We are delighted to announce that Emma Norris is joining us as the new Director of the Garden School, reopening in fall 2021. Emma has a strong background in early childhood education and a passion for her work and she is looking forward to joining the Garden School community.
Emma was raised in West Marin before going to college at Sonoma State. She worked at a few preschools after college, the most notable being the Coast Guard Child Development Center.
After working in the field for a few years, she took a job as a Preschool Director, working for a non-profit in Sonoma county. The school was a multi-age preschool of about 30 children ages two to five. Emma worked to elevate the school by introducing emergent curriculum and qualifying the school for a Tier 5 QIRS
rating. While at this company, Emma worked to create a program that embraced neurodiversity and inclusion in the classroom.
After moving away from Sonoma County, Emma took a job working in San Francisco directing a preschool of about 60-75 children, ages six weeks to five years, and a staff of 20. She has been there for almost two years, but is excited to get back to her true passion of working with a non-profit again and to work in a smaller school setting. She lives in Vallejo with her two dogs and her husband.
Emma is looking forward to using the beautiful gardens here as an integral part of the preschool experience. With 11 acres to explore and learn from, the Garden School students have a wealth of resources right outside the classroom door. We are all looking forward to September, when we will welcome the Garden School students and their families to Marin Art and Garden Center.
