Joy has been a proud SSDS parent since 2019. She grew up in Poolesville, Maryland, and has worked with young children since before she can remember. She earned her Bachelors in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland, and went on to teach kindergarten and first grade for nine years at an MCPS school in Bethesda. During her time as an MCPS classroom teacher, she earned her Masters in Language, Literacy, and Reading Instruction from JHU and became a certified reading specialist. When her first son was born in 2017, she made the decision to take a break from teaching, but with her second son arriving in 2019, and Covid being so disruptive, her time away from the classroom lasted longer than she expected. She spent her years away offering private tutoring services to students between kindergarten and eighth grade. After five years as an SSDS parent, she feels ready to rejoin the ranks of teaching superheroes, and is thrilled for the new adventure of working with preschool students after a career spent working with their older siblings and friends!

Joy's passions are traveling, hiking, music, perusing museums, and especially reading. She has a special interest in learning about architecture and design, on a very amateur level. On a day off without any chores hanging over her head, you can find her on an adventure with her two elementary school aged sons and husband, in a cozy sweater reading a book to herself or others while playing a record in the background, or repurposing furniture and odds and ends for new life in her home!