Preschool Teacher - Ioanna Halkias

Ioanna has a B.S. in Early Childhood Education from DePaul University with a minor in Communications. She has been teaching since 2008 and is a highly energetic and enthusiastic teacher that understands developmentally appropriate practice. Ioanna has taught preschool through third grade. She loves teaching at Plato Academy and her students love her!

Kindergarten/1st - Kelly Skinner

Kelly has a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Educationand a Masters of Education Licensure in Early Childhood Special Education from Harding University in Arkansa. She was a teacher at Miss Helen's Private School in Oklahoma and a substitute teacher for the Searcy Public Schools. Kelly was a member of Kappa Delta Pi International Honor Society in Education and a member of S.A.L.T. (Scholars Advancing Learning and Teaching). Kelly also taught at Carron Primary in Scotland and she was a counselor for a mission trip to the Ukraine for 6-16 year olds. She is happy to be teaching at Plato Academy.

2nd/3rd grade - Ms. Teresa Pape

Teresa Pape graduated in 1990 from Illinois State University with a degree in Elementary Education. She recently received her learning behavioral specialist endorsement. During her lifelong teaching career she has taught high school special education, reading intervention, and fourth grade. Teresa says she actually started teaching at the age of seven, tutoring students at recess just for fun. She and her husband and their three high school children live in Bolingbrook. Besides teaching, Teresa most enjoys spending time with her family back on the farm where she was raised. "You can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl."

Greek Teacher - Ms. Elpida Varvantaki

Ms. Elpida Varvantaki teaches Greek Language and Culture to all Plato students. She is currently heading two European “E- twinning” programs with “Plato”; “Children Rights and Citizenship” and “Halloween In Your Country”. She also participates with her students in the European programs: “My Region Reveals its Secrets” and “Christmas around the World”. Ms. Varvantaki received her degree from the School of Educational Sciences, Rethymno/Crete and she has also earned a certificate of attendance of the post graduate department of the same school in “Developmental Child Psychology”. She is a current student of the School of Philosophical and Social Studies of the University of Crete. Since 2000 she has been working as a tenured kindergarten teacher in public schools of Chania /Crete. She has 3 years experience in bilingual education in the US.
Elpida was a coordinator of 2 projects on health education sponsored by EU, 1 international project for the environment and the sustainability (eco schools) and she has joined the “Spring Day 2010 of Europe” project network with her Greek Kindergarten students. She has published one educational research in “Road-traffic safety”. (ISBN 960 630 835 9). She has presented two conference announcements (“Arithmetical Skills in Early Childhood”; pilot study, and “Kath’odon Mathaino Na Kykloforo”;Health Education and Health Promotion study) in panhellenic conferences. She is familiar in the use of the ICT in Education. She speaks Greek, English and Spanish. She was a volunteer in the Olympic games of Athens, 2004. As an educator Ms Varvantaki is constantly seeking creative ways to foster a dynamic learning environment. She is a fan of Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. Curretnly Ms. Varvantakis is on sabbatical in Greece. We anxiously await her return to Plato.

Director – Marian Koritsaris, M.Ed

Marian has a Masters Degree from UIC in Instructional Leadership and postgraduate credits from National Louis University. As an alumni of Plato and a parent whose three children graduated from Plato, Marian has dedicated herself to a career in education and is the core of our school and curriculum. She has a keen understanding of constructivism, how kids acquire knowledge, and curriculum development. She is a mentor to all our teachers and assists them in the development of their own teaching style. She is a professor of Education at the University of Illinois at Chicago and an adjunct faculty at Triton Coolege and DePaul University. She also mentors student teachers in the Chicago Public School system. She has served as assessor for the National Board of Professional Teaching standards and is an educational consultant.

Venus Campanelli

Venus ias also an alumnus of Plato and a mom of two children that graduated from Plato. Venus manages the office and handles all the day-to-day activities of the school. She wears many hats, such as school nurse, lunch helper, recess monitor etc. In her past life she was a Account Rep for the National Easter Seal Society.