Staff

Jacque Grillo
Director and Teacher

Jacque is originally from the North Shore of Boston and has lived in San Francisco since 1977. He holds a BS degree in Human Development, with a specialty in Early Childhood, from the University of Massachusetts. Jacque also holds an MA in Counseling Psychology from John F. Kennedy University and California Teaching Credentials. His first teaching job was in a laboratory preschool at Harvard University. Jacque has been at Lone Mountain since 1977. In addition he is licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), and for over twenty-five years had a private counseling and psychotherapy practice. Jacque has been the school’s Director since 1996.

Patty Cotter
Assistant Director and Teacher

Originally from Chicago, Patty attended Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois and received a B.S. in History. After moving to New York City, she worked for three years as an infant teacher at a Bright Horizons. During this time, Patty obtained her M.S. from Brooklyn College in Early Childhood Education. She then became a head teacher in a preschool class at The Olive Treehouse Group. Patty lived and worked in Brooklyn until her relocation to San Francisco in 2014. This is Patty’s eleventh year at Lone Mountain and fourth as Assistant Director.

Cissy Harris
Part-time Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes

Cissy holds a BA degree from UC Berkeley in Art and History, and an Elementary Teaching Credential from San Francisco State University. She has taught previously in public and private schools in Marin and San Francisco. Cissy has taught at Lone Mountain since 1988.

Trever Hatch
Teacher, Pre-K Class

Trever is a Bay Area native, growing up in Castro Valley in the East Bay. He has his B.A. in Human Development from Cal State East Bay. Trever believes, “A good teacher not only educates effectively, but also understands their students and guides them through their challenges. Considering that the first five years of a child’s life are the most crucial, they need a positive role model consistently in their lives.” This is what inspired him to become a teacher. He began working in early childhood in the summer of 2012 in Castro Valley. Trever enjoys riding his bike and hiking through national parks. He also loves to cook and enjoys playing music on his ukulele. This is Trever’s fourth year at Lone Mountain.

Evalynna Ho
Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes

Evalynna has a BA in Art History from UC Santa Barbara and holds a California Site Supervisory Permit. She has taken several child development classes to deepen her knowledge in the early childhood education field and finds joy in teaching young children. She has been a teacher for over 15 years, working at St. James Preschool and the Little School. This is Evalynna’s ninth year at Lone Mountain.

Thuy Huynh
Assistant Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes

Thuy was born in Vietnam and moved to San Francisco in 2003. Thuy received an AA degree in Art and Humanities in 2012 at City College of San Francisco. After having her second child, she discovered her love for working with young children. She finished her ECE Associate Teacher courses and continues taking Child Development classes. This is her seventh year at Lone Mountain.

Jaden Kramer-Melnick
Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes

Jaden was born and raised in a small rural Vermont town. He graduated from the University of Vermont with a degree in Elementary Education. He also holds a Child Development Associate degree. Jaden has taught preschool for the past five years. As a teacher, he enjoys witnessing children making their own discoveries and is grateful to have the chance to help guide them as they learn about the world around them. This is his third year at Lone Mountain.

Melanie Lombardi
Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes

Melanie was born in Santa Barbara and grew up on the Peninsula. She has her BA in Liberal Studies from San Francisco State University. After getting her degree she got a job as a preschool teacher and decided to pursue Early Childhood Education. She has worked with preschool age children for 15+ years, from being a teacher to a director at Telegraph Hill Cooperative Nursery School. This is Melanie’s fourth year at Lone Mountain.

Laura Maxwell
Teacher, Pre-K Class

Laura grew up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She attended UNC Chapel Hill and received her B.A. in Psychology in 2011. During her undergraduate studies, she taught at a local cooperative preschool where she continued to teach full time after graduating. After moving to San Francisco in 2013, she taught preschool part-time while pursuing her graduate degree from San Francisco State University. She was awarded her M.A. In Early Childhood Education in 2015 and this is her ninth year at Lone Mountain.

Bernadette Quattrone
Teacher, Tu-Th and M-W-F Classes, Music Teacher

Bernadette received a B.S. in English from the United States Naval Academy and a M.A. in Early Childhood Education from New York University. She is a certified Music Together teacher and loves to play guitar, sing with children and write songs for the classroom. She previously taught preschool in Brooklyn and Oakland and has been working with young children for over 15 years. This is her seventh year at Lone Mountain and her first year as our Music Specialist Teacher for the MWF and Pre-K classrooms.

Arlete Rezende
Assistant Teacher, Pre-K Class

Arlete is originally from Brazil, and moved to San Francisco in 1992. She has a degree in Languages and Literature, and a teaching permit in Early Childhood Education. Arlete is multilingual in Spanish, Portuguese and English. Arlete has been at Lone Mountain for ten years. Before moving to San Francisco she taught 5th and 6th grade and high school. Some of her favorite things to do are to go for hikes, walks, reading, watching movies, and traveling around the world with her husband Steve.

Monica Siegenthaler
Teacher, Pre-K Class

Born and raised in Marin County, Monica has been working with young children since she was 15. She graduated from Humboldt State University with BAs in Early Child Development and Theater and Film Design in 2015. She graduated with her MA in Early Childhood Education from Mills College in 2018. This is her fourth year at Lone Mountain.

Shaun Spring
Teacher, Pre-K Class

Shaun was born in Honolulu and was raised in San Jose. He attended San Francisco State University and graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor's degree in History. Shaun has completed a number of child development classes and continues to take more classes to strengthen his skills as a teacher. Shaun has taught at The Stonestown Family YMCA summer camp, as an associate teacher for the YMCA preschool, and as an after school teacher at Commodore Sloat Elementary School. Before coming to Lone Mountain Shaun taught at Marin Day Schools/Bright Horizons Sherith Israel Campus in a class of 3-4 year olds. This is Shaun’s twelve year at Lone Mountain.

Coach Steve Priest, Playball San Francisco
Outdoor Sports Program, Pre-K Class

Coach Steve Priest is the Owner of Playball San Francisco which started in the Bay Area in 2011. Playball is a sports skills and movement program for young children which teaches the basic skills for six different sports including soccer, baseball, volleyball, basketball, hockey, and tennis. Playball is unique because it uses sport and movement as a means to educate, emphasizing the importance of life skills such as courage, flexibility, persistence, sharing and many others. All of Playball’s activities are non-competitive and taught in a warm, friendly, and positive environment. The program utilizes a structured and progressive curriculum which was originally developed over 30 years ago and continually updated by sports psychologists, educators, and occupational therapists. It began in South Africa and is currently being taught all over the world!

Shun Shifu Eric Mitchell
Martial Arts Instructor, Pre-K Class

Shun Shifu Eric Mitchell began his martial arts training at the age of 10 and discovered his passion for the art of Kung Fu. This combination of passion and commitment to traditional Chinese Martial Arts (Kung Fu, Tai Chi, self-defense) is demonstrated in his adherence to teaching for the benefit of his students of all ages. This is Shun Shifu Eric Mitchell’s eleventh year at Lone Mountain.