Albany Montessori Education Center
Guided Pathway to Independent Learning
 
Patricia Ferry, Curriculum Director
After graduating from Marymount College in Arlington, Va. Patty started her career in the financial industry. She moved to New York City and worked for Prudential Securities, Inc.  She remained in the financial business for 16 years. In the meantime, she married her husband, Mark, and had her son, Connor.  When Connor was one year old, they decided to move to Colorado, where they enrolled Connor at the Montessori Peaks Academy when he was three.  Unable to stay home, Patty became a teacher’s assistant in a primary classroom at Connor’s school.  It is there that she became enamored with the Montessori approach to learning.  In the following years, she received her training from the Montessori Education Center of the Rockies and her BA in Sociology from Regis University.  After a wonderful 3 years of being a teacher assistant and then lead teacher for 9 years, Patty and her husband decided to move back to New York to be closer to loved ones.  Patty is now fully enjoying her days as Curriculum Director at AMEC and Lead Teacher in the Children’s House.

Beth Vanderheyden, Program Director
Beth started out as a Teacher’s Assistant in the after school program for a Montessori School.   Over the
next seven years she has worked as a full time Teacher’s Assistant in the classroom, School Plus
Supervisor, Summer Camp Director, Program Coordinator and now our Program Director.  Although
not formally Montessori trained, she believes strongly in the philosophy and loves watching the magic
that the Montessori environment encourages. Beth graduated from University of Phoenix with a
Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management and is currently studying for her Master’s Degree in Social Work. 

                      


 
Mandy Cossey, Senior Lead Teacher
Mandy graduated from the University At Buffalo with a B.A in History and has over seven years experience
working with children. She is currently working on her Infant/Toddler Montessori training and looks forward to using her knowledge with the children in her classroom.  After spending six years in Buffalo, she decided to move back to Albany where she is originally from.  Mandy loves working with children, and finds the beginning stages of development are the most exciting to watch and be a part of.  Mandy enjoys spending most of my free time with her daughter and her father.  She loves listening to music, singing and watching scary movies. 


Barbara Vanderheyden, Assistant Teacher
Barb graduated from Watervliet High School in 1968 and worked for the New York State
Department of Tax and Finance for 30 years. She and her husband Bob have been married for
37 years.  They have four great children and one wonderful grandson.  Barb started at AMEC
as a volunteer and liked working with all of the children so much that when the position for
assistant teacher in the toddler room was available she became a permanent part of the
AMEC family. 

Our Part Time Assistant Teachers & School Plus+ Staff: 

Carissa Crandall
Stephanie Hobart
Deborah A. Boswell, Head of School
While raising three boys with her husband Bob, Deb operated The Family Tree,home childcare for
which she earned National Accreditation.  She then worked as Residence Manager & Agency
Supervisor for a Residential service agency, Director of Operations for Big brothers Big sisters,
Director of the Seton Family Resource Center and conducted program evaluation, and performance
based planning as a Research Associate for Research Works.  She also served on the board of directors for the Capital District Child Care Coordinating Council, site evaluator for the Child Care Programs of Excellence pilot project administered by Cornell University Dept. of Policy Analysis and Management,an advisory board member for the Riverfront Literacy Links Consortium and most recently Vice Chair of the Montessori Alliance of Upstate New York. Deb was the first child care provider in the capital district region to earn the Child Development Associate Credential from the Council for Professional Recognition.  She has an A.S in Child Development, B.S. in Human Development and Family Systems, and M.S. in Educational Psychology and Methodology all from State University of New York at Albany. With over twenty years experience working with children and families, she has coordinated programs for at-risk children and adolescents and directed life and job skills training programs for young mothers. She has also designed and directed programs for infants, toddlers, preschool, Kindergarten and lower elementary.  Her experience in the day-to-day lives of families, young adults, adolescents and early childhood in the area of education, emergent literacy and family culture has given her well-grounded and realistic approach as the Owner and Head of school for AMEC.