Administration
Sophie Wallas Rasmussen
Co-Founder & Head of School
Sophie holds a BA in Anthropology from Copenhagen University, an MSc in Social Anthropology from London School of Economics, an MS in Human Nutrition (Functional Medicine) from University of Bridgeport, and a Diploma in Multi-disciplinary Project & Innovation Leadership from Copenhagen Business School.
She is the founder and owner of the holistic health institute HOLISCOPE LLC and the non-profit 501(c)(3) KidSkill Fund, which raises funds for affordable children's education. Sophie has a life-long passion for helping people reach their full potential, as well as creating spaces for human growth. It is a great honor to be serving our youngest citizens as well as building and supporting a great crew around the tenets of the Montessori, to provide a safe and nurturing environment for whole human development.
As a Montessori child alum herself, Sophie enrolled her firstborn in a Montessori Daycare in Manhattan after maternity leave, followed by having her children in a Reggio Emilia-based school closer to her family's former home in Brooklyn. She is excited to having had her kids return to the Montessori method on a beautiful old farm in Bovina.
Sophie continues her joy of learning and has completed all levels of Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) Orientation Courses during 2021-2022, for ages 0-3, 3-6, 6-12, and 12-18. She also completed in 2024 a two-year Montessori Leadership program at the Whole School Leadership Institute (WSL), certified by Loyola University Maryland.
TBD
Caretaker
To be updated. We are recruiting!
David Madie
Co-Founder & Head of Business
David holds a MSc in Economics and Business Administration from Aarhus Business School (Denmark). He has been a serial entrepreneur for over 35 years, most recently as the founder and CEO of GrowthWheel International Inc., a training and software company with 20 employees working for economic development agencies worldwide. Prior to this, he has successfully started more than 10 companies across the globe, including in Scandinavia, North America, South and Southeast Asia, as well as East and South Africa.
David is the principal creator and designer of GrowthWheel, a visual toolbox and software platform for business advisors who work with small businesses. David has trained and certified over 3,600 small business advisors in 49 US states and 50+ countries. It is the intention that GrowthWheel will design a child-centered, Montessori-inspired, entrepreneurship toolbox for the school’s curriculum. David also sits as the chairman of the School Advisory Board and helps with all the business side of the school's administration.
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David is married to Sophie and together they have two kids, one of whom is currently attending Bovina Center Montessori School.
Becky Manning
Operations Coordinator
I am currently known as The Becky Monster on Campus. When I arrive at work, the children shriek and run!
I have lived in Bovina Center on and off for more than 26 years. I have a Bachelor Degree in Recreation and Leisure Studies from Gordon College in Wenham Mass. I got married at Suits us Farm, the same property that is now Bovina Montessori School. If you drive through Bovina Center on any given day you may see me out walking up and down the road.
I have enjoyed working with youth throughout the years. My first job in Delaware County was working at DC-4 the local day care center as the school age afterschool program leader. I then shifted focus to work for Berkshire Farm Services and Center for Youth, with at risk children in Delaware County, which led to me becoming a caseworker. I moved away from Delaware County for a period of time to work as a professional Girl Scout in Ulster and Albany Counties. Moving back to Delaware County, I became an adjunct professor at SUNY Delhi for the Sports and Recreation Department and worked as the Camp Director of Camp Shankitunk in the summers. I then had the opportunity to work at the Catskill Recreation Center for eight years as their Executive Director. I now have the joy of working at the Bovina Center Montessori School as the Operations Coordinator which allows me to focus my energy on supporting the staff and the children in a variety of ways.
Through all of these positions my focus has been on helping to advance youth development through educational and recreational activities. I believe that all children hold intelligences that they can build on and utilize to make the community and the world around them a better place. Sometimes traditional methods of education do not always tap the unusual intelligences that a child may hold. I believe that the Montessori way of teaching can help children find their path in life and give them focus as they move forward in their learning.
I am happy to be part of The Bovina Center Montessori School and helping the next generation of youth here!
School & Advisory Board
Elizabeth Lamont
Elizabeth is a C-suite executive with 30 years of experience leading the marketing departments of the world’s top beauty brands. Her skill set covers marketing, sales, education, and PR.
Personally, her upbringing brought her to the Catskills, as summers spent at canoe-tripping camps and family cottages in her native Canada led her to seek a rural balance to her urban life. Six years ago, Elizabeth and her husband bought a three-season, camp-style cabin in Bloomville and now alternate between Delaware County and Merida, Mexico as their homes.
Elizabeth was a volunteer Child Care Assistant at Mother’s Choice in Hong Kong, where she lived for several years, comes from a family of Montessori educators, and has completed AMI Montessori Assistants Certificates for 3-6 and 6-12 Years from the Maria Montessori Institute in London.
Donna Dickson-Noonan
Donna is a native “Bovinian”, her family having lived and farmed in the area for generations. She is currently the President of the Board at Cornell Corporate Extension of Delaware County, which serves as an educational system that enables people to improve their lives and communities through partnerships that put experience and research knowledge to work, in the areas of agriculture, human ecology, and youth development.
Donna is a member of the Town of Bovina Board, and holds a degree from Western New Mexico University, previously working in healthcare in New York, Wyoming, Minnesota, Montana, and New Mexico. She runs her Glenanore Farm with her husband Mike, where they produce meat and dairy to the local community in Bovina. She is a proud mother and grandmother to several children and grandchildren still living in the county, two of which are enrolled in Bovina Montessori.
Catharine Du Bois Sherry
Catharine is a lawyer and a professor at Brooklyn Law School teaching legal rhetoric and legal communication. She has been teaching lawyers and soon-to-be lawyers to communicate more effectively for over a decade. Catharine also consults on curriculum development and effective learning technique. Catharine is a mother of two children, alternates between her home in Brooklyn and the family house in Bovina, and is with her husband Jake a strong supporter of the local Delaware community.
Montessori Advisors, Coaches & Consultants
Bovina Center Montessori School prides itself on seeking out and learning from a great number of Montessori Advisors, Coaches, and Consultants. As avid learners, we continue to invite advisors, coaches, and consultants from the Montessori world to work with us, visit our campus, and guide us - virtually and on-site - in creating the best conditions for authentic Montessori education at our school in upstate NY. Advisors that we work with and have worked with, include:
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Barbara "Bobbie" Callahan
Tim Seldin
Gaurapriya Tester
Zahra Majeed
Virginia Viscovic
Allison Manuel
Maryse Postlewaite
Ayize Sabater
Michele Hutchinson
Maria Caradonna
Jonathan Churn
Laurie Ewert-Crocker
Tina Booth
Peter Davidson
Kathy Minardi
George Markham
Todd Covert
Sue Pritzker​
Tiina Suominen
Mary Reinhardt
Nancy Kodera
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...As well as lots of amazing peers in admin and classrooms, in Montessori schools across the US and the world, who share their knowledge and experiences with us, through the ideals and spirit of Maria Montessori. May we pass all this on in reciprocation, as we gain the wisdom that they and we have collected over the years.