Our Team

Meet the dancing moose Team!

We are proud to employ skilled and educated professionals who are also interesting and caring humans.
Our team members are joyful and innovative, always seeking opportunities to learn and collaborate.
A fundamental belief in the innate potential of every child is key as a Dancing Moose team member.

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Dr. Joyce Sibbett Ph.D

President of Dancing Moose

JENNIFER DUFFIELD

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Jodi Steere

Regional Director

Kendra Wheeler

HR Director

Tania Granados

School Director – GARDEN CAMPUS

Suyin Chong

Assistant Director – GARDEN CAMPUS

Nichole Gaffney

School Director – River Park Campus

Ashwini Manjul

Assistant Director – River Park Campus

Leslie Prunty

SCHOOL DIRECTOR – MUSEUM CAMPUS

Sarah Gwynn

Assistant Director – Museum Campus

Sarah Mannion

PARENT EDUCATION COORDINATOR

Dominique Fabela

Project Manager

Russel Duffield

Director of Operations

Micki Ridd

Enrollment Coordinator

Julie Langie

Community Outreach

Look What's Happening At The Moose!

Julie Langie

Community Outreach

Julie has been a long-time part of the Dancing Moose family as she joined us first as a parent and then as a team member in 2022. Julie received her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from UC San Diego after which she obtained her MBA, Marketing from University of Texas, Austin. Prior to joining Dancing Moose she worked in Tech Marketing. She is such a valuable part of our team and has a real skill for making connections and increasing engagement. You may know her warm friendly nature if you have interacted with Julie as she hosts weekly Parent Community Coffee. She is also involved in our Parent Circle communication, school tours and Parent & Teacher support. Julie loves to spend time with her husband, three children, and dog. She enjoys walking, reading, baking, traveling and being involved on the board of a local non-profit to support teens.

Ashwini Manjul

Assistant Director – River Park Campus

Ashwini joined Dancing Moose in August 2022 as our After School Supervisor. She took on the Assistant Director role in March 2023. She has an Applied Arts degree and has worked in various Montessori schools all over the US for more since 2011. She has held various teaching positions in the classroom including teaching art to children ages 3-12-years-old. She is passionate about supporting our team and bringing them together on and off campus. She loves her students dearly and is ready to offer a helping hand to parents in any way possible. She holds her team to a very high level of excellence.

Suyin Chong

Assistant Director – Garden Campus

Suyin is from northern Mexico and moved to Utah in 2003. She has four amazing children where she spent her time volunteering in their schools throughout their early education. She spent her summers specializing as a Spanish Teacher and an Art teacher in a summer camp. She was quickly promoted to take over the organization and administrative duties of all of the summer campus. She joined the Dancing Moose family in 2022 when she decided to focus on her professional life. She began teaching in preschool and then moved to teaching in an elementary classroom. She is a beloved team member from all of her students and colleagues. Suyin’s passion is to be involved with impacting the lives of young children that then become the foundation of our world. She strives to serve her school, all of the Moose families and her amazing co-workers each day. When she is not at work, you can find Suyin enjoying nature with her children and 5 dogs, practicing mountain biking and visiting new places.

Dr. Joyce Sibbett Ph.D

Co-Founder & President of Dancing Moose

After earning her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Education, Joyce worked with aspiring teachers at Westminster for 20 years. She is officially retired from Westminster but maintains a relationship as Professor Emeritus. Joyce also earned a Montessori License for ages 2 1/2 to 6-years-old before opening Dancing Moose. She completed post-doctoral coursework in educational administration in 1999 and completed her Montessori Administrative credential in 2015 from the MACTE-accredited program, Institute of Montessori Innovation. Joyce continually strives to put best practices into action at Dancing Moose by organizing and overseeing curriculum. She teaches and coordinates ongoing in-service classes in the Dancing Moose Rings of Knowledge program. Joyce enjoys supporting teachers’ efforts to enrich every aspect of children’s physical, social-emotional, and academic development. Creating an exceptional early childhood school has been Dr. Joyce’s long-term dream. Her vision, passion, and vibrant personality contribute greatly to the heart of Dancing Moose.

Jennifer Duffield

MBA , Co-Founder & Executive Director

Jennifer, co-founder of Dancing Moose, has a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry (which makes her an enthusiastic fan of STEM Education). She has also earned a Master of Business Administration degree from Westminster College. She oversees the day-to-day operations of all Dancing Moose locations to ensure programmatic quality and consistency. Jennifer collaborates regularly with School Directors and Mentor Teachers at each location to evaluate how best to support the Dancing Moose team so that they are equipped to offer their very best to each student. Jennifer loves getting to know Dancing Moose children and parents and works hard to promote a school culture that is innovative, positive and sensitive to the individual needs of students and team members.

Jodi Steere

Regional Director

Jodi taught as a Kindergarten teacher for Dancing Moose beginning in 2011 and later joined the admin team in May 2013 as the School Director of our Garden Campus, West Valley location. Jodi completed Montessori coursework for Early Childhood through the Institute of Guided Studies. Jodi’s classroom experience gives her a unique ability to support Dancing Moose teachers. She oversees the day-to-day operations and communicates daily with the School Directors as well as mentor teachers, parents and students. Jodi’s empathy, hard work and calming personality are a great asset to our team. She will drop anything to jump in and help anyone with her bright, beautiful smile.

