Todd Hioki M.A. is the founder and director of Magnolia Community Preschool. For twenty years he taught at Pacific Oaks Children’s school and was the master teacher for the Infant/Toddler Parent Program and the 3–4-year-old program. He has taught at a number of colleges including UCLA extension, Santa Monica College, Mission College, and Pacific Oaks College. As a preschool teacher, he designs and implements progressive play-based education, incorporating the principals of emergent curriculum, experiential learning, and anti-bias practice. He was a 2014 Teach with Africa Fellow and a 2019 UCLA Extension Instructor of the Year. From 2018–2020, Todd participated in Dr. Allan Schore’s bi-weekly study group on the neurobiology of intersubjectivity in adult trauma and child development. He is currently enrolled in the Saybrook PhD. program in humanistic psychology and is a 2022 Rollo May Scholarship awardee. His primary interest is exploring the intersection of humanistic principals and early childhood education. In his spare time, he enjoys woodworking and designs toys, equipment, and furniture for the preschool classroom.
Todd Hioki
Founder + Lead Teacher
Heather Johnson
Lead Teacher
Heather has worked with children of all ages. After graduating from North Dakota State University with a Bachelor of Music in 2013, she proceeded to teach K-6 elementary music in communities in rural North Dakota, along with coaching 7-12 Speech. Upon moving to California, she worked at Pacific Oaks Children's School, where she found a joy of working with young children. Particularly, in helping young children process their emotions in times of dysregulation. Heather has taken workshops on Outdoor Classrooms and Reggio style teaching in an effort to expand her knowledge and draw inspiration from many places. A child's world is one of wonder, creativity, and problem solving and Heather consistently tries to see things through that lens.
Lucinda Edwards
Teacher
Lucinda was a Master Teacher in the Pacific Oaks 2-3 year-old program for 25 years. She founded a co-operative nursery school in Virginia, Board President of a nursery school, and director of St. Edmund’s Nursery School. She is the co-author of Handy Hints for Busy Mothers. She has most recently competed the Story Telling Workshop with Awele Makeba: Social and Political Context of Human Development and Working with Children in a Diverse World. She feels the workshop enabled her to help determine how children grow, accept joy, become courageous; and become curious and confident.
Jessica Gutierrez
Teacher
Jessica has 7 years experience as a preschool/school age teacher and has graduated from Pacific Oaks College with a B.A. in Early Childhood Education and an M.A. in Cultural and Family Psychology. Most recently, she held the position of Master teacher of the 3-5 year-old program.
Sherrie Lea
Teacher + Art Specialist
Sherrie has a B.A. in art from Cal State Sonoma. She worked four years in the Glendale school district and four years at Pacific Oaks Children’s School. While at Pacific Oaks, she mentored under Karen Nuebert, a founding Pacific Oaks art studio specialist. Currently, Sherrie is exploring the principals and practices of the Reggio Emilia approach.
Leah Hioki
Teacher + Founder
Leah holds a Visual Communications degree from CSULA. Her professional experience ranges from small business owner to community engagement coordinator for the regional branch of a national non-profit. She completed her early childhood education training at Santa Monica College in 2020.
She enjoys nature walks, instagramming about her senior dog, and continues to seek ECE knowledge through mentorship and classes.
Susan Tesler
Volunteer
Susan worked for many years for the Santa Monica/ Malibu School district. She then transitioned to worker for the private Village Glen School as a teacher’s aid. She also works as a volunteer for the Getty Art Museum.