Staff Directory

Remy Crisci grew up in Chevy Chase, MD and recently moved back to the area from New York. Remy graduated from The Fashion Institute of Technology, with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in communications.

She has always maintained a long- standing love of working with children. While raising her daughter, she spent many years holding weekly children’s book clubs and most recently assisted in a privately-run global art program in Westchester and Fairfield Counties. Passionate about design, art and children’s literature, Remy also co-founded a boutique interior design firm based in Bronxville, NY.

Remy is so excited to be working with the youngest students of Little Folks. She looks forward to contributing her energy and creativity to fostering the growth of little minds.

Mary is excited to be joining Little Folks School. Mary grew up in the DC area and was a lifer at the Sidwell Friends School. Mary graduated from Villanova University with a BS in Communications and a minor in theater. She was also a member of swim team that won the Big East Championship her junior and senior years. Mary also has a Master’s of Science in Education from John’s Hopkins University.

For 14 years, Mary has been a swim coach for the Nation’s Capital Swim Club, coaching swimmers ages 6-13. In addition, she has worked as a part-time teacher at Concord Hill School, and taught kindergarten at Sandy Spring Friends School for 9 years. Mary loves working with young children, whether in the classroom or at the pool, to foster a love of learning and exploration. Her favorite part of working kids is seeing their personalities grow and nurturing them to become happy, healthy, curious people.

James Gilroy is a native Washingtonian, having attended Stoddert Elementary and Hardy Middle School before moving to Northern Virginia, where he is currently a resident. He lives in Falls Church with his wife Jeanne, daughter Evyenia, and son James. He attended Georgetown University, receiving a B.A in Psychology, minoring in Sociology. James also holds a M.Ed from the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education in Educational Psychology.

Prior to coming to Little Folks, James was a teacher and administrator at Beauvoir, the National Cathedral Elementary School for 10 years. He began his educational journey there as an Associate Teacher in 3rd Grade, transitioning to Directing 2nd Grade Teacher, and then becoming the Director of Auxiliary Programs, serving the families of the youngest learners in Pre-Kindergarten to the oldest departing 3rd graders. While directing Beauvoir Summer, Enrichment Programs, and the Beauvoir Language Institute, James served on the Administrative Team at Beauvoir. James previously served on the Board at St. John’s Episcopal Preschool, and is currently on Board of Directors at National Presbyterian School (NPS).

James is a lifelong learner who enjoys building lasting relationships and putting the child at the center of his work as an educator. His weekends revolve around his children’s extracurricular activities, spending time with friends and family, and waiting for the Georgetown Hoyas’ return to greatness.

Reka Keller grew up in a small beach town in Mystic, Connecticut. After graduating from American University with a Bachelors in Elementary Education, focus in Early Childhood and a minor in Literature, she began her teaching career in Title I education. After 3 years of teaching in an environment with refugee and immigrant students hailing from 30 different countries; Reka learned a great deal about infusing a classroom with culture, sense of self, and social emotional strategies. Reka also has worked as a camp counselor and assistant director at Beauvoir’s summer program in the D.C. area. She is excited to join the Little Folks team and bring a creative literature focused approach to social emotional learning to help children grow and develop to be their best selves!

Mike has been working with children for eight years and has spent the last three teaching preschool in DC. He graduated from George Mason University with a Bachelor’s degree in English/Linguistics. Knowing that, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Mike is a strong believer in the power of words and the importance of an inquisitive mind, both of which he believes he brings to the classroom. One of Mike’s favorite sayings is “You speak like those you speak to”; and since Mike speaks with a lot of kids, he has learned that teachers have a responsibility to model positive ways for children to speak. When Mike isn’t teaching, he can probably be found writing, making movies, or juggling.

Karen is excited to be joining the Little Folks Community. She earned her B.A. in education at Towson University and has lived her childhood dream of being a teacher for the past 20 years. A mother of three, she draws from her broad experience to teach and to communicate with parents, including her past work with special needs students and her own child’s ADHD and speech therapy. Karen believes education should evoke happiness in children when entering class. She loves to sing with students and hearing their surprise remarks.

Karen and her family have many passions including fostering puppies and Walking for Breast Cancer. So far she has walked over 490 miles in varies events to raise money for a breast cancer cure, inspired by her aunt, who is a two-time survivor of the disease. Karen lives in Kensington, MD with her husband, three teenagers and two dogs.

Leonor Rosero, known affectionately as “Nory” to the children of the Little Folks School, was born in the Philippines. She studied Communications at the Far Eastern University in Manila, majoring in Drama. She is an accomplished Musician, sharing her musical expertise with the Little Folks community through circle time and weekend guitar lessons for children. Nory has been teaching at the Little Folks School since 1990. Nory’s love of children does not end at the Little Folks School - she reads stories to children at libraries in Fairfax County and serves as a ballroom dance choreographer for teenage students in Maryland and Virginia. Nory’s passion for helping children develop creative skills through visual and manipulative arts is magical.