The Lawrence School Staff

Our Staff

My name is Kathy Hoffstrom. I am married and have two grown sons. I have over 28 years of experience in the child care field. Most of my experience has been with 2 to 4 year olds. I have Early Childhood 1 &2, Infant Development, SIDS and Shaken Baby Training and I am certified in CPR and First Aid.

My name is Megan Adams. I live with my mom, dad, sister and boyfriend. I have been in the Child Care field since 2008. I have taken Early Childhood 1 and 2 and Infant and Toddler. I am also CPR/First Aid certified. I have an Associates Degree from UW Waukesha with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education. In my free time, I enjoy crafting and Photography.

My name is Deena Kapelka. I live in Eagle with my husband and two girls. I have been working in the Child Care Field for over 22 years. I have worked with all age groups and enjoyed each one as they all learn and grow in different ways. I have Early Childhood 1 & 2, Infant Development, SIDS and Shaken Baby Training and I am certified in CPR and First Aid. In my free time I enjoy spending time watching my daughters play sports, spending time with my granddaughter and camping with friends and family.

My name is Jim Hoeft. I am the Owner of The Lawrence School. Prior to starting the school, I spent 29 years in the car business as a salesman and manager. Everything changed in October of 2007 when my brother Mike was killed in a construction accident. After this, I took time to reflect on my life to see what I had accomplished and other than selling a lot of cars it dawned on me that other than a great family and a home, I really had not done anything life changing for others. I had seen the vacant Lawrence Center for sale for a number of years and thought it was an interesting building and area. What better way to change lives than to work with children. I got the building on May of 2013 and began renovating. We opened on January 30, 2014 with the Director, Heidi Krueger, myself, one teacher and one child. We continued to grow and even though we faced a lot of challenges through 2014 and 2015, we finally made a small profit in 2016. The school has grown to have over 140 children and over 20 staff. I look forward to future expansion this year and next developing sports fields and further building renovations. I'm happy to say at this point if I left this world today, I have made a difference.

Hello! My name is Kacie Haw & I am the director of The Lawrence School. I have been in the childcare field for over ten years. I have worked with all age groups; most recently teaching 4K. I live with my husband and our three children, Alayna, Hudson, & Ella, in Elkhorn. I graduated from Carroll College with a bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education and a master’s degree in Teaching and Learning. I love spending time with my family, traveling to visit our family in Illinois, and working outside! I am excited to be able to work with the families at The Lawrence School!

Hello! My name is Kathryn Ascher and I am an Assistant Director at The Lawrence School. I was born and raised in Waukesha, where I currently live with my husband and 3 children. I started at The Lawrence School in March of 2020 and am excited to continue my career in childcare with you. I have previously spent 10 years in the childcare field working with two, three and four-year olds. Four of those ten were spent developing a 4K curriculum and teaching a 4K class. I spent the past 5 years in a director role. I love spending time with my family and friends. In my free time I enjoy watching my kids play sports, cooking, scrapbooking, going to the beach and watching movies. I am excited to work with the families at The Lawrence School.

Hello! My name is Karissa Walsh. I have been working at The Lawrence School since March of 2017. I have my Associate Degree from UW Waukesha. Then I went to Carroll University. I majored in Educational Studies and minored in Early Childhood Education. I have been working in the child care field since 2012. Right now, I am a floating teacher with children under the age of 2 years. I am CPR/First Aid certified. I have my SIDS and Shaken Baby training.

In my free time, I like to shop and spend time with my family.

My name is Ana Sarmiento. I was born in Los Angeles, California. I love teaching and working with kids. I am new to the child care profession. I am certified in the Introduction to the Child Care Profession, Skills and Strategies for the Child Care Teacher, Fundamentals of Infant/Toddler Care, CPR/First Aid/AED and Child Abuse and Neglect. I am also a certified Medical Assistant.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my husband and friends.

