Our Preschool Staff

Mrs. Modich is back at Kirk in the Hills Preschool after retiring in 2022.  She realized that her love of children and working at the Kirk Preschool was like family and something she very much wanted to be a part of.  Pat has been teaching in Early Childhood for at least 25 years and has experienced teaching Parent / Tot classes, three year olds, four year olds, and JK. Mrs. Modich enjoys working with children and their families ensuring that each child is treated as an individual, making sure they are loved, nurtured, and celebrated.

Mrs. Effinger comes back to Kirk in the Hills Preschool as one of our 2 1/2-year-old teachers.  She and her husband and their three boys (who all went to school here) have lived in Bloomfield Hills for over 12 years and our members of Kirk in the Hills Church.  Courtney was a proud preschool parent and was even a member of our preschool board back when her children attended preschool here.  You can certainly say that she is invested in our school.  Mrs. Effinger has worked the past few years at Cranbrook’s Early Childhood Center as a floating substitute teacher and has much experience working with our youngest learners.  She is super excited to be back at Kirk in the Hills Preschool and we are thrilled to have her.

Sandy Jewell has a B.A. with an Elementary Teaching Certificate with an Early Childhood Endorsement from Wayne State University and a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Saginaw Valley State University.  She comes to us with 15 years of Early Childhood teaching experience before becoming an Early Childhood Specialist and supervisor in 2014.  Even though Sandy enjoys her time in the classroom with our youngest learners, she is passionate about supporting, mentoring, and growing a positive high-quality preschool community.  She is thrilled to be on our Kirk in the Hills Preschool team!

Katie is excited to teach the 4 and 5 day 4 year-old class starting in the Fall of 2022 after teaching our Parent/Tot and 2 1/2 year old programs for the past several years.  She comes to us with a Bachelor degree in Early Childhood Education from Rochester College and over twelve years experience working in child care settings as a toddler and preschool teacher.  Her former supervisors and colleagues describe her as warm, caring, open and “a natural” with young children.  She enjoys building relationships with both parents and children and feels her skills and experience make her well suited to her position at the Kirk Preschool.  She is the proud mother of 2 young children which makes her especially in tune with this age group!

Cathy Boggio has an AA degree in Early Childhood Education from Oakland Community College. Before coming to Kirk in the Hills Preschool in 2009 she was the lead teacher and assistant director at the Community House Early Childhood Center in Birmingham. Cathy is a mother of 4 who grew up in the area and now lives in Waterford.  She is currently a teacher of 4-year-olds. She feels that it’s a privilege to be able to teach at Kirk in the Hills Preschool, and believes in providing a warm, loving atmosphere for all children so that they may have an exceptional learning experience.

Robin Brinks has a B.A. in Psychology and Business Administration from Hope College and a M.S. in Human Development and Family Studies from Penn State University. Her work experience includes 10 years as a director of child care centers including the Community House Early Childhood Center in Birmingham. She has served Kirk in the Hills Preschool in many capacities, including Chair and Treasurer of the Preschool Board of Directors when her children attended the school, assistant director, and interim director.  She has been a teacher of 3- and 4-year olds at the Kirk Preschool since 2007. Robin loves being one of the first influences on the children outside of their families. She hopes to instill a wonder for learning, and the feeling of being loved unconditionally by their teachers and by God.

Kristin Donoghue holds a B.S. in Psychology and Employee Relations from Michigan State University and a Masters in Early Childhood Education from Oakland University. Before coming to Kirk in the Hills Preschool in 2010, she taught preschool at several area preschools, including Country Day and St. Hugo of the Hills. Kristin loves to bring new and creative ideas to the classroom, and enjoys finding ways to make every moment a “teachable moment.”

Sarah Ford has a BA in Sociology from Princeton University, a Master’s Degree of Public Health from the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and a Master’s Degree in Child Development from the Human Development and Family Studies Department at Michigan State University.  She is certified as a child life specialist and has over 1,000 hours of clinical care practice in psychosocial care for children undergoing various medical-related trauma.  Sarah is passionate about the influence and importance of the parent-child relationship, attachment-based parenting and the critical period of development of children ages 0-5.  Sarah works on the Christian Education Team at Kirk in the Hills Presbyterian Church in PreK through grade 5.  Sarah is a mother of two children, native of Michigan, and believer in the Christian faith. She is excited to be teaching our Parent – Toddler Program.

Terri Hanpeter has a BS in Elementary Education and Special Education and a Master’s in Early Childhood Education, both from the University of Michigan.   She taught many years in a pre-primary special ed environment and continued to volunteer at all levels of education once her son arrived in 1998.  She spent many years teaching Sunday School at Kirk in the Hills before becoming a substitute teacher for the Kirk’s preschool program.  She is now a teacher in both the 2 1/2-year-old class and the 3 day 3-year-old class.  She is thrilled to be a part of the Kirk Preschool staff and loves working with the staff, kids and parents alike.  Terri feels that teaching in such a loving, supportive, Christian-based learning environment is truly a blessing!

Meghan Lorang received her B.S. in Family Community Services (Child Development) from Michigan State University. She also received a degree in Elementary Education from Eastern Michigan University. Meghan has many years of teaching experience in preschool and early elementary classrooms. In addition to her degrees, Meghan also has earned her Montessori certification in Pre-primary education (3-6 year olds).  Meghan taught in the 2 1/2-year-old class starting in the Fall of 2016 before becoming a 3 day 3-year-old teacher starting the Fall of 2020. Meghan has known from a young age that she wanted to work with children. She loves the children’s energy and watching them grow, and also enjoys reading and singing with them.

Kathryn Evola Mudloff  (Mrs. K) holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from Oakland University.  Before becoming our Junior Kindergarten (JK) teacher, she spent 10 + years in the advertising/sales industry before coming back to her true love of teaching. Kathryn recently taught language arts, science, and physical education classes to children of all ages at a local childcare center.  Her goal is for children to develop a love for learning through play, hands-on activities, exploration and problem solving.  Mrs. K also believes it is critical that children start their academic career through having fun!

Nancy Corbeille, the preschool’s music teacher, has a BA in Business Administration and over twenty years of experience teaching music to children. She has been our music teacher here at the Kirk Preschool since 2004, and is instrumental in overseeing the Christmas program and end of the year program.