Joyce Preschool's Executive Director for the past seven years, Laura
Johansson, has announced some exciting news for her family - they will
be moving to Latin America in 2011! Laura, her husband, and their
school-aged children will spend a year living out a language and
cultural immersion experience that reflects the values of Joyce
Preschool.
Joyce Preschool was first established in 1966 and became a
Spanish/English two-way immersion program in 1995. Laura was hired in
2003 as the first Executive Director and has worked to expand the
school's capacity to prepare more children and families for school and
lifelong learning.
During her tenure, Joyce became incorporated as a nonprofit, established
a Board of Directors, and developed formal finance, outreach and
program evaluation systems. The core preschool program grew from 36 to
88 families, with an additional 50 families participating in newer
program extensions such as parent-child classes or summer camp.
Board Chair Paola Nuñez-Obetz commended Laura for her work transforming
the school into a nationally accredited leader in bilingual, bicultural
programming: "She has built a very strong foundation and we're in a
really great position right now, thanks to her. We're going to miss her
and she has found a great opportunity for her family, but at the same
time, I think we're in a great position to have a transition."
With a new strategic plan in place, strong community support, and
exciting new directions to explore for growth and partnership
opportunities, board and staff agree it is an ideal time for a new
leader to come in and guide the next stage of Joyce's journey. Laura's
decision to resign later this year allows plenty of time for a
well-planned transition process. She will stay on through the beginning
of the coming school year and overlap with the new director to ensure
seamless leadership for the school.
This transition brings exciting opportunities both for the school and
for Laura's family. To hear more of Laura's thoughts about her decision
or Paola's comments about what this means for the organization, click
on the video clips below.
To learn more about the Executive Director position, click here to read the job description.
For questions or concerns, please feel free to contact the school at
(612) 823-2447 or e-mail Laura directly at
[email protected]