OUR TEAM

Our staff are selected for their knowledge of early childhood, their expertise in providing appropriate educational programmes, their compassion for children and their philosophy of education and early childhood development. Our teachers are qualified early childhood educators and undertake regular professional development to keep them abreast of the current trends in our field.

Our teachers participate in a yearly appraisal programme where management and teachers can reflect on strengths, weaknesses and goals and plan for the following year.

All qualified teachers are expected to maintain current Teacher Registration and first aid certification. Registration ensures that teachers go on to participate in professional development throughout their careers and that satisfactory teaching and knowledge standards are maintained. We undertake a series of safety checking steps when appointing all staff at this centre.

Katerina Longo, ECE teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden

Katerina Longo

Centre Manager Our Kids Glen Eden

Kia ora, my name is Kate and I am the manager at Our Kids Glen Eden. I have been working with the wonderful Our Kids team since 2019 but have 15 years experience in the early childhood sector. I hold a Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education.

I have a calm and caring approach towards tamariki, and building whānaungatanga/relationships with whānau and tamariki is extremely important to me. I have a deep respect for our people of the future and nurture children with aroha and patience so they feel secure enough to blossom and develop into strong capable learners.

After having my own child in 2017, my passion and commitment to the early years has deepened even further which makes me relate and understand the beautiful and sometimes challenging parts of parenting. I am dedicated to helping young tamariki grow emotional, social and developmental skills to promote their overall well-being.

I lead our Kaiako with a kind and understanding approach and believe the well-being of our teachers is extremely important so they feel supported to give our tamariki their full potential.

Here at Our Kids Glen Eden, our team is passionate and works well together to ensure that we have an understanding and respect of Te Ao Māori and te taiao the environment. This is something I continue to be inspired and learn more about.

Laura Price, Assistant Head Teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden.

Laura Price

ECE Teacher

Sarah Small ECE Teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden

Sarah Small

ECE Teacher

Shimeah Tulisi, ECE teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden

Shimeah Tulisi

ECE Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Taylor Nicholls

Taylor Nicholls

ECE Teacher

Maureen Donovan, cook at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden

Maureen Donovan

Chef

Centre Manager Glen Eden ECE Brooke

Brooke MacClure

Centre Manager, Our Kids Mataki Way

Kia Ora, my name is Brooke and I am the Centre Manager for Our Kids Mataki Way.

I have been working in Early Childhood since 2007. I hold a Graduate Diploma of Teaching (ECE), alongside a Postgraduate Diploma in Early Intervention. I have worked in a range of settings in the early childhood sector. I started my career working in Daycare, then as a Visiting Teacher and Manager in the Home Based Sector and more recently Kindergarten.

I teach from the heart and give 100% in all that I do. I believe that when our tamariki, fellow Kaiako and whanau are treated with kindness and compassion meaningful relationships develop. The strength of these relationships ground us in a space that enables us to explore, to fly and let our true selves shine. I am committed to my role leading our wonderful team of passionate early childhood educators and working in a collaborative space to promote rich and meaningful learning opportunities for our tamariki.

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Lorraine

Lorraine Kaye

2IC

Team Leader Glen Eden Mataki Way Haley

Haley Henderson

Over 2s Team Leader

placeholder image for staff and childcare centres

Aria Allbon

Over 2s Teacher

Nancy Bhayana over 2s teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Mataki Way

Nancy Bhayana

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Dawn

Dawn James

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Penny

Penny Kaye

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Lina

Lina Liu

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Lara

Lara Maissin

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Vikashni

Vikashni Ram

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Alyssa

Alyssa Severs

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Miki

Miki Shimoji

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Sandalie

Sandalie Weerasekara

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Glen Eden Mataki Way Rebekah

Rebekah Whitehead

Under 2s Teacher

Simone Gavin Administrator at Our Kids Onehunga Daycare

Simone Gavin

Administrator

Natasha Barr Centre Manager Our Kids Glendene

Natasha Barr

Centre Manager, Our Kids Glendene

Ashley Fortes, ECE teacher at Our Kids Glendene

Ashley Fortes

ECE Teacher

ECE Teacher Glendene Gale Dela Rosa

Gale Dela Rosa

ECE Teacher

Michaela Dovey, ECE teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glendene.

