Our Staff
Rachel Wade
Owner
Mrs. Wade has a B.S. and M.A. in elementary education. She taught first grade for five years before staying home with her children, Jackson and Claire. Mrs. Wade fell in love with CDS when her son, Jackson, started attending when he was two. Claire began attending CDS a few years later. Not long after that, Mrs. Wade joined our faculty as a pre-k teacher. After five years as a pre-k teacher, in 2022, Mrs. Wade became our director. Her passion for early childhood education and desire that those who enter our school feel loved and develop a love of learning that lasts a lifetime inspires her to continue Country Day’s legacy on the Eastern Shore.
Leah Thomas
Office Manager
Mrs. Leah has been our office manager for eleven years. She fell in love with CDS when her children Emma, Cullen, and Jacob attended and has been bringing joy to our happy halls ever since. If you have called our office or toured our facility, chances are you have had the privilege of meeting Mrs. Leah.
Mrs. Ashleigh has been a part of our CDS faculty for six years as a pre-K teacher, and our Little Engineers after school instructor. Mrs. Ashleigh has a passion for all things STEM and loves watching our little learners discover new things. We are thrilled to have her join our office staff this year!
Ashleigh Barkley
Office Manager
Teachers
Cindy Burke
2 year old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Cindy has been volunteering and substituting at CDS for the past four years. She fell in love with CDS when her children began attending and stuck around even after they went to “big school”. She is looking forward to an amazing year with lots of fun, learning, and creating!
Pam Corte
18 month old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Corte has been teaching at CDS for twenty years. Mrs. Corte’s children both attended CDS and it became a very special place to their family. Mrs. Corte is committed to loving her littles and ensuring that their first school experience is full of fun and learning.
Shawn Eastman
4 & 5 year old class ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Eastman has been teaching
pre-k at CDS for sixteen years. She has a master's degree in Early Childhood
and Elementary Education. She
taught second grade for nine years before finding her “happy place” in pre-k. Mrs. Eastman was a 2022 Nappie Award finalist for “Best Preschool Teacher in Baldwin County."
Sarah Haigh
Kindergarten Assistant Teacher
Mrs. Sarah has enjoyed volunteering and substituting at CDS and is now excited to join our faculty as our kindergarten aide. Mrs. Sarah loves working with children and seeing them light up with joy when they learn something new.
Janet Hankins
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Janet has a degree in Elementary Education and taught first and second grade before falling in love with preschool. She has been teaching preschool for eleven years. Mrs. Janet’s room is full of fun, music, art, and learning!
Becky Harrell
2 year old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Becky graduated from the University of South Alabama with a degree in Science and has been teaching at CDS for nineteen years. Mrs. Becky loves playing, creating, learning and exploring with her preschoolers.
Allison Harvey
4 & 5 year old class ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Harvey has taught preschool at CDS for four years. She loves watching her students find the excitement and fun in learning new things every day!
Candice McLaughlin
5 year old class ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Candice loves preschoolers! She has a master’s degree in Early Childhood Education and strives to make each day full of fun and learning. Mrs. Candice was the 2019 Nappie Award winner for “Best Preschool Teacher in Mobile County".
Shae Ondracka
4 & 5 year old class ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Shae has a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and a master’s degree in school counseling. She has seven years of teaching experience and is excited to join our Country Day School team! She is looking forward to a wonderful year of learning and fun!
Erin Peden
Kindergarten ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Peden has a B.S. in Elementary Education and has taught in Virginia, Texas, and Mississippi. Kindergarten is her passion and her favorite thing to do is to teach her students how to read!
Kayla Poulos
2 & 3 year old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Kayla has been teaching preschool for four years. She loves hands-on learning through reading, art, music, and sensory play. Her goal is for her students to engage and enjoy their learning environment.
Kim Richeson
2 year old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
Mrs. Kim is excited to join our faculty this year after ten years of being a Country Day School parent. Mrs. Kim has a passion for reading and writing and is looking forward to watching her students learn and grow this year!
Jennifer Steiger
4 year old class ~ 5 days a week
Mrs. Steiger has been teaching at CDS for three years. She loves to do crafts, sing, and dance. The focus in her classroom is learning through play and she hopes that her students come to CDS each day excited to learn and discover new things.
Traci Watson
18 month old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
Mrs. Traci has been teaching our youngest learners at CDS for twenty-one years. She loves to watch her little ones learn and grow throughout the year and partnering with parents to ensure that their child’s first school experience is a positive one.
Janna Williams
2 year old class ~ Tues. & Thurs.
3 year old class ~ Mon., Wed., Fri.
Mrs. Janna has been teaching preschool at CDS for three years. She loves to play, sing, and explore with her little learners. Mrs. Janna loves to bring her creativity to her classroom.
Amy Dowden
Music teacher for the 5 day program
Ann Jones
Fine Motor teacher for the 3 day program