LEAD TEACHER

Kristen Gordon is the founder of Little Corner Academy along with Megan Lekas. She is also a lead teacher at Little Corner Academy (LCA). Kristen has 10 years of experience working in Baltimore County Public Schools. All ten years she was a self-contained special education teacher for the Communication and Learning Support program. Kristen has a Master’s Degree from Towson University in Education as a Reading Specialist and a Bachelor’s Degree in Infant/Primary Special Education. She has an advanced professional certificate from the State of Maryland in the following areas: generic special education 1-8, early childhood education preK-3, reading specialist, early education 1-6, and middle school. In addition, Kristen is trained in Floortime and has received a certificate of achievement for successfully completing Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) Training and is CPR certified.

LEAD TEACHER

Erin holds her Bachelor’s Degree in early Childhood Education (birth to 3rd grade) from Villa Julie College now Stevenson University. She held a Maryland State Teacher Certification for many years and has over 20 years’ experience working as a lead teacher in local private preschools. She has taught infants to age 5 in both single and multi-aged classrooms. Over the last decade, she was able to work one on one with many LTC therapists at her school where she found an interest in furthering her education and experiences within a special education classroom. Aside from her degree, she holds many certifications in specialty areas, keeps up with her professional development, and is trained in Conscious Discipline Classroom Management and in Floortime.

TEACHER ASSISTANT

Shanae graduated from high school with her 90 hour early childhood certification and 45 hour infant and toddler certification. She is CPR and First Aid certified. She was employed as the lead teacher with Magic Moments Early Learning Center for 9 years before leaving to work with a family of whom she has now individually worked with for the past 7 years. Shanae joined the Little Corner Academy team in 2019 where she assists with individualizing instruction to fit the needs of the students of whom she works with, works 1:1 with the students to encourage communication and learning support, and runs small social skills groups for Little Corner Academy. Shanae has also taken the initial Floortime class to become certified.

Kayla is a speech-language pathology major at Towson University with a minor in deaf studies, on track to graduate with her Bachelor’s Degree in 2023 and her Master’s Degree in 2025. For the past 6 years, she has nannied for several families and has been a Sunday school teacher at her church for infants through middle schoolers. She is CPR, First Aid, Lifeguard, and Waterfront certified, and has been a trained Water Safety Instructor and Camp Counselor for the past 3 years. To this day she teaches private and group lessons at a summer camp and multiple swim schools; her students include a wide range of ages, from only 3 months to older adults. In the last 3 years she has been a Physical Education teacher to kids in 3rd-5th grade. She was employed as a Teacher’s Assistant for Little Corner Academy in 2019 and has a strong passion for helping kids with disabilities.

SPEECH THERAPIST

Karon completed her Bachelor of Science in Education Degree in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology in 1996 at the State University of New York College at Buffalo. After moving to Maryland, she earned her Master of Science Degree in Speech-Language Pathology at Towson University in 2000. She is a member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA) and the Association of Baltimore City Speech-Language Pathologists (ABCSLP). Karon spent nearly ten years working for the Baltimore City Public School System, assessing and treating children of all ages with a variety of speech and language disorders. She is a licensed speech-pathologist in the state of Maryland and holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence from ASHA. In recent years, staying home with her young son has not only given her personal and hands-on experience in language development, but strengthened her desire to help children become successful communicators.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST

Laura graduated with her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy from Towson University in 2011. Upon graduation, she worked in out-patient pediatrics and hand therapy at Hands On Therapy. She then transitions to Sinai Hospital where she worked with adults in an acute care and rehabilitation setting. She was also the primary Occupational Therapist who treated children and adolescents at Sinai's Children’s Hospital. She has worked at Learning and Therapy Corner since 2013 and loves working in LTC/LCA’s multi-disciplinary team. She enjoys working with parents, families, educators, and other therapists to help the clients grow and thrive in their daily living skills and functional independence.

Occupational Therapist

Miriam graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Applied Health Science, and a minor in Disability and Family Wellness in 2018. She then went on to get her degree as a licensed Occupational Therapy Assistant in 2021. Miriam has her preschool teaching certification, and taught as a preschool teacher for 5 years prior to working in the field of Occupational Therapy. She has worked as a special needs aid in her church, as well as several day camps, and school programs for adults and children with disabilities. Miriam has clinical experience in inpatient acute care, as well as outpatient adult psych, and outpatient pediatrics. She started working at Learning and Therapy Corner in March 2022 and has enjoyed combining her preschool experience with therapy based interventions inside the LCA classroom. She loves working with other therapists, families, and children to create interpersonal relationships, allowing them to best meet their individual goals.