family Studies with a minor in Psychology from Penn State University.
After college she has worked as a child mental health worker, victims advocate, and as an assistant and lead teacher for the YMCA.
Shannon and her husband have 2 daughters both who went to Ardmore Presbyterian Preschool .

Karen Tolbert
Three-Day Class Teacher
Karen grew up in Buffalo, New York. She attended Bucknell University and received a BS in Elementary Education.
She earned her Masters in Reading Education from the University of Virginia. She taught for seven years prior to having children and moving to the area in 2013.
Karen currently lives in Bala Cynwyd with her husband and two children.
Currently she is a teacher in the three-day program.
Her children are graduates of APWPS.

Sheila Vaccaro
Five-Day Class Teacher
Sheila has been working with young children since her first job at sixteen years old.
She earned her BA in elementary education and psychology at Albright College and her MA in counseling psychology at Rosemont College.
Sheila has taught Head Start for the Philadelphia School District and was an elementary school counselor for ten years in the Central Bucks School District.
She lives with her husband and two sons (both APWPS graduates) in Wynnewood.
Sheila is currently a teacher in the 5-day program.

Kelly Myers
5 Day Teacher Aide
Kelly is very passionate about childcare. She firmly believes that a kind, loving, patient approach is the best teaching method sprinkled with firmness and compassion for the unfamiliar encounters a child experiences in learning in a group setting.
Kelly was born in Philadelphia and comes from a large family. She has experienced many dynamics that impact young lives. She started babysitting her small cousins and the kids of family friends at age 13 which sparked her love of children.
Kelly comes with 10 years of professional experience as a nanny. She has worked with multiple families for periods of 3years each or more, helping to nurture and raise these children in a loving, learning environment. She loves doing crafts, baking, reading, and outdoor activities. She is a loving pet mom to three beautiful cats.

Joanne Siciliano
5 Day Teacher Aide
Joanne has been involved with children, from birth to adolescence, most of her life. She taught secondary English and Writing, tutored elementary students, and for over 25 years, has provided lactation support to mothers and babies all across the area, while raising her own six children.
Joanne has been a frequent classroom volunteer in her children’s schools, from preschool through elementary, and has continued to volunteer in other capacities in the secondary years.
Joanne enjoys fostering the curiosity and thirst for learning in the preschool years, and sees opportunities for that in everyday experiences.
She lives with her husband and youngest daughter in Ardmore.