My name is Heather Miller. I went to UW Lacrosse for Elementary and Early Childhood Education. I have worked in Child Care for over 25 years. I live in Waukesha with my kids. My son is 15 and goes to Waukesha North. My daughter is 13 and goes to Butler. The majority of my free time is spent at my children's sports. They play volleyball, basketball and baseball. I am also a Disney fan.

Hello! My name is Lori Weinert. I was born and raised in Waukesha. I am married and have two daughters. I have been involved in education for the past 20 years, starting with volunteering at my children's elementary school. I am excited to be part of The Lawrence School team.

Hello, My name is Lynn Dugan and I'm very excited to join The Lawrence School staff and have the privilege of working with the staff and families-especially the children. I love helping children learn and grow! I will be a floating teacher mostly working with the 3-4 year old classrooms. Most of my teaching experience has been as a teacher in the school districts. I received my BS from UW Milwaukee in 1986 for Early Childhood Education and my MA from Carroll University in 2005 for Curriculum and Instruction. I am married and have a daughter and two sons who are grown and living on their own. One of my sons was married last summer and the other son is getting married this fall so I will have two daughter-in-laws. I love spending time with my family and friends and I enjoy traveling, biking, gardening and cooking.

Hi! My name is Raine Holmes. I have three brothers and three sisters. I have been babysitting children of all ages for the past seven years. I love being around children, caring for them and watching them grow. I have taken Introduction to the Child Care Profession, Fundamentals of Infant/Toddler Care, Skills and Strategies for the Child Care Teacher, Shaken Baby, SIDS and CPR/First Aid/AED training. I am a floating teacher with children under the age of two at The Lawrence School. I love to bake desserts, decorate cakes and crochet afghans. I am also a Sunday School teacher at my church and love spending time preparing for that each week. In my free time, I love to hang out with my siblings, playing board games or watching our favorite shows.

Hello!
My name is Rakuelle Solis. I have worked with children for 11 years by volunteering as a Sunday School Teacher, a Nanny for 7 years and a Toddler Teacher for 2 years. I have my EC1 and I am working on my EC2. I love working with children. It’s a joy watching children grow into their personalities. I have two nieces who I enjoy spending my weekends with.

Hi! My name is Barbara, and I am a lead teacher in the Starfish room. I have always had a passion for children and began babysitting at a very young age. I realized how much joy children bring to me. I started earning my certificate for childcare while I was in high school. After graduating from Mukwonago High School in 2018, I began working in childcare.

Hello, my name is Marisa Blum and I am a teacher in the Minnows classroom. I graduated from Carroll University in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Educational Studies with minors in Early Childhood and Religious Studies. I am originally from the Chicagoland suburbs. My love for caring for children started at an early age being the oldest sibling and cousin in my family. Everything I have done and am doing revolves around teaching and caring for children. These activities range from babysitting, church school, interning in public elementary classrooms and teaching preschool. Outside of work my hobbies include photography, reading, quilting/sewing, spending time with friends and family and catching up on TV shows and movies (especially anything on Disney Plus). I am looking forward to spending time with your baby, creating a relationship with your family and helping your child to develop a love for learning.

Hello Lawrence School families! My name is Eden and I am so excited to be working with your children. I have been in the child care field since 2012. I started working part time at a child care in high school and then continued full time after I graduated. After high school, I went to school for Early Childhood Education at Northeast Wisconsin Technical College. I have worked with every age from infants to 12 year olds. I am also a mom myself to two daughters, a spunky two year old girl and a baby daughter that was born in May 2020. In my free time I enjoy spending time with my family and watching football. I look forward to getting to know you and your family!

My name is Amanda Osburn. I live in Waukesha . I am married and have an 11 year old daughter, Miley. I have been working in child care for over 6 years. I have worked with all age groups, from infants to school age. I have Introduction to Early Child Care 1 and 2, Fundamentals for Infant/Toddler Care, SIDS and Shaken Baby training as well. I am also CPR/First Aid certified. I love working with children and watching them grow and develop their personalities. I am excited to be part of The Lawrence School! In my free time I enjoy coloring, crocheting and spending time with my family.