Chris began her career in early childhood education in 1982 at The Children's Place after attending UNL. She has been the Director since 1995 and prior to that was the toddler teacher and assistant director. As Director, Chris has a keen sense for managing the business aspect of The Children's Place. She is responsible for monitoring Title XX child care assistance for families and works with the Child Care Food Program. Chris has also guided and supported the staff through the Step Up To Quality state rating incentive. where we have received a Step 5 out of five rating. Chris monitors all of the records for children and staff, works to assure that licensing regulations are met and has a passion for organizational details. Under Chris's watchful eye, parents can be assured that all paperwork is handled with the utmost care and respect, and Chris's keen sense of responsibility gives a secure feeling to the families enrolled. Chris loves the honesty of young children, their simple thinking and loving hugs! She enjoys reading fun stories and singing to them and engaging them in conversations. Since those early years are the most impressionable, Chris firmly believes that quality childcare and an early childhood education is an important first step. Chris maintains that an experienced staff can also be a support network to help parents raise their children in these precious early years, and the staff at The Children's Place is dedicated to helping not only the children, but their families as well, in any way they can. Chris strives to foster teamwork with the staff as well as consistency, compassion, and love for what they do together. Chris has been an active member of The Nebraska Child Care Director's Association since 1995. According to Chris, the center's motto sums it up best: "There is no place like home... but here." Chris is married and has an adult son. She also has pet Dachshunds.

Kathy started her experience as an early childhood educator in 1984, at The Children's Place. Kathy is a graduate of the University of Nebraska with a degree in Elementary Education and Child Development. She holds her elementary teacher's certificate and has done graduate work in special education. As Assistant Director since 1995, Kathy has assumed a wide range of teaching administrative and managerial responsibilities and duties. Miss Kathy's greatest strength lies in her relational skills. She quickly establishes a good rapport with parents, can easily start conversations with them, making them feel comfortable and welcome. She believes in maintaining positive, effective communication with parents on a day-to-day basis concerning both their learning activities and their behavior and parents quickly come to rely on her to be friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. Most recently she was instrumental in securing 2 UNL grants: Strive to Thrive and The Leaf Initiative to develop an outside nature classroom utilizing our playground space. She has also participated in Rooted in Relationships: The Pyramid Project, Step Up to Quality, has training in CLASS and ITERS AND ECERS. She has encouraged, modeled, and fostered a "parents as partners'' attitude in all of the staff. Kathy is also the School-Age (K-5) teacher. When this older group is in school, she co-teaches the 4-5 year old pre-kindergarten class. One of the things Kathy loves most about working with children is that each day is a new day, because children are so full of love, don't hold grudges and are excited by everything. She enjoys planning holiday parties and activities and says the ideas are endless! She also loves to hang out with the kids and listen to their stories or "tall-tales''. Kathy loves to listen and help, whether it is with children, their parents or other staff. She strives to be the best person, role model and teacher she can be. Kathy is dedicated to early childhood education because being a teacher has been her dream since she was a little girl. She is continually looking for new activities to keep her program fresh, exciting and educational. She has a grown son, Shane and as a mother as well as a teacher, realizes even more the importance of quality childcare and the impact it makes on all our lives.

Miss Connie is originally from Prague, Nebraska where she grew up on a farm with eight siblings. She graduated from Bishop Neumann High School in Wahoo, Nebraska in 1979 and started her early childhood education in 1981 at The Children's Place, formerly Mary Moppets, with toddlers in the Happy Face room. She was a Happy Face teacher for 15 years until she got married and moved away to Sioux City, Iowa with her husband, Mark. She was a stay-at-home mom of 4 and while taking care of her own children, she ran an in-home childcare for 15 more years, and moved back to Lincoln where she once again found herself in the Happy Face room! Miss Connie is currently the co-teacher in the Teddy Bear Preschool room with the three and young four -year-olds. She is incredibly grateful for her experiences with children, other parents and the learning tools from Child Care trainings, classes and Step Up to Quality initiative. She is especially grateful for the shared wisdom of her directors and of her co-teachers, former and present, who have helped her to become an early childhood teacher these past years. To experience, is to know, is to teach...and Miss Connie loves to teach.

