Jane Spencer, Class of 1996
November 17th, 2013
Jane Spencer today and in her elementary school photo taken by Paul Cryan.
I studied at University of Colorado-Boulder and graduated with a BA in EnvironmentalStudies. During college I started working in Alaska during the summers and after college Ilived in Hawaii during the winter. I worked various seasonal jobs during that time from commercial salmon fishing, an internship for an Environmental non profit, lived and worked on an organic permaculture farm, worked in a small local