Our Team
Meet our village of educators!
Amanda Hellebush
Executive Director
Amanda Hellebush has served as Executive Director at Full Heart Child Care since opening in May 2017. Amanda holds a bachelor's degree in Elementary and Early Childhood Education, and a master's degree in Childhood and Early Childhood Special Education. She taught 3rd and 4th grade for several years in Hamburg, NY before moving to the Rochester area in 2014. She resides in Brighton with her husband and Goldendoodle, Jack! She has worked in the early childhood industry for almost 7 years and loves being part of the Full Heart family because of the family atmosphere! She prides herself on knowing each and every one of the families and children in the program. She truly believes that when a child is loved, supported, and respected, they are able to live their best life! Amanda is a multi-tasker so if she had a super-power it would be to clone herself! In her free time, Amanda enjoys spending time with her family and dog, traveling, reading, and gardening.
Ciara Trudeau-Smith
Program Coordinator
Miss Ciara joined the full heart team in September 2018. She earned her Bachelor's Degree from Brockport in December 2019. Miss Ciara has worked with children in a variety of capacities for over 12 years. When she is not working or going to school, Miss Ciara enjoys spending time with her family (husband, dog, and two cats) and friends. If she could have a super power, Miss Ciara would want to be able to read minds because she likes to to know what everyone's thinking, always! Her favorite part of working with children is watching them grow and learn new things. Miss Ciara loves all age groups but since starting at Full Heart, toddlers have captured her heart.
Betsy Wilcox
Education Specialist
Miss Betsy joined the Full Heart Family in November 2017 and spent the first two and a half years as the Lead Preschool Teacher. She took on the role of Education Specialist in July of 2020. Miss Betsy has a degree from SUNY Geneseo in Early Childhood Education and has several years teaching toddlers and preschool aged children. Betsy lives in Perinton with her partner, young daughter, and 4 cats! She would like to be able to teleport herself anywhere in the world at any given time! Betsy is grateful for the trust that parents put in teachers and is thankful that she gets to help shape their future! She loves that everyone she encounters at Full Heart is friendly, genuine, loving, and helpful!
Nina Tavolino
Center Opener
Miss Nina has been with Full Heart Child Care since June of 2017. She opens the building each morning with a smile on her face. She loves getting to work with all of the children in the center. She witnesses so many milestones and that just make her day! She has been working with children for over 15 years and has a 6-year-old daughter who she spends most of her time with! She enjoys working out, rollerblading, and spending time with her family and friends when she is not at Full Heart!
Krista Nappo
Infant One Lead Teacher
Miss Krista joined the Full Heart Infant team in September 2018. She has her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology along with a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is the oldest of three children and enjoys spending time with her boyfriend and family when she is not seeking out treasures at thrift stores! She loves doing crafty things as well. She relocated to Rochester about three years ago from New Jersey. She thinks that being a teacher is like having a super power. She is able to juggle lots of tasks at once, and with ease! Krista's favorite part about teaching young children is watching them grow and reach different milestones!
Jasmine Burch
Infant and Toddler Teacher Assistant
Miss Jasmine joined Full Heart in September 2019 as an infant and toddler teacher assistant. She graduated from Eastridge High School in the top 10% of her class. Miss Jasmine's favorite hobbies are spending time with friends and family, discovering new music, and attending concerts! As an "old soul", Miss Jasmine enjoys antiquing and finding new goodies to add to her antique collection. Miss Jasmine's favorite part about working with kids is being able to form a special bond and watch their progress as they learn and discover new things!
Sylvia Terry
Infant Two Lead Teacher
Miss Sylvia has a bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education. She has been working with infants and young children for over 20 years. She loves doing art projects with the babies and snuggling them all day! She would love to be able to travel wherever she would like to go and have lots of worldly experiences. In her free time, Sylvia enjoys gardening!
Sarah Snyder
Toddler Two Lead Teacher
Miss Sarah is the Toddler 2 Lead Teacher. Sarah holds a associate's degree in Early Childhood Education. Sarah was born in Michigan and moved to Rochester with her husband Matt in May of 2017. She joined the Full Heart team shortly after that in July 2017. She also relates to children who have allergies or food intolerances as she has Celiac Disease and can't eat wheat, oats, barley, and rye! Sarah enjoys brush lettering and photography in her free time. She loves seeing her children's smiling faces each day. Watching them grow and learn how to do things independently is what she loves most about working with toddlers at Full Heart.
My Sischo
Toddler One Lead Teacher
Miss My is the Lead Toddler Teacher at Full Heart. Even though she is great with every age group, toddler's have her heart! She comes to Full Heart each day with a smile on her face. My has an associate's degree in studio arts and enjoys painting, doing digital art, playing music, and playing video games in her free time. Her and her wife, Rowan, have two cats named Kalika Automata and Pinecone Petronella! My thinks it would be really awesome to be able to stop time because then she would have as much time as she needed to do or learn whatever she wanted!
