Staff
Rebecca Hyman
Preschool Director
Rebecca grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia for 20 years before getting her BS degree in Sociology from Fairmont State University in West Virginia back in 2019. She finished her MS in Family and Human Development in 2023 from Arizona State University. She has a background working with elementary schoolers, middle schoolers, and special education. Rebecca loves to read, bake, roller skate, travel, and see live music in her free time.
Samara McDonald
Lead Teacher
Samara grew up in beautiful Sedona, AZ and have lived in Colorado for the last 17 years. She has a background in Waldorf Education and worked as an Early Childhood teacher for the last seven years. I have three wonderful children Jonah, Sarai and Luci. Samara loves reading, animals, nature and spending intentional time with her family. She is dedicated in teaching your children artistic expression using a child centered gentle approach. Engaging the heart, head and hands and natural materials
Jasmine Vigil
Lead Teacher - Aleph Room
Jasmine has seven years of experience in the Early Childhood Education field. She is almost finished with her associates in ECE at Front Range Community College. In her free time, Jasmin enjoys reading, writing, sewing, and spending time with her two little ones and husband.
Rebecca Hyman
Lead Teacher - Bet Room
Rebecca grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia for 20 years before getting her BS degree in Sociology from Fairmont State University in West Virginia back in 2019. She finished her MS in Family and Human Development in 2023 from Arizona State University. She has a background working with elementary schoolers, middle schoolers, and special education. Rebecca loves to read, bake, roller skate, travel, and see live music in her free time.
Zihui (Cherry) Xu
Teacher Aid - Bet Room
Cherry has a bachelor’s degree in nutrition. She loves to be around kids. She started her early childhood education career with the then afterschool club, base camp, and then fell in love with it. She plans to chase further education within this field in the future.
Rachael Price
Aleph-Bet Club Lead Teacher
Rachael graduated from CSU in 2020 with a Bachelor’s degree in Human Development with a concentration in Early Childhood Professions. Prior to joining the Har Shalom Preschool teaching team, she was a mentor teacher at CSU’s Early Childhood Center where she taught mixed ages 3-5 as well as mentored CSU students. Outside of school, she is an avid reader and loves spending time with my family, friends, and cat.
Sarah Ballard-Ramirez
Aleph-Bet Club Assistant
Sarah has worked with children in a variety of church settings; Sabbath school, the nursery on Sundays, and weekly children’s ministry programs during the school year. She also has enjoyed babysitting for numerous families. With two teenagers of her own, one who has Sensory Processing Disorder and one with Aspergers’s, Sarah has a special place in her heart for neurodivergent kiddos.
Tonya Puttlitz
Teacher Aid
Tonya was a stay-at-home mom for many years before she began working part-time in the Poudre School District as a Job Coach, assisting and mentoring special-needs teens at various internships. She enjoys working with your children and helping them enjoy each of their days to the fullest!