Leelanau Montessori Primary Guides

Lita Ferdinand, Primary Guide ferdinandl@leelanaumontessori.org

Early Childhood Certification Michigan Montessori Education Center - Rochester Hills, MI 
MS The Art of Teaching Marygrove College – Detroit, MI 
BS Education Central Michigan University – Mt Pleasant, MI

After graduating Magna Cum Laude with a BS in Education, Lita substitute taught for Traverse City Public Schools, Suttons Bay Public Schools, and Northport Public Schools; and served as a preschool, second grade, and third grade teacher for Suttons Bay Public Schools.  Lita has been a Montessori Primary teacher with Leelanau Montessori since 2005.  Lita and her husband Andrew, children Nicholas (30), Bethany (26), Emily (23), and English Springer Spaniel, Pirate, enjoy sailing on Lake Michigan in the summer.

Corine Couturier, Primary Guide 
couturierc@leelanaumontessori.org 

AMS Teacher Training Michigan Montessori Education Center – Rochester Hills, MI
BA Social Work Hope College – Holland, MI

Corine grew up dancing, attending the prestigious North Carolina School of the Arts and Aspen Ballet.  After applying the same discipline to her study of Social Work at Hope College, she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a degree in Social Work.  Following her marriage to Adam, Corine served as a Social Work Intern at the Erie Neighborhood House in Chicago, Illinois; Youth Director at the Keswick United Methodist Church in Suttons Bay, Michigan; as Junior Great Books Teacher at Leelanau Montessori; and as a Guide at The Children’s House in Traverse City, Michigan and at Leelanau Montessori.  Corine, Adam, Melia (7), and Sawyer (4), live on the campus of the Leelanau School where Adam is a high school teacher.

Terri Orban, Primary Aide 
orbant@leelanaumontessori.org 

P-Bit Training Crisis Management/Behavior Modification Training
Para Professional Training Michigan Montessori Education Center – Rochester Hills, MI

AA Social Services & Child Care Ferris State University – Big Rapids, MI

Terri has worked in early childhood education for more than two decades as a teacher in the three- and four-year old program at the Leland Daycare & Nursery School, as Director of the Suttons Bay Co-Op Preschool, and as a home-based day care manager.  Terri was drawn to the way the Montessori curriculum follows each child’s development.  She has worked with Leelanau Montessori as a Primary Assistant, Playground Supervisor, and Toddler Teacher since 1998.  Terri, her husband Jim, and children Holly (22), Jared (17), and Aaron (14) are active in family sports.