Emery Otchych
Toddler One Teacher Assistant
Miss Emery joined the Full Heart Family in September 2019. She studied English and Communication at SUNY Fredonia and was a Creative Writing Major at School of the Arts prior to that. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, writing, and going on adventures with her dog. She has two young German Labradors named Strider and Beacon. She also enjoys watching Master Chef Jr. and writing. Emery is bilingual and bi-cultural as she was born and partially raised in the Ukraine. She would love to have the ability to speak to animals so she could tell dogs how great they are! Emery's favorite part of working with kids is their willingness to learn and explore.
Natalie Collins
Early Preschool Lead Teacher
Miss Natalie has worked for Full Heart since the center opened in May of 2017. She has a college education in Early Childhood Psychology and is known for exploring the "whys and hows" child development. Originally from Corning, she has lived and taught early childhood in Alexandria, Virginia and in Rochester for almost 12 years total! In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her son, playing rugby, listening to music, working out, and doing art activities. If she could have any super power, Natalie would like to be able to read minds! Natalie loves the great relationships she has formed with children, families, and coworkers at Full Heart
Elese Moon
Early Preschool Teacher Assistant
Miss Elese is a floating teacher assistant at Full Heart and has worked at the center since June 2017! Elese is studying earth science at SUNY Brockport. When she is not working or in school, she enjoys being outside in the sunshine and spending time with her friends and family. Elese enjoys traveling and would love to be able to go anywhere in the world with just a snap of a finger. Elese loves being able to put a smile on the children's faces and watching them grow up and becoming individuals!
Debbie Johnson
Preschool Lead Teacher
Miss Debbie joined the Full Heart family in July 2020 as our Preschool Lead Teacher. She has a BA in elementary education and has worked in the early childhood field for over 30 years. She loves reading and is a part of two book clubs! Miss Debbie's favorite part about working with children is that no two days are ever the same. She also enjoys watching them discover new abilities.
Laura Dingy
Preschool Teacher Assistant
Miss Laura joined the Full Heart family in September 2018 as our Preschool Teacher Assistant. She is married and has two children, one of whom also works at Full Heart! She loves helping out with extra curricular activities as well, especially incorporating nature play and loose parts in our gross motor spaces. She has been working with children for about 20 years and loves seeing them grow and learn. Miss Laura is known for her great snuggles and bonds with all of the children in her care and LOVES checking in on the babies too.
Beverly Bauman
PreK Lead Teacher
Miss Beverly is extremely excited to be joining the Full Heart team as the PreK Lead Teacher! Beverly holds a bachelor's degree in Performing Arts and a Child Developmental Associate. She has over 6 years of experience teaching PreK in a classroom setting as well as 2 years of experience working with Monroe County's 4-H program both in classroom and off-site settings. When Beverly is not in the classroom, she loves to work both onstage and off with many local theaters, lounge around the house with her cats, and read! If she could have a superpower, Miss Bev would love to be able to understand and converse with animals!
Izzy (Isabelle) Hauck
Floating Teacher Assistant
Miss Izzy joined us in December of 2019 as a floating teacher assistant. She currently attends SUNY Brockport and is working towards a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and Pre-Med. Miss Izzy enjoys spending time with her family, which consists of her parents, two sisters, one brother, a nephew, and three dogs. She also likes to bake, especially during the holidays. Miss Izzy's favorite part about working with kids is the atmosphere they create and the energy they have.
Justin Gommel
Floating Teacher Assistant
Mr. Justin came to Full Heart in August 2019 hoping to be a great influence for the children in his care. He graduated early from High School and currently lives in Rochester with four roommates. In his free time, he enjoys doing lighting for plays and musicals, singing, and playing guitar. Justin has two younger sisters as well.
Julia Dingy
Floating Teacher Assistant
Miss Julia joined the Full Heart team in January 2019 as a floating teacher assistant. She is the daughter of our wonderful preschool teacher assistant, Laura! Julia enjoys spending time with her dog, Tobey, reading, camping, and photography when she isn't loving on the littles at Full Heart. She recently graduated from East Ridge High School. Her favorite part of working with children here at Full Heart is how much they make her laugh with their stories and all of the dance parties!
Alexis Weber
Floating Teacher Assistant
Miss Alexis started at Full Heart in February of 2020. She is devoted to theater; enjoying being both on and off stage. Miss Alexis has worked with children of all ages sharing her passion for theater. She has played piano for 15 years now and looks forward to teaching our PreK friends some songs on their piano! When Miss Alexis isn't at work or the theater, she enjoys snuggling her cat, Minnie.
Deja Simmons
Floating Teacher Assistant
Miss Deja started at Full Heart in September 2018. Miss Deja was home-schooled until her junior when she attended and graduated from The School of the Arts. In her free time she enjoys hiking, running, and, above all, writing. Miss Deja is very close with her friends and family and enjoys spending time with them. She has four pets: a leopard gecko, an Irish Terrier, and two kittens. her favorite part about working with kids is how loving and accepting they are of everything and everyone. On her toughest days, their bright and unique personalities give her what she needs to keep on going.
Lana Polishchuk
Kitchen Manager
Miss Lana started at Full Heart in September of 2017. She is responsible for making breakfast, lunch, and an afternoon snack each day. She also makes and decorates beautiful, delicious cupcakes for each child's birthday! Lana has three children and a pet fish! She enjoys photography, decorating cakes, and fishing in her free time. She loves to see the children smiling and happy after eating a great lunch each day.