Kelly Arnao
Mrs. Arnao is thrilled to be starting her second year as a Threes/Fours teacher at St. James Preschool. She is a superstar teacher with degrees and certifications in Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, and Special Education from Rowan University in addition to being a Masters level certified Reading Specialist. She has boatloads of teaching experience and we are lucky to have her at St. James while she is home raising Henry (now a St. James alum!) and Harper (a current St. James student). Mrs. Arnao loves reading, working out, cooking, playing with her kids, going to the beach and spending time with her family. She loves getting creative and sharing that creativity with her students. Mrs. Arnao’s calm confidence, bright smile, super positive energy, and go with the flow attitude make her a favorite amongst her students and staff. We are so fortunate to have her as part of the St. James family!
Jennifer Arraya
Mrs. Arraya has been teaching our youngest students at St. James Preschool for 8 years now! As she begins her 9th year (after a brief year off to manage her children’s online schooling during the pandemic) she continues to have the same excitement and energy that she has had since year one! Mrs. Arraya is a proud mom to 2 St. James Preschool grads, Stephen, 13 and Elisabeth, 12. She enjoys spending time with her family and her fur baby and is an active outdoorsperson, hiking, biking, kayaking, paddleboarding, and traveling and doing photography. Mrs. Arraya holds her B.A. in Spanish and K-12 Education from Gettysburg University and has done graduate work as well. She is bilingual in Spanish/English and even studied at the University of Seville in Spain, so don’t be surprised if your children learn a bit of Spanish in her class. Mrs. Arraya is passionate about teaching and works to ensure students learn and grow in their first year of preschool. She has taught all ages possible and preschool is her favorite by far! Mrs. Arraya is a hard worker who gives her all to her students and we are so thankful to have her as part of our St. James Preschool family.
Charlene Breindel
Mrs. Breindel lives in the Downingtown area with her husband Ralph. Mrs. Breindel is beginning her 18th year teaching at St. James Preschool. She holds an Associate
Degree from Penn State University with an emphasis on Early Childhood Education as well as an Associate Degree in Business from DuBois Business College. She’s very proud of her son Jesse (Professor at Harcum College and tutor at Brandywine Learning Center), daughter Nikki (Processing Department Senior Manager for Frito Lay), and her son in law David. She enjoys walking, shopping, reading, cooking and baking, and visiting the beach and Disney! Mrs. Breindel teaches our 3 day AM Pre-K programs this year. Mrs. Breindel has always been active in her children’s education and activities and, now that they are all grown up, she is happy to be able to continue to work with our
youngsters here at St. James. She finds every day to be a new, fun experience and loves the children’s excitement to be at school and learn new things and master new skills. She loves to listen to their stories! Mrs. Breindel’s creative ideas and love of
learning and children make her a very valuable member of our staff.
Nicole Campadonico
Mrs. Campadonico is thrilled to be starting her seventh year at St. James Preschool, after many years of being one of our favorite substitutes! Both of her boys are St. James Preschool alumni, Ethan is now in tenth grade and Dylan in sixth grade. She enjoys bird watching, traveling, watching her sons play flag football, and taking care of her two spoiled cats! She has earned an Early Childhood Education Certificate and is very happy to be a part of the St. James Family. She looks forward to seeing each child learn and grow everyday and we love her kind and loving demeanor and calming presence in the midst of any situation. Mrs. Campadonico always has a sweet smile for everyone and we are so happy to have her as a part of our staff to brighten everyone’s
day!
Suzanne Diodato
Mrs. Diodato has been at St. James Preschool for over 20 years, starting as a Pre-K teacher (and a parent of a student) and then taking on the position of co-director in 2006. Mrs. Diodato has three beautiful daughters, Katie a graduate of Penn State University, Julianna a student at Virginia Tech University, and Gabi a student at DMS. She holds a B.S. in Elementary Education from East Stroudsburg University. She’s been teaching for over 20 years and loves the new adventure every day with the children. She feels that each day is a fun and exciting experience for herself and the whole class. Her enthusiasm and love for the children make her a favorite among St. James families and we all enjoy her creativity and fun projects. In her spare time, Mrs. Diodato enjoys crafts, spending time with her family, and watching her daughters play softball and taking walks with her dog.
Terri Haggerty
Mrs. Haggerty is in the midst of her 15th year at St. James. Mrs. Haggerty holds a B.S. in Biology from Drexel University and a M.A. in Nutrition from Immaculata University. After staying home to raise her children for seven years, Mrs. Haggerty re-entered the work force as a teacher assistant. She is a loving mom of twins–a boy and a girl–age 21! Sara studies art at West Virginia University and Noah studies physics at Northeastern University. She enjoys watching her students experience and learn new things and loves the hugs and love they have to share! In her free time, Mrs. Haggerty enjoys walking her dog, volunteering with dog rescues and training, gardening, and doing yoga. Mrs. Haggerty’s calm and patient manner and nurturing disposition make her a wonderful addition to our staff.
