KLA Schools of Walnut Creek 298 N Wiget Ln Walnut Creek, CA

(925) 357-8080

Meet the Leadership Team at KLA Schools of Walnut Creek

Elif

Elif Kalkan

Director

Elif is an early childhood educator with 20 years of teaching and administration experience . She has a B.A. in Business Administration and worked in the banking sector in Turkey for 2.5 years. In a short time, Elif decided to return to university to study Early Childhood Education. She has her M.S. and PhD in Early Childhood Education, and specialized on Socio-Constructivist Theories and the importance of play in children’s growth and development. She worked as a teacher and director in preschools in Turkey and in the USA. Elif has been a part of KLA Schools since 2013 and a director at Walnut Creek since 2016.

Elif believes in the effect of play-based learning and audit scaffolding in early years, and is very happy to be able to share her passion and ideas with her colleagues and families at KLA. She is also a board member of California for Quality Early Learning (CQEL) and has been an advocate for high quality community-based child care programs in California. Elif has 3 children.

KSTA Roxana Acevedo

Roxana Acevedo

Assistant Director

Roxana has been in the field of Early Childhood Education for 12 years. Her passion for education started early on, while taking care of the children of family and friends. She became fascinated with child development and how children learn. She pursued her passion in the field and obtained her Associates in Early Childhood Education from Solano Community College. She then acquired her Bachelor’s in Human Development from UC Davis, with an emphasis in the early years of development. Through her college years, Roxana worked in the lab schools and discovered the impact that child-centered curriculum can make in education. She continued working as a teacher in the field for six years.

Inspired to make a difference in the larger school setting, Roxana transitioned to administration. She joined the KLA team in 2013 and loves working for a school that parallels her beliefs in education.

KSTA Laura Aparicio

Laura Aparicio

Pedagogical Coordinator

Laura’s journey into early childhood education began as a volunteer, where she quickly realized her deep passion for working with children. This discovery prompted a significant career change, as she left her corporate role in human resources to earn a degree in Early Childhood Education. She was immediately drawn to the concepts of emergent curriculum and the importance of social-emotional development, fascinated by the intricate process of how children learn to meet their needs while respecting others is a particular area of interest for her.

Laura started at KLA Walnut Creek in 2016, where she gained extensive experience as a lead teacher across various age groups, from Nidos to the 4s. In 2022, she took on the role of Pedagogical Coordinator, a position where she thrives. Laura is dedicated to fostering a collaborative environment, working closely with teachers, parents, and children to support the unique needs of every child in the community.

KSTA Deborah Scatina

Deborah Scatina

Pedagogical Coordinator

With a career in education that began in 1978, I have had the privilege of serving as a Director in multiple East Bay preschools. My focus has always been on supporting teachers in developing a deeper understanding of emergent curriculum.

In 2023, I transitioned to the role of Pedagogical Coordinator. In this position, I directly support our educators in implementing the Reggio Emilia philosophy, helping them make children's learning visible. I also guide them in scaffolding learning to support children through their developmental processes.

In addition to mentoring our staff, I am responsible for creating a beautiful and rich physical environment that acts as the "third teacher," inspiring children to engage with each other and with diverse materials. I facilitate meetings to promote collaboration and team building as we document emerging projects. I also onboard new staff, helping them learn the KLA philosophy and guiding them through our processes.

KSTA Nena Uribe

Nena Uribe

Atelierista

Hello, my name is Nena Uribe. I have 5 beautiful children and an amazing husband. I have been in the early childhood education field for the more than 20 years. I have been part of the KLA community since 2016 primarily in the younger classrooms. I have enjoyed every moment with the infants and toddlers! I am excited about my new role as the Atelierista and working with all of the children.

My passion has always been working with children; I have worked with every age group during my time as an educator. As the Atelierista I get to continue to work with all ages to see the process of the many languages of expression in Reggio.

I feel very strongly about the values of the Reggio Emilia philosophy. In the atelier we enjoy letting the children be the leader to show us how they think and how they can process their thinking to bring it to life through open-ended materials like clay and wire. Little hands can create big things!

We can't wait to meet your family

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