Staffing
A Great Place to Work
Our full-time staff are deeply committed to our mission and philosophy and many have been here more than 5 years. We share joys with one another about things we observe in the classrooms and truly love what we do. As a group we are passionate, warm, engaged, and connected, and that translates to the work we do.
Classroom Staffing
In each classroom we have a Lead Teacher, Assistant Teacher, and 1-2 Teacher Aids. Lead Teachers have a minimum of Bachelors Degree and Assistant Teachers have their Associates or Bachelors Degrees. Our 2-3yr old room has a maximum of 11 children, and our 3-5 year old rooms have a maximum of 15 and 16 children respectively. Due to the smaller sizes of our classrooms and the additional teacher aids we provide, we typically have lower ratios than most programs. In our two-year old room the typical ratio is 1:4, but we are often at 1:3 for the middle of the day. In our 3-4 year old room the typical ratio is 1:5, but can be as low as 1:3. And in our oldest room of 4-5 year olds the ratio is typically 1:6.
Loyola Students
Our teacher aid positions are filled by Loyola students who work for us as a part of the federal work-study system each semester. Students support the teaching teams by taking care of many of the classroom tasks such as cleaning and sanitizing, setting up and cleaning up from meals and nap, and sitting with small groups of children, so that Teachers can be directly with children more of the time.
Leadership
Director, Joanna Burke
Joanna has been a leader in youth, after-school, & early childhood programs around Chicagoland for almost 20 years. She joined LUP in 2022 and has been overjoyed to support her own neighborhood, Rogers Park, and be a part of the LUP community. Joanna has her MEd from National Louis University and an infant/toddler specialist certificate from Erikson Institute. Her undergraduate degree is in Peace and Global Studies with a minor in conflict resolution from Earlham College. She started at Loyola Preschool in 2022 and lives in the neighborhood with her husband and 3 young children.
Assistant Director, Katie Viernum
Katie (BS '07) has worked in many roles at Loyola Preschool since she was a student at Loyola. She earned her BS in psychology at Loyola University Chicago and an MEd in instructional leadership: early childhood education with an EC special education approval from University of Illinois Chicago. As a Teach Plus senior fellow, she advocates for early childhood issues at the state level as well. She lives in Edgewater and often sees Preschool families while walking around the neighborhood.