Lizette Bartolomei - Support

I am from Puerto Rico and moved to the U.S. in 1983. I am married and have 2 children. My son is a musician and singer in a Christian band and my daughter dances in a Christian dance company.

I started as a substitute in 2001 when my daughter started Kindergarten. That is when the Lord surprised me that I was going to be a preschool teacher. I subbed for a year and then taught 4 year olds for 5 years. I love teaching preschoolers because they are so much fun! It is always an exciting day in a preschool classroom! I am very blessed to be a part of your children’s education here at UCP.

Helen Bodnarik - Support

I was born in the small town of Welch, West Virginia, where I had fun exploring the mountains and creeks searching for caves and tadpoles and loving life. My mother instilled in me, at a very young age, a deep love of God and all people.

My husband, 2 sons and I moved to Oviedo from Wellington, Ohio in 1993. We love this community and have made University Carillon our church home.

I have been a part of the Preschool from its beginning. It is a joy to work with the children and to be able to watch them grow up through the years.

Denise DeLaFlor - Support

I grew up in South Florida and moved to Oviedo in 1997. I have two wonderful boys who both attended preschool here. I thought it was such a great experience having them here.

I was a stay at home mom for about eight years until this year when I began substituting here at UCP. An opening came up for support position and it has been one of the best experiences I can imagine. It makes my day to come in and see the smiles on all the children’s faces.

Jessica Hecker - Teacher

Kellie Mitchell - Support

I was blessed to become part of the UCP staff in January 2009. Prior to joining UCP, I was a 3 year old and Pre-K teacher at Prairie Pals Preschool in Oswego IL. My husband, Spencer, our two boys, and our three dachshunds and I were lucky enough to move to Oviedo in August 2008. I am so grateful to be able to continue with my love for teaching preschoolers in such an awesome Christian environment!

Martha Donovan - Support

I was born in Colombia, South America and came to the United States when I was fourteen years old. I did not know any English, but between school, and my friends I quickly learned the language. I lived in Long Island, NY with my family-my mom, 4 brothers and 2 sisters. It was also in New York were I met my husband Eddie, and we were married in May of 1987.

In 1998, we moved to Florida and my husband opened his garage door business.
I have two wonderful children- Sean and Melissa . They are my passion and greatest encouragement to be a the best person I can be.

I have a degree in Business Administration, and worked for Allstate Insurance for 15 years until the birth of my daughter Melissa. When Melissa was attending the 3-year-old program at UCP, I had the opportunity to be a substitute teacher and fell in love with the children and the school.

Kelly Faber - Teacher

I was born in New York but moved to Florida in 1992 where I met my husband (who is also a native New Yorker).

I spent 16 years working in the defense industry for Grumman Corp. until my son was born. A few years later my daughter was born and I knew my focus had changed.

We joined the church and enrolled our children at UCP. The dedication and devotion of the staff led me to join as a 2-year old support teacher. I have been here for 6 years now and love being a part of such a special place.

Cathy Forkenbrock - Teacher

Hello and welcome to our UCP Family! I was born and raised in Stamford Connecticut ,then moved to Florida where I graduated from Florida Southern College with a BA in Communications. My husband Ralph of 27 years and I have two wonderful children, a son studying Electrical Engineering at UCF, and a daughter studying Occupational Therapy at UF.  We love college football!

I began my preschool education  career when my two children were in their preschool years. I taught at Parkway Weekday Program for 13 years.   I feel very blessed to be  starting my 4th year here on staff at UCP as Lead Teacher for the 3's and 4's. I have enjoyed learning and growing with each one of my preschool students, they are truly one of life's greatest blessings!

I volunteer  at my church and with the ALS/Lou Gehrigs Association- Florida Chapter. I have two brothers , three sisters, and many nieces and nephews. I look forward to meeting the many families that are involved here at the preschool and getting to know their children.

I thank God for my family, friends and the opportunity to teach preschoolers.

