Abbott Nursery School

800 Abbot Road
East Lansing, MI 48823
ph: 517-351-7410

Staff

Mary Howard, Director

Mary received her BA from the University of Michigan. She has also given equal time to Michigan State University by earning her teacher certification and some Master’s work there too! Mary and her husband, Kevin, have two daughters, Amy and Ashley. Amy graduated from Hope College in 2009 and got married in August 2012. Ashley graduated from the University of Michigan in 2012 and is in her first year of dental school at U of M. Mary loves all kinds of crafts, sewing, and decorating.

Phyllis Thode, Teacher

Phyllis graduated from Michigan State University with her BA in Elementary Education. Phyllis and her husband Mark (both MSU graduates) have two wonderful children. Luke, is a 2009 graduate of Northern Michigan University in Marquette (his degree is in business) and will be following his dream by attending PGA school. Ashley, graduated from Michigan Tech University in Houghton in 2010 with her degree in civil engineering.

Margie Lubis, Teacher, Teacher Aide

Margie graduated from Cleveland State University with a BSED in Special Education. She taught for eleven years before staying home with her two beautiful children, Meg and Tony. Margie and her husband Frank, likes enjoy family activities and reading. She teaches the afternoon session and is the aide for the morning sessions.

Linda Clark, Teacher Aide

Linda has two children Ryan, a recent MSU graduate and Sean, is with the Hawk Hollow Golf Course and the Michigan PGA. She also adores her daughter-in-law Shasta, two grandchildren Zach (5) and Gracie (1) and three cats Cosmo, Layla and Lily. Linda has been the afternoon aide at Abbott since the 1999-2000 school year. Linda enjoys reading, baking, movies, and playing with my grandchildren.

Vicki Belloli, Membership Chair, Abbott Board

Vicki and husband, Steve, live in East Lansing and own Upstream Investment Partners. Together they have Jack (11), Anna (9), Julia (5), and Mitch (3). Mitch is the fourth Belloli child to happily be a part of Abbott Nursery School in the M-W-F Class; Jack, Anna, and Julia are proud Abbott alums and active ELPS students in 6th grade, 4th grade and Kindergarten, respectively. Vicki helps out at all three schools (Whitehills, Donley and Abbott), and wanted to give back as Membership Chair because "Mrs. Howard, Mrs. Lubis, Mrs. Thode, and Mrs. Clark have been wonderful to our kids!" When not attending school or sports events in East Lansing, Vicki and her family can be found at their cabin on Lake Superior in Brimley, Michigan.

Kate Burch, Member at Large, Abbott Board

Kate and her husband Wade live in Lansing with their three sons. Kate has a BS in Education from Western Michigan University and taught in the Lansing School District before choosing to be a stay at home mom. She enjoys running, scrapbooking and cake decorating.

Catherine Carmody, Member at Large, Abbott Board

Catherine is a graduate of Ferris State University College of Pharmacy, works full-time as a retail pharmacist, and serves as an adjunct instructor for FSU. She and her husband, Michael, live in Bath with their three sons. Catherine's interests include traveling, reading, and spending time outdoors with their active boys. She has also greatly enjoyed getting to know all of the wonderful families and staff at Abbott Nursery School.

Kate Furtaw, Member at Large, Abbott Board

Kate lives in East Lansing with her husband and two children. John is a graduate of Abbott and is now in Kindergarten. Rosie is excited to have her turn at Abbott this year. Kate has a BS from MSU in Family and Community Services and is now enjoying being a stay-at-home mom. She enjoys reading, cooking and spending time with friends and family.

Heather Hagan, President, Abbott Board

Heather is married to Matt, a local East Lansing native and businessman. They have two beautiful daughters and a son. Zoe (5) is in her first year at Marble Elementary School. Lexi (3) is currently in her 2^nd year at Abbott (MWF). Austin (1) eagerly awaits his turn at ANS. Heather enjoys spending time in the class with the children (and teachers) and hosting special events for the school. Outside of Abbott, Heather works part time, helps out at Marble Elementary, enjoys time spent with her family, especially at their cottage, attending her husband’s sporting events, working out, and spending time with friends.

Karenn Vernagus, Secretary, Abbott Board

Karenn Vernagus is married to Ray and has two sons: Ari is an ANS alum, and Rahm is in M-W-F. Karenn has a BS from MSU and worked in the insurance industry before becoming a stay-at-home mom. She enjoys running, cooking, reading, and interacting with their three cats: Chloe, Piccolina and Cupcake.

Jamie Yeomans, Alumni Member, Abbott Board

Jamie lives in Okemos with her husband (Rob Stephenson), daughter (Rebecca), and son (Andrew). Although Andrew graduated from ANS in May 2009, Jamie enjoys staying connected with the families and staff at Abbott as an Alumni Board member. Jamie currently works for Ingham ISD-Early On as a playgroup specialist/parent educator. The Yeomans-Stephenson family loves exploring outdoors and collecting Junior Ranger badges on their annual summer vacations.

800 Abbot Road
East Lansing, MI 48823
ph: 517-351-7410