Michaela Dovey

ECE Teacher

Teresa Ransom ECE Teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Glen Eden

Teresa Ransom

ECE Teacher

Simone Gavin Administrator at Our Kids Onehunga Daycare

Simone Gavin

Administrator

Rochelle Cole

Centre Manager, Our Kids Onehunga

Kia ora e te whānau,

My name is Rochelle Cole and I am the centre Manager over at Our Kids Early Learning Centre Onehunga.

I have a Bachelor of Education in Primary/Intermediate teaching and I have been working for Our Kids Early Learning since 2012 which has provided me with multiple opportunities for growth and development over this time.  My approach to teaching and learning as a whole is centred around ako/ recipricol learning, and whakamana/ empowered child led learning, with an emphasis on dispositions and attitudes towards lifelong learning.  We strive for our tamariki to experience a challenging and thoughtful environment that encourages respect for themselves, respect for others, while also fostering a deep and instrinsic connection with Te Taiao.

High quality education means ensuring a holistic and culturally inclusive response to teaching and learning where tamariki, kaiako, and whānau feel capable and valued to confidently express their ideas, thoughts, and feelings.  I embrace a shared leadership model, nurturing and building beautiful collaborative whanaungatanga between Kaiako, and whānau, where everyone feels connected through a strong,  authentic sense of belonging.

Divya Chand Over 2s Head Teacher at Our Kids Early Learning Centre Onehunga

Divya Chand

2IC

Kia Ora,

I am Divya and the 2IC of our kids Onehunga. I have been working under the Our kid’s umbrella since 2020 and it has by far been the most adventurous time in my career. I’ve had great opportunities for growth and continuous learning here, which I’m truly grateful for.

I’ve always been passionate about working with young children, which made me chase my passion for early childhood education. Choosing this career for myself has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in life.

My beliefs are that every child should be given every opportunity to grow into a happy, healthy, and confident individual. Children are confident, capable learners and I encourage children to take on challenges where they can further develop their interests and skills and make choices for themselves. I enjoy being a part of our tamariki’s little world and believe that there is a lot to learn from children itself. This is something I really love about this job. Working as a support worker previously, I have gained great knowledge and experience in working with children and adults with disabilities which has sparked a deep interest in me to care for children with diverse needs.

Building trustful and strong relationships with our kaiako, tamariki and whanau are highly valuable to me. Being a parent myself, I can put myself in other parents’ situations and understand them better, as well as be able to make a deeper connection with our tamariki. I look forward to building more meaningful relationships and working closely with the children, parents/whanau of Our Kids.

Anna Mcleod ECE teacher at Our Kids Onehunga Childcare Centre

Anna Mcleod

Under 2s Teacher

Christina Raines

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Onehunga Ellie

Ellie Sharpe

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Onehunga Ina Asis

Ina Asis

Over 2s Teacher

Jenny Hoe-Oon ECE Teacher at Our Kids Onehunga Childcare

Jenny Hoe-Oon

Over 2s Teacher

Juliana Feyter ECE Teacher at Our Kids Onehunga Childcare

Juliana Feyter

Over 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Onehunga Nandita

Nandita Alexander

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Onehunga Shivani

Shivani Lata

Under 2s Teacher

ECE Teacher Onehunga Rose

Rose Zheng

Over 2s Teacher

Simone Gavin Administrator at Our Kids Onehunga Daycare

Simone Gavin

Administrator

A highly responsive and respectful curriculum supports the development of children's dispositions for learning. Children confidently explore the centre, leading their own learning through play. They engage enthusiastically with stimulating and open-ended resources. Teachers skilfully extend their learning, creativity and problem solving. Relationships of support are strongly evident between children.
- ERO Report 2019, Beazley Place, Glendene
Teaching is responsive to individual children's needs and teachers make links to children's experiences outside of the centre. Teachers are increasing their knowledge of te ao Māori perspectives by participating in professional development. As a result, they are continuing to strengthen bicultural aspects of the curriculum.
- ERO Report 2018, Glendale Road, Glen Eden