Ms. Cindy comes to The Children's Place, after working 25 years with special needs students at LPS. She has been a preschool teacher since 2017. While working at LPS she was trained and certified in ABLLS, Verbal Behavior, Handwriting without Tears, PECS, MANDT, BIST, Pyramid, and has had coursework with the Deaf/Blind Institute as well as many courses with emphasis on the Autism spectrum. She has participated in Rooted in Relationships: The Pyramid Project, Step Up to Quality, has training in CLASS. Cindy enjoys playing, pretending, and acting silly with her students, while using fun loving, imaginative, and adventurous play to teach the children lessons that they are not even aware they are learning. She often researches and creates stimulating fun techniques and lessons to maximize her students' learning. Lessons that will motivate, encourage, and challenge them. Cindy loves the flexibility that comes with the Learning Through Fun concept, yet she strongly believes children need structure, consistency, and a firm set of rules to follow as well. By merging the two hopefully the child will excel for academic, physical, social & emotional success! Faith, family, and friends are extremely important to Cindy. She has two grown daughters and two granddaughters that are the apple of her eye! She believes God has truly blessed her by surrounding her with the greatest, most supportive and loving family and friends.

Miss Jasmin started her teaching career as a toddler teacher in The Happy Face room in 2018 at The Children's Place. She has an associate degree in Early Childhood Education at SCC. Her goal is to have children learn through play in the environment that she has created in her room. She has participated in Rooted in Relationships: The Pyramid Project, Step Up to Quality, has training in CLASS and ITERS AND ECERS. She enjoys working with toddlers because they are a fun age to watch grow and learn, and knowing that she has a part in the children's development. Not only is it important for her to help them reach their developmental domains, but to also show them love and care as their early childhood teacher. She has a young son at home whom she loves spending time with. We are very fortunate to have Jasmin as a Spanish interpreter.

Miss Maria has worked in early childhood education since 2014, starting at The Children's Place in 2020. She has two grown sons and a four-legged child, Lala. Maria has participated in Rooted in Relationships: The Pyramid Project, Step Up To Quality, has had training in CLASS and ITERS and ECERS. When Maria started in childcare, she worked with infants. She now enjoys working with toddlers in The Happy Face room, because they learn and develop so fast it's amazing. She loves their sassy attitudes and all their silly ways. Most of all she loves their giggles! The Children's Place is very fortunate to have Miss Maria as one of our Spanish interpreters as well.

Miss Janelle has been our cook since 2022, though she started her early childhood career in 1990. She also steps in and helps within classrooms when needed. She wants the children to feel safe and loved while they play with the guidance from teachers. She loves seeing their social skills grow, watching them learn and figure out an answer on their own.

Miss Martina is from Wahoo Nebraska. She is the youngest of 8 kids and has 13 nieces and nephews. She graduated from Bishop Neumann Catholic High School in 2021 and went to Wayne State College and graduated in May of 2025 with a bachelor's degree in Music Performance. She started working in childcare in November of 2019 joining The Children's Place in 2025 when she moved to Lincoln. Martina has generally been working with preschool aged kids, co-teaching with 3-4-year-olds and is currently in the Teddy Bear room, alongside her aunt, Miss Connie! One of her favorite parts of working in childcare is watching ideas "click" in the child's brain and the progress in their learning and development.

Miss Jasmine (Jazzy) started her early childhood career in 2021 at The Children's Place. She and her brothers attended The Children's Place as preschoolers. She has developed a passion for helping children learn through play and guidance from herself and her co-teachers. She is currently working with the Pre-Kindergarten class. She enjoys doing arts and crafts and is learning how to plan weekly activities for her class. She also finds the children's stories they share with her funny, and their little spunky personalities puts a smile on her face all day long.

Miss Itzel has been at The Children's Place since 2021. She earned an associate's degree in early childhood education from Southeast Community College and is working towards her bachelor's for secondary Spanish education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She values her work with children and loves that every day is a new day where they get to start fresh. Outside of the work place she enjoys watching movies and crocheting when she has the free time but unfortunately as a college student that free time is very limited.