Stephanie Kershner
Mrs. Kershner is excited to be starting her second year as a Threes/Fours teacher at St. James Preschool. She holds teaching degrees from Alvernia and a Masters Degree from Penn State and has tons of teaching experience. Mrs. Kershner comes from a large family and has a large family herself! Her four children Lucca, Maximo, Arianna, and Matteo are all St. James Preschool alumni, making Mrs. Kershner the resident expert on all things St. James Preschool! She’s been part of our family for many years and we are so happy to have her now as part of our staff. She loves gardening and reading and planning parties, events and fun for her family! As a mom of four she knows how hard it can be to be a parent in this world and is a huge advocate for helping and supporting one another. Mrs. Kershner is an awesome team player and fosters that in her students. Her positive attitude, never give up spirit, and willingness to learn and try new things make her a wonderful asset to our team!
Shelly Klenk
Mrs. Klenk is excited to be back at St. James for her 7th year as a teacher assistant. A proud mom of 2 SJP alumni, Mrs. Klenk was an active member of the PTO as well as a frequent parent substitute before joining our staff. She has a B.A. in Communications with a minor in English from Villanova University. Mrs. Klenk loves traveling, baking, photography, reading, and spending time with her family and friends, especially outdoors. She hopes to pass on her love of learning and exploring new ideas and places to the children in her classroom. We love having Mrs. Klenk’s boundless energy, team spirit, and positive attitude as part of our team!
Hope Latch
Mrs. Latch is currently in her 10th year of teaching at our preschool. She is well-qualified with a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from Bloomsburg University and a Master’s Degree in Curriculum Design and Instruction from Penn State! Mrs. Latch enjoys music, traveling, hiking, baking, reading, watching her kids play sports and spending time with her family. She has two children, Megan, 18, and Matthew, 16 and
a fur baby, Bauer, who is 10! Mrs. Latch is so excited to be teaching your children and is looking forward to singing songs, playing games and doing crafts all while learning. It’s her passion to teach and see the wonder in children’s eyes.
Maha Raman
Mrs. Raman has been at St. James for 16 years, but we have known her even longer. Her daughter is a St. James graduate and while she was here, Mrs. Raman was one of our most popular parent substitute teachers! Mrs. Raman currently is our Tuesday and Thursday Pre-K teacher, and our Pre-K Assistant on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Friday mornings as well as our Pre-K Plus and Lunch Bunch Teacher! She holds a Master’s Degree in Computer Applications from Alagappa Chettiar Engineering College. In her former career, she trained professionals with the latest software to meet their needs–now she is training the future professionals with the basic skills needed to become successful students! She loves working with young children and her enthusiasm and love of learning shine through. She especially loves science and math. Mrs. Raman is trained in classical Indian dance and enjoys yoga, gardening, travel adventures, early morning walks, riding motorcycles, hiking, and experimenting with new recipes especially gourmet cooking. She is a loving mom of son, DJ, a mechanical engineer, and daughter, Medha, a junior pre-med student in the Drexel University honors program. Mrs. Raman is a huge team player and the very best at lifting up anyone she encounters, especially students, parents, or colleagues who are having a tough time. She is a force of positivity, whose love for those around her makes everyone feel good!
Emily Tarkington
Mrs. Tarkington is excited to be returning to the St. James Preschool Staff for her 4th year! She holds a B.A. degree from Shippensburg University. Mrs. Tarkington is proud mom of St. James alumni Nora, 9, and Graham, 6 and she has been a St. James Parent for 6 years! She loves going to the beach, and building, sewing, crafting or creating any project. Mrs. Tarkington is full of energy, creativity, songs and positivity. She’s a do-er who has an ability to make good things happen, and she is such a wonderful asset to our school. Our youngest students thrive under her loving care!
Johanna Uggla
Mrs. Uggla has been part of St. James staff for 19 years. Prior to that she was an active PTO president and parent of two children at the preschool. Now long graduated, Sami is a Wilkes University BFA musical theatre graduate and aspiring actress, currently working as a performer at a local theme park, and Spencer is a football playing Johns Hopkins University Neuroscience major with medical school aspirations. Mrs. Uggla has a B.A. in History and an M.Ed. in Educational Counseling from West Chester University. Mrs. Uggla enjoys spending time with her children, husband, and 2 dogs, reading, exercising, and spending time on 2nd Street beach in Ocean City, NJ. She keeps busy attending her children’s various events, enjoying music and theater performances, and getting to the beach whenever she can. She loves helping children learn to love school and working to make their first school experience a great one. Mrs. Uggla is super proud of the team at St. James Preschool.
