Assistant Teacher - ELC 102
Monica Austin joins us bringing over 20 years of experience in the education and care of young learners. She holds a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Framingham State University. While raising her four children in Southborough, she created and directed an after school enrichment program which served Southborough K-8 students for 10 years. Ms. Austin decided to move her career back to her most beloved age group, the preschool set, and for the last decade, has been teaching pre-k in local schools. Previously a FaySummer Theatre Arts Director, Monica is delighted to return to Fay to share her true passion for preschool education at the ELC, inspiring joy, curiosity, and a love for learning in each of the students she serves. In her free time, she loves to bike, hike, kayak, and go adventuring. She is a strong supporter of the Rails to Trails Conservancy, and The National Parks Foundation, and engenders a true love for the natural world and its many wonders. As an empty nester, she now hopes to achieve her personal goal to visit every National Park within her lifetime, from Acadia to Zion.

Assistant Teacher - ELC 101
Paige Chauncey graduated from Emmanuel College in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in history. Paige loves working with children and has been working at Fay since 2014. Before becoming an Assistant Teacher in the ELC, she has worked as a counselor and arts & crafts specialist at Fay Summer, an ESL teacher at Fay’s English Immersion program, and a teacher’s aide in the ELC. She is looking into continuing her studies in education. During her freetime, she loves walking her dogs Maple and Lucy, cooking, exercising and hanging out with friends and family.

Assistant Director of the Early Learning Center
Lauren Cilley has been working with young children for more than fifteen years. She taught Pre-K at Fay since the inception of the program for seven years before becoming the Program Coordinator for the Early Learning Center at Fay School. Previously, Lauren worked as a teacher and assistant to the director at Boston University’s Early Childhood Learning Laboratory. Lauren is passionate about early childhood education and play-based learning. She loves working with young children because of the excitement, sincerity, and innate curiosity that the children bring to school every day. Her favorite part of teaching at Fay is designing inquiry-based curricula around the children’s interests and finding creative ways to incorporate academic skill development. Lauren’s writing about teaching science to young children was featured in Marcia Edson’s book, Starting with Science. In 2015, Lauren completed a study tour of early childhood centers in Pistoia, Italy. In addition to working with Fay's youngest students, Lauren has been a dorm parent, led several clubs for Fay After School, and was a unit leader for FaySummer. She has lived in Massachusetts since 2003, but is originally from Philadelphia and remains a devoted Phillies fan.

Lead Teacher - ELC 102
Noel Desmond is a graduate of Colgate University and has a Master's in Education from Harvard's Graduate School of Education. For the past eleven years, Noel has been working as a Lead Teacher at the Methodist Preschool in Westborough. She has so much fun working with young learners because of their energy, enthusiasm, and curiosity and considers it an honor to be a part of a child's earliest years of schooling. Prior to working in early education, Noel was a Financial Analyst at Harvard University and the Assistant Director of Public Affairs at Cornell University. She and her husband, Stephen, live in Westborough and have three daughters - Emily (Cornell '21), Grace (Brown '23), and Julia (Westborough HS '22).

Teacher's Aide
Matthew Graham joins the Fay community after working as an ABA in Massachusetts. Matthew also has experience as a behavioral technician. He holds a BA in Psychology from Iona College, where he graduated in 2018.

Teacher's Aide
Andrea Grant was born and raised in Providence, RI and now resides in Worcester, MA, with her husband, Ryan, two sons, Julian and Jackson, and Boston Terrier, Jojo. Andrea studied psychobiology, public health, and sociology at Simmons College where she earned her first Bachelor of Science degree and then went on to pursue a second Bachelor's in communication disorders from Utah State University. Andrea is currently pursuing a degree in nursing and is CPR and basic life support certified through the American Heart Association. In her spare time, she volunteers as the contestant coordinator and fundraising chair for the Distinguished Young Women of Rhode Island scholarship program and as a wish granter for the Make A Wish Foundation of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. She also enjoys coaching Little League and baking.

Lead Teacher - ELC 103
Mary Hupfer has been an educator since 2001, when she graduated from Plymouth State University with a bachelor's degree in early childhood studies. Before joining Fay in 2017, she was employed by First Steps as a preschool teacher. She is currently pursuing a master's degree from Southern New Hampshire University in psychology with a focus on children and adolescents. Mary has a passion for teaching and working with children because they are so full of curiosity and wonder. She lives in Holliston with her husband Mike and her children Mikey and Macy.

Teacher's Aide
This will be Roberta Kelly's first year at Fay’s Early Learning Center. For many years, she has been an assistant teacher at various childcare centers around the Southborough area. She has worked with infants through pre-K. Roberta has three kids of her own: Alyssa, Jake, and Olivia. She loves spending time with her family and taking pictures to capture memories.

Director of the Early Learning Center
Katie Knuppel is Head of Primary School and Director of the Early Learning Center at Fay. She spent close to twenty years teaching in New York City independent schools, namely The Chapin School and The Buckley School, in Kindergarten through fifth grade. Before coming to Fay, Katie was the Assistant Director of Lower School at The Buckley School and is a graduate of the New York State Association of Independent Schools Emerging Leaders Institute. Katie's passion for early childhood and elementary education stems from her love of school as a child and her passion for creative, engaging curriculum. She adores the imagination and intelligence of young children, the ever-changing challenges of each school day, and the joy and laughter of students learning. She is an educational leader who believes collaboration and communication between students, families, faculty, and staff are the keys to a nurturing, dynamic educational program. She lives on the Fay campus with her family, including her husband, two children, and two dogs. Her daughter Kit attends Fay, and her son Rufus attends Groton School as a boarder.

Lead Teacher - ELC 101
Priscilla has more than 15 years of experience in early childhood education. Prior to coming to Fay, she was a lead preschool teacher at First Steps Learning Center in Southborough. Priscilla enjoys the dynamic opportunities that teaching young children brings. As a pre-school teacher, she loves supporting each child in his or her own individual path and strives to give children the care and resources that they need for their independent growth. She is thankful to be part of the lives of young children who are so passionate and excited about the world around them.

Assistant Teacher - ELC 103
Taylor MacPherson graduated from Northeastern University in 2019 with a Bachelor of Science in psychology. Taylor is currently completing her master's degree in elementary education at Northeastern University; she will graduate in December 2020. Throughout her time at Northeastern, Taylor has been given the opportunity to work at multiple schools located in and around the Boston area. She has been working at Fay School since 2014. Before joining the ELC she worked as a camp counselor at Fay Summer and has been a dorm parent in Fay's residential life program for the past two years. In her free time, she loves traveling to new places and practicing photography.

Teacher's Aide
Katie Sullivan was a Pre-K teacher at Immaculate Conception School for two years. She has been in the early childhood field for twenty years. She loves to see excitement in the children’s eyes when they learn something new. Katie is also the mother of two girls Kaylie and Allyson.