Lesley Romanoff, Director and Teacher for the Leaves (3s/4s) and Tracks (4s/5s) classes, first came to The Cooperative School in 1994 as a co-oping parent and served on its Board of Directors. She began teaching the 2 to 3-year olds class in 1997 and added the Leaves class in 1999.

Lesley became School Director in 2006, teaching both the Leaves and Tracks classes and also designing the adult and child curriculum as well as the after-hours and Summer Enrichment options for the School. The Cooperative School—its spaces, philosophy, and commitment to the parent-participatory model—reflects her approach to early childhood education while sustaining its rich history. Lesley has a special interest in expression through visual art, studying the evolution of creative thinking, and the development of social language. She presented methodology for connecting literacy to social dramatic play at the National Association for the Education of Young Children 2006 Annual Conference and creative arts curriculum at the 2009 Conference. She teaches early childhood education graduate-level courses in the MAT program at Trinity University. Lesley has taught a variety of enrichment classes at the elementary school level, including visual arts, drama, and creative writing. Lesley has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Radio, Television, and Film from the University of Maryland, a professional background in video production and scriptwriting, and has a Master of Art in Teaching, Early Childhood Education. She holds early childhood certification (ages 3 through 8) in the District of Columbia.

Membership and Affiliations

ACEI, Association for Childhood Education International; ASCD, Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development; NAEYC, National Association for the Education of Young Children; NAREA, North American Reggio Emilia Alliance; PCPI, Parent Cooperative Preschools International