Preschool Staff 2023-2024

Office Staff:

Stephanie Boyer (Pebble Director) has been a part of the Mercer Island community since 2004, and has been the Pebble Director since 2016. Her roots stem from Southern California but the Pacific Northwest has won her heart. Ms. Steph has a B.A. in Elementary Education, a parent coaching certification, and has been teaching preschool for over sixteen years. She has recently become a certified candidate to be ordained in Word and Sacrament within the Presbyterian Church (PCUSA). Stephanie is passionate about a holistic approach to life, learning, and values investing in the lives of our families. 

Heather Hall (Office Manager) grew up on Mercer Island and now has lived on the island with her husband and two kids for the last 20 years. She graduated from the University of Washington with a B.A. in Sociology and Spanish. She is an avid volunteer in the Mercer Island School District, and youth sports in the area. She has also dedicated many years of leadership to Pebble Preschool, Sunday school at MIPC where she taught Kindergarten-2nd Graders, and Girl Scouts. She has worked in Marketing and Retail Management, as well as spending more than 10 years as a Nanny. Both of her kids attended Pebble from Toddler-PreK and she is so excited to be working at Pebble. When she is not at Pebble, you might see her waterskiing on Lake Washington,  long-distance running around the island, or working at Island Treats.

Toddler 2s Teachers:

Teressa Cooper (Lead Teacher) was born and raised in Lindsborg, Kansas – a small, rural community with a vibrant Swedish heritage. She found a strong sense of community care both in her hometown and through her church, caring for many kids in these communities. In an effort to explore somewhere new, Ms. Teressa moved to the PNW in 2017 and joined the Pebble team. She taught for a few years in our toddler and Pre-K classrooms, and in our EPIC days program. Upon the arrival of the COVID pandemic she returned home to Kansas and taught with us virtually. During her “Pebble hiatus,” Teressa served in Scotland as a Young Adult Volunteer with the Presbyterian Church, USA, where she organized and led playgroups and youth outreach ministries. Missing the Pebble community, Miss Teressa returned to Mercer Island the fall of 2023 and is thrilled to be back teaching. 

Fran Covarrubias (Lead Teacher) was born and raised in Santiago, Chile and grew up in a family of seven brothers and sisters. She has 3 kids (two pebble alumni and hopefully the third one will be as lucky as his siblings and will come to pebble too!) Fran and her husband moved to the United States eight year ago and lived in Chicago for two years before moving to Mercer Island. She has a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, and has been trained in “Learning Difficulties in the Classroom”. Before moving to the US, Fran worked as the lead teacher in 1st and 2nd grade, and also as a teacher assistant in the psychology department of her university. This is her fourth year teaching at Pebble and she loves it here at Pebble Preschool.

Michelle Strange (Assistant Teacher) grew up on Mercer Island and lives on the Island with her two kids. One of her kids is a Pebble alumni and the other one is currently attending Pebble. Michelle earned her BA in Medical Anthropology and Global Health at the University of Washington. She has worked many years in a hospital setting, but after having kids she has switched to childcare. She is active in the Mercer Island Northwood Elementary School PTA and volunteers regularly at Northwood. She has previous teacher experience at multiple preschools on the eastside. Michelle is very passionate about play-based learning and development. Children learn valuable skills through engaging with others and role-playing. Michelle is very excited to be here and this will be her first year teaching at Pebble!

Threes Teachers:

Marian Amoateng (Lead Teacher) was born in Ghana and in her early age spent a couple of years in Nigeria during her parents' work relocation. She holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Human Resource Management, as well as a Higher National Diploma in Estate Management. Additionally, she has loved volunteering as a creative arts teacher and in Sunday school for children in her home country.  While in Norway, Marian played an assistive role with the Red Cross and worked as an assistant teacher at a kindergarten. She speaks 4 languages and enjoys singing in the choir. We are excited to have Ms. Marian here for her second year of teaching at Pebble.

Heidi Lewan (Lead Teacher) is a graduate of Eastside Catholic High School in Bellevue, WA and Concordia University in Irvine, CA. Heidi earned her B.A. in both Early Childhood Education and Liberal Studies, with a Child Development emphasis, and she completed a fifth year of study to earn her Preliminary Elementary Teaching Credential. In addition to a four-year Early Childhood degree, Heidi has also taken classes in Preschool Administration. She completed her student teaching in Pre-K, kindergarten, and fourth grade, and she directed and taught at Little Lambs Christian Preschool for three years. Heidi has been at the Pebble Preschool since it opened in 2001.

PreK Teachers:

Sumin Fowler (Assistant Teacher) moved to Mercer Island after her program at the University of Washington in 2007 from South Korea. Sumin taught English Reading and Grammar Test Prep to 5th to 12th graders at Ulsan Il-Jung Academy. She has a B.A. in French language and literature and TESOL (Teaching English as a Second Language) Certification in a Master's Program. She has a strong interest in supporting the Immigrant Korean community. Sumin's son attended Pebble for three years. This is Ms. Sumin’s fifth year teaching at Pebble Preschool and we are so lucky to have her.

Dawn Gomez (Lead Teacher) grew up in a military family and has lived all throughout the country. This contributed to her love of traveling and adventures! Dawn also loves to laugh and be silly, and all things sparkly.  Dawn moved to Seattle to attend the University of Washington and graduated with a BA in Psychology.  While participating in the North Seattle Co-op Preschool Program, she quickly accepted a position as co-op teacher, and she taught in the North Seattle Community College Preschool program for four years. She also has been the lead teacher for her church’s Sunday Childcare program as well as an assistant to the Children’s Faith Formation Director. Dawn has been at Pebble for 15 years and her youngest child attended Pebble.  Dawn is extremely excited to begin another year at Pebble, teaching our PreK Class. 

Jr. Kindergarten Teachers:

Stephanie Smith (Lead Teacher) has called MI her second home for many years, but grew up in Sammamish, WA. She has a BAEd in Elementary Education and Communication Studies from Western Washington University and has had years of elementary teaching experience before coming to Pebble in the spring of 2021. Stephanie loves working with students, helping them grow, and building relationships with families. Ms. Stephanie has used her education and experience to help develop our Jr. Kindergarten program.