Rhonda Iddins - Support

I was born and raised in Knoxville, TN. I am married and have five wonderful girls. My husband was in the military for 22 years so we moved frequently. I have worked at UCP since 2002. I started out as a substitute when my youngest was in a 2 year old class. I have been a 2-year old teacher, and a 2, 3 and 4 year old support teacher. Watching the children grow and seeing their desire to know more about Jesus is so rewarding. I truly feel blessed to work here.

Cathy McFarland - Teacher

My name is Cathy McFarland and I am a native Floridian. I was born in Melbourne beach and raised right here in Orlando. I have such a wonderful family and enjoy spending time with them. Working here at UCP has been a blessing in my life. The children, parents and fellow staff have brought me much joy and fulfillment. Children are so precious and I feel it is imperative that they receive the best start possible in life. It is my goal to provide the children here at UCP with positive social experiences, a love for learning and a strong Christian faith.

Salece Miller - Support

I was brought up in Daytona Beach before moving to Orlando. The beach was my backyard, so it was an amazing childhood. After working in the corporate world, the opportunity came for me to stay home and start volunteering at my daughter’s elementary school. I believe this was my reason to really become interested in working with children. I love to volunteer at my daughter’s middle school, do things with my family, read, and of course, go to the beach! I have also volunteered with the Special Olympics, which is so very rewarding.

After coming to UCP and taking early childhood education courses, I knew this was going to be a most treasured experience. I am so happy to be associated with UCP, which enables us to continue our early childhood education and to be in a Christian environment, which is how I have been taught since I was a child.

Azar Robinson - Teacher

I was born and raised in Tehran, Iran. I earned my BA degree in English in Tehran and went to England to continue my education in languages immediately after graduation. I speak five languages. After I returned to Iran from England I started to work for an American company which was the contractor of the Ministry of Telecommunication of Iran for several years. I feel blessed that I had the opportunity to travel to many countries around the world. I have lived in Egypt and Spain for several years, but Los Angeles was always home for us. Now I call Florida home.

In 1998 I decided that I like to work as a teacher and I found that early childhood education and pre school level was my passion. I earned my early childhood education credential in Moorpark College, California in 2003. I have been teaching as a pre-school teacher since 1998 while I was taking my early childhood courses.

My favorite thing about teaching young children is to see how the children are always happy and excited about little things in life and I think “it’s neat to be around that kind of spirit.” I like to teach pre-k level because I believe they learn so much at this age, their minds are like sponges. In my teaching, I emphasize socialization and sharing with the other children and being taught academics in a developmental manner.

My hobbies include traveling, reading, amateur photography, painting and drawing with different mediums, gardening, walking and movies.

Linda Shelton- Teacher

I was born and raised in Maryland where a passion for teaching was instilled in me by my high school art teacher. I majored in art education at the University of Maryland and entered the world of teaching at the high school level. I have been in the early childhood field for 22 years. All of those years have been at Christian preschools. What a blessing! My husband and I have been blessed with two children and three grandchildren. They are so precious to us - can you imagine how precious they are to our heavenly father?

I believe that every word, action, gesture and moment of silence is an opportunity to guide children socially, emotionally, academically and spiritually. It is an awesome responsibility that God has placed in your hands and mine. How precious they are in God's eyes. It is my hope that I am able to instill the love of God in each child that I have been blessed to teach. It is through this understanding of God's love that children will understand their uniqueness, creativity and unlimited possibilities God has planned for them.

Penny Vardas - Teacher

My name is Penny Vardas and this is my seventh year at University Carillon Preschool. I have been teaching preschool for over 30 years (!) and I can not imagine doing anything else.

I grew up in south Florida and also lived in New Hampshire, Boston and Alabama. I’ve had the opportunity to work in some very fine schools, so I was happy to bring all of my wonderful and valuable experiences to UCP.

It is my goal to make sure the children in my class have a nurturing, warm and caring environment. I want them to know they are unique, capable and creative individuals who have the tools to explore their world and their role in it.