Meet Kari Planz – Director, Head Teacher

I am so happy you are interested in our school! I am the Director and teacher of the 4 yr old classes. I have been at Calvary since 2007, except for the year that we lived in Kansas City and upon our return, I went to St. Mary’s waiting for my position here to open back up! I grew up in Latham, but my family and I have spent some time living in North Augusta, South Carolina and Kansas City, MO. I attended North Colonie schools, HVCC, and Clarkson University, where I received a BS in Mechanical Engineering. It didn’t take me long to decide that engineering was not the right field for me, so once we started our family in 1993, I went back to school for Early Childhood at Augusta College. Since then, my husband Eric and I have added 4 more children, yes we have 5 kids, they range in age from 29 to 17. The oldest is Megan, who is also a teacher, then Brian who is an Engineer, Jenna who is an Occupational Therapist, Emily, who is a counselor in Rotterdam and Stephen, who is 17, and a incoming freshman at Siena College. We also have 2 dogs at our house, their names are Molly and Lennon. This is my 19th year in a preschool setting, I have done preschool gymnastics and assistant teacher positions, before becoming a head teacher and then director at Calvary. I am very excited to get to know your children and your families this year.

Meet Stacey Hartman – Lead Teacher

Hi! My name is Stacey Hartman and I am so excited to be back at the preschool. I am from and currently live in Colonie with my family. I have a son Ayden who is 12 and is in the 7th grade at CBA and I have a 5 year-old Ellie who also attended here and is now headed to kindergarten at St. Pius X. I have an associate’s degree in Early Childhood and a Bachelors’s degree in Elementary Education. While at home I love to do DIY projects around the house and you can always find me in the kitchen cooking for my family which I enjoy. I am looking forward to the year ahead with your children and getting to know them.

Meet Michelle Hykin – Lead Teacher

Hello! I was born and raised in Latham, NY where I lived until college. I attended SUNY Geneseo where I majored in Childhood Education and Spanish. From there I went to SUNY Stony Brook to get my Master’s Degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. After graduation, I moved to Syracuse where I taught K-5 English as a Second Language for over 7 years. I am married to Sam, and we have 2 kids – Jackson who attended Calvary Methodist Preschool and will be in 2nd grade this fall, and Kelsey, who is very excited to have mama as a teacher in the fall.

In my free time, I like to craft and read. I love ice cream, animals, and wearing pajamas. 🙂

Meet Jennifer Hogan – Teacher Assistant

Jennifer Hogan graduated from Colgate University as a history major with secondary Social Studies teacher certfication. After returning home to run her family’s retail food business for several years, Jennifer attended the University at Albany where she received her Master’s Degree in Secondary Social Studies Education. She was recruited to work in the Dean’s Office of the UAlbany School of Education and opened a new advisement center for current and prospective Education students, where she served as Director. Jennifer later served as Regional Director of the NYS Master Teacher Program for the Capital Region, where she set up professional development opportunities for the region’s top STEM teachers. Jennifer and her husband have three children and are foster parents. She enjoys cooking, traveling, and home renovation projects. Calvary Methodist Preschool is Jennifer’s first time working in early childhood education.

Meet Kelley Jarboe – Teacher Assistant

Hi! My name is Kelley Jarboe. I am a mom to three children – TJ (18 years old), Kayden (15 years old), and Blake (6 years old). We have a 4 year old Terrier mix named Maxie Mae, who we adore! We are in the North Colonie school district. I attended The Sage Colleges for Psychology and also took a couple of Early Childhood Education classes. I have nannied for a few families and also babysat children from my home when my older two children were growing up.

Some of the things I really love are family time, writing, reading, hiking, and just being out in nature.