Region 3

Early Educator Support Office at UNC Charlotte

Region 3 Staff

Stephanie Bridges

Regional Lead / Mentor / Evaluator

ssbridge@uncc.edu

I have always had a passion for working with young children and have had the honor of supporting them, their families, their teachers, their therapists, and their communities for 26 years as a NC PreK Teacher, CDSA Service Coordinator, and now as an EESLPD Mentor/Evaluator and Regional Lead for Region 3. I have worked for the EESLPD Office (and previously with TLU) since 2009. Supporting teachers, mentors, evaluators, and partners through their processes of developing and expanding their skills and building on their practices is rewarding work. What I like best about working with the EESLPD is being able to work with kind, warm, enthusiastic, and caring teachers who are dedicated to feeding children’s curiosities and love for learning.

Cheryo Johnson

Mentor / Evaluator

cjohn104@uncc.edu

Crystal Thomas

Mentor / Evaluator

cthom208@uncc.edu Hello, my name is Crystal Thomas I have been working with young children for 20+ years. I joined the EESLPD West family in 2018. I have experience teaching in public and private schools and understand the challenges and benefits of both. I believe teacher collaboration is key to being productive and successful in the classroom. We as educators have a common goal and that is to see our children grow as we foster life-long learning.

Erica Recchio

Mentor / Evaluator

erecchio@uncc.edu Erica Recchio has worked with the EESLPD Office since September 2016. She has a Bachelor’s degree in psychology with a concentration in Early Child Education from Syracuse University. In addition, she has a Birth-Kindergarten teaching license as well as a K-6 license. She has over ten years of experience working with children birth-5-years-old. She believes each and every child deserves quality education that fosters a supportive learning environment.

Kawanna Jackson

Mentor / Evaluator

ktjackso@uncc.edu

Mariel Luza Gardner

Mentor / Evaluator

mgardn32@uncc.edu I am originally from Bolivia, and I have lived in Mint Hill, North Carolina since 2011. I hold a BA in Psychology, a BA in Early Childhood Education, and a Master’s in Education. I worked as a NC Pre-K teacher for five years and as an elementary teacher for two years. I started working as a Mentor and Evaluator with the EESLPD Office at UNC Charlotte in September 2018. I love being a part of this great team and working with teachers to improve the quality of Early Childhood Education.

Samantha Hines

Mentor / Evaluator

slhines1@uncc.edu

Media and Education are a perfect match for Samantha. She has worked in radio and television media as a broadcast journalist before pursuing instructional work and support for young children. She completed Post Baccalaureate studies in Early Childhood and Family Development at The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She began to support teachers in her role as a key communicator on the Talent Effectiveness Project (TEP) instructional work stream and online community host and blog writer for Tripod 7 C’s. Samantha holds a master’s degree in Elementary Education from Montreat College. She joined the EESLPD office in 2018.

Tammy Potts

Mentor / Evaluator

tpotts7@uncc.edu Hi my name is Tammy Potts and I have been a mentor/evaluator with the EESLPD program since September 2018. I taught Pre-k for ten years, seven of those years in an NC Pre-k classroom. I also have a background in special education. Before starting in this position, I was a University Supervisor part time at UNC Charlotte. Teaching has always been my passion and I love how now I still get to be in classrooms and be a support to my teachers.