Nichole Gaffney

School Director – River Park

Nichole has worked in early childhood for over twenty years serving in administration at University Kids and Utah Community Action.

KENDRA WHEELER

HR Director

Kendra first joined Dancing Moose as a parent in 2007. She joined the administrative team as the Assistant Director at our River Park, South Jordan location when it opened in January 2014. She later became the School Director of that location. Kendra’s background included overseeing teams in business settings prior to Dancing Moose which brings a unique passion to develop HR practices and team culture. Kendra received her Master’s Degree in Education with a Montessori Administrative credential from Westminster College in 2020. She then completed her SHRM-CP in 2023.

Tania Granados

School Director – Garden Campus

Tania joined the Dancing Moose team in February 2016 as the Billing Administrator and was promoted to Assistant Director in August 2016. She supports all of the day-to-day operations of the school, communicating daily with parents, teachers, and students. Tania is constantly participating in Rings of Knowledge courses and Montessori Professional Development to gain a greater understanding of what is happening in the classroom. Tania’s positive energy and kind nature provide a warm welcome to all who enter the school. Everyone appreciates her talent in knowing Dancing Moose families by name and she genuinely loves each and every one of her families.

DOMINIQUE FABELA

Project Manager

Dominique joined the Dancing Moose team in 2015. She has worked in many different roles such as a teacher, After School Supervisor, Assistant Director and now a Project Manager assisting with enrollment, teacher professional development and mentoring Assistant Directors. Her knowledge about the process of Dancing Moose is where she thrives. Dominique always brings positive energy into the school with her smile and helpful attitude. You can find Dominique hanging out in the backyard with her family and an ice cold Diet Coke.

SARAH MANNION

PARENT EDUCATION COORDINATOR

Sarah has been with Dancing Moose in a variety of capacities since 2009. She currently works in the areas of marketing and parent education heading up our Parent Circle program. Her experiences as a Dancing Moose parent as well as in various classroom and administrative roles gives her a well rounded understanding of Dancing Moose. Sarah enjoys problem solving and interacting with Dancing Moose families to build positive relationships and raise awareness about what Dancing Moose has to offer. She built our Parent Circle program to enhance the experience that parents are having. She feels that it is important to nourish the continual growth, connection and fulfillment of our parents just as we strive to do with our students. It is always a pleasure to see the warm smile that Sarah shares with all those she meets. In addition to her marketing efforts, Sarah is a certified SASS Self Defense coach and a Positive Discipline Coach. Any who have taken her class comment on the calm demeanor and skills taught by Sarah as having a huge influence on who they are as a parent.

RUSSEL DUFFIELD

Director of Business Operations

Russel Duffield is a founding member of the Dancing Moose team, and he manages the business operations of the school. Russel interacts with and guides the administrative team regularly to ensure that sound practices are being implemented. He is passionate about the Dancing Moose mission and promotes its purpose for all staff members to embrace. Russel seeks regular feedback from Dancing Moose families and coordinates efforts to continuously refine programs in meaningful ways. Russ coordinates all the data for the quarterly reports, which helps to identify each student’s progress at Dancing Moose.

Micki Ridd

Enrollment Coordinator

Micki joined the Dancing Moose team in 2013. She works as an Enrollment Coordinator, helping parents to learn more about Dancing Moose and aiding them in the enrollment process. Her helpful nature makes her very well suited to assisting with parent needs. Micki also contributes great creativity and positive energy to our student and staff wellness by acting as an instructor in our movement program. Micki has raised the bar in the movement program which put her in a supervisory role of overseeing all movement teachers at both locations. Dancing Moose is also privileged to have Micki as the first certified SASS Self Defense coach in Utah. Her classes further the Chairman Mike’s mission of equipping young women with much needed self defense skills.

SHERIANN MOLENI

Billing Administrator

Sheriann joined the Dancing Moose team in January 2018. She is responsible for all matters relating to accounts and billing. Sheriann collaborates with the administrative team on a variety of matters and assists in creating effective systems. Her great attention to detail gives team members and parents confidence that their accounts will be handled professionally and accurately. Sheriann is great at problem solving and is happy to help parents with any questions or concerns they may encounter with their accounts. Sheriann also has an incredible eye for marketing and branding. She manages all of our social media accounts and has an incredible talent for making the complexities of Montessori curriculum accessible to all. She is a key part in maintaining consistency with the Dancing Moose brand.

Leslie Prunty

School Director – MUSEUM CAMPUS

Leslie has been at Dancing Moose since 2014. She started as a preschool lead teacher at our River Park Campus, then Assistant Director at our River Park Campus, and now School Director at our Museum Campus.

Sarah Gwynn

Assistant Director – Museum Campus

Sarah joined the Dancing Moose team in June 2022 as the Assistant Director at Museum Campus. She is central to supporting all day-to-day operations of the school, communicating daily with parents, teachers, and students. Sarah received a degree in Family Studies with a minor in Elementary Education from Brigham Young University. Before joining the Dancing Moose team Sarah spent numerous years teaching and working in various administrative positions. She loves working with children and seeing their joy and growth. Getting to know DMMS families is a favorite part of her job as she seeks to build relationships and be of service to them with their needs. In her free time Sarah loves being outdoors and traveling to discover new places, people, food and culture.