Bonnie Bowman - Owner and Director
Bonnie has been an educator for more than twenty years. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education from the University of South Florida and a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Florida. She has a National Board Certification, and was Norton Elementary's Teacher of the Year in 2009. After teaching and working as an administrator in public schools, she decided to open a small school that focuses on learning through play and instilling a lifelong love of learning in all of our students. Her love for the children and their education is the heartbeat of our school!
Marissa Leslie - Preschool Director
Marissa has been an early childhood educator for 17 years both here in Gainesville and Miami, Florida. She started her career teaching VPK and later, inspired by a more child-led curriculum, fell in love with the Reggio Emilia approach. This will be her first year at Persimmon and her first year acting as Director of Early Childhood. She is a fierce advocate of the play based approach and is constantly working towards creating a more inclusive, diverse and empathetic school environment.
Mickey (they/them) - One’s Class
Mickey first started working in early education in 2016, and it felt like a magic trick: a job where you can dance, poorly, to the Wiggles every day ... and that's not only allowed, but encouraged. Detours from this calling include a summer on an organic veggie farm in middle Tennessee followed by a year studying comics art at the Sequential Artists Workshop here in Gainesville. Mickey's favorite thing is encouraging the youngest learners to love language and books. They believe that hugs should be given daily, story books should be read until the pages fall out, and art should be very, very messy.
Khalina Davis (she/her) - One’s Class
Ms. Khalina started teaching in March 2023, inspired by her own amazing childhood teachers - the fun, outgoing teachers who children never forget. There is nothing she loves more than being silly, having fun, and being a positive influence on the future of our world. In the classroom, she enjoys singing and dancing to the best Disney songs, coloring, and playing tag with the students on the playground. Ms. Khalina is originally from New York and has lived in Gainesville for about five years. The world is all bright colors in her eyes! She loves all things nature, singing and writing songs, and is a December child.
Mx. Dakota White (she/her/they) - Two’s Class
Mx. Dakota has been teaching since 2016 with experience in every preschool age classroom. She currently teaches in the two’s classroom (going on two years), and has worked here at Persimmon for four years. She’s completed hundreds of hours of childcare training and is currently working on her Florida Child Care Professional Credential (FCCPC). Mx. Dakota’s favorite activities in the classroom are dancing, art and science projects, reading, and pretend play. Outside of the classroom you might see her walking her dog (Oak), eating some yummy vegan food, collecting more tattoos, skateboarding, rollerblading, dancing, museum exploring, or enjoying the outdoors.
Kacey Spurlin (she/her) - Two’s Class
Kacey began her teaching career in 2021, teaching toddlers in Washington. She has loved it ever since! Her favorite thing to do with her students to read with them. Kacey has completed 45 hours of DCF training. Outside of school, Kacey enjoys playing with her cat (Sprout), reading, appreciating nature, and changing her hair to fun colors.
Cody Andrews - Three’s Class
Bio coming soon!
Summer Stone (she/her) - Three’s Class
Ms. Summer first began teaching in 2020 at a preschool in Colorado. She has known she wanted to be a teacher ever since she was seven years old, playing pretend school and making up worksheets with her two younger brothers. She is currently working on earning her bachelors in Early Childhood Education and all the mandatory Florida credentials. Her favorite things to do with her students are to sing, dance, read stories, and do art projects. When not in the classroom, Ms. Summer enjoys crafting, watching movies, singing at karaoke, shopping at thrift stores, playing board games, and traveling. She has lived in Oklahoma, Texas, California, Colorado, and now Florida - also visited 28 states (with plans to visit the other 22). Summer just got married to her husband, Chris, and lives on a lake where she loves to spend her time.
Bob Marshall - VPK
Mr. Bob is entering his sixth year teaching at Persimmon. Other than teaching VPK, Bob had taught in the three-, two-, and one-year-old classes. He also leads the K-3rd grade summer camp program. Mr. Bob has completed both parts I and II of DCF training which includes the mandatory 45 hours. He also has a Florida Child Care Professional Credential, a Child Care Director’s Credential, is a VPK certified teacher, and holds certificates in Early Literacy and Special Needs. He enjoys engaging his students in S.T.E.A.M. education, learning through play, and large group projects. Get ready for exploding volcanos, human heart replicas, and full scale models of the solar system! When not at school, Mr. Bob enjoys music, sports, and spending time with his wife of twenty years and their nine-year-old son.
Amanda Dunbar - VPK
Ms. Amanda started teaching in August 2019. She holds a current FCCPC and the DCF 45 hours of training. Her favorite thing to do with students is create art and explore new ideas and concepts. When she is not in the classroom, Amanda enjoys horseback riding, photography, and going on road-trips. She has four siblings and an adorable 8-year-old Pekingese dog name Charlie.
Paige Botelho - Preschool Floater
Ms. Paige first started teaching in 2015 when she lived in Massachusetts (she just recently moved to Florida). She has a B.A. in Psychology with a specialization in Applied Behavior Analysis. Her favorite thing to do with students is arts and crafts. She loves how differently each student’s project turns out! Ms. Paige lives with her husband, Anthony, their cat (Tara), and their dog (Oz). When not at school, she enjoys kayaking, playing board games, and reading. Ms. Paige is also training for a half marathon at Disney!
Quillan D’Croz - Preschool Floater
Ms. Quillan first started teaching in 1997. She has her CDA, a certification in Children’s Literature and Storytelling, and an A.S. in Early Childhood Education. Her teaching experience includes preschool ages, VPK, and elementary school. She loves to read books with her students and sing songs. Ms. Quillan enjoys spending time with her husband, Steven, and their two beautiful daughters, Sasha and Lily. She also loves to read, shop, go on nature walks, and watch the sunset on the beach. Some of Ms. Qullian’s favorite things are sunflowers, chocolate, and butterflies.
Valerie Jones - Kindergarten
Ms. Valerie began teaching at Persimmon in 2014. She has experience with all preschool ages and primarily taught VPK until the birth of her son in 2017. Ms. Bonnie invited her to become the K-2 teacher’s assistant and bring baby Joshua to the classroom until he was old enough to attend the one’s class. Ms. Valerie agreed and fell in love with the early elementary program. She has been there ever since! Ms. Valerie holds the Florida teacher certification in PreK3 – Primary (3rd Grade), the Florida Child Care Professional Credential, and DCF 45 hours. Ms. Valerie’s favorite things to do with students are learning through stories, messy art, and exploratory science. She believes in integrating social and emotional skills development throughout the school day. Outside of school, she loves reading, exploring nature, pilates, running, and dabbling in visual arts. She also enjoys spending quiet days with her husband, Adam, and energetic five-year-old, Joshua.
Esther Cepeda - 1st-2nd Grade
Ms. Esther began teaching in 2004 and has a wide range of experience across grade levels. She has taught lower elementary and high school, in all subjects, including teaching English Language Learners in their language of origin (Spanish). Her favorite thing to do with students is learn about their lives during morning meetings. Outside of school, Esther sews and loves doing jigsaw puzzles. She lives in the Duckpond area with her partner, Chris, her dog (Shakti) and cats (Terry Benedict and Ellie). Esther also has a bicycle that came with the name “Wendy”. She is trying to learn the piano and collects cat whiskers for fun!
Krista Kingsbury - 1st-2nd Grade
While Ms. Krista is new to teaching in a classroom setting, she has spent many years caring for children as a nanny and babysitter. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Botanical Research at UF, and worked at the Denver Botanic Gardens where she spent a lot of time in the herb garden and children’s garden. Krista has also been teaching yoga in Gainesville for the past six years and has studied a Trauma Conscious approach to teaching. She is excited to bring yoga, mindfulness, and gardening to Persimmon students! She loves helping kids connect to their breath, to their inner landscape, and to the world around them — it's amazing to see their faces light up when they realize how deeply intertwined everything is. Krista says she loves empowering them to make sense of their emotions and surroundings and find tools to help regulate themselves. Outside of school, Krista loves dancing, yoga, herbalism, hiking, going to the springs…and circus performing arts just for fun. She has an older sister who is her best friend, as well as a house and garden full of plants she treats like her children!
Amy Clay - 3rd-4th Grade
Ms. Amy began teaching in 1999. She holds a Bachelors in Elementary Education (Florida certified K-6th grade). She has experience teaching all grades K-6th. At her previous school of 14 years, Ms. Amy taught combined classes of all grades then settled in with 4th grade. She has been teaching in Persimmon’s K-2nd grade program for six years. She has a great appreciation for educational philosophies such as Waldorf, Reggio, and Montessori. Ms. Amy enjoys becoming anthropologists and archeologists with her students, and she also loves to enhance lessons with art. She lives with her husband, Jim, and daughter, Violet. When not at school, Ms. Amy is often at the beach searching for sharks’ teeth and shells.
Barbara Beach - Elementary Art Teacher
Barbara has been working with children since 2003. She is an artist, and although works mainly with watercolor, her creativity is unrestricted. Barbara's favorite things to do with students include learning new things and being creative. She enjoys creating a peaceful environment such as incorporating music. In 2022, Barbara moved from Charleston, SC. to Gainesville, where she collaborated with businesses to create paper design products. Prior to working as a watercolorist, she designed children's clothing for 10 years. Outside of school, Barbara enjoys interior design, sewing, cooking, and exploring.
Amanda Holmes (she/her) - Elementary Support Staff
Ms. Amanda started teaching in 2022 at Persimmon. She has earned the DCF 40 hours of training and is currently pursing a degree in Elementary Education. She loves to listen to the students’ thought processes and learn new ways to look at the world. She also enjoys seeing their faces light up in the mornings, reading stories with them, and getting messy with art projects. Outside of school, Ms. Amanda enjoys reading, museums, playing pool, nature walks, and spending time with her family. She and her partner, Adam, love helping their blooming toddler, Abigail, explore her world. They have two dogs, two cats, and fish. Ms. Amanda says after having Abigail, she felt the need to transition her career from retail and hospitality, with Abigail in mind. She is so glad she found her place at Persimmon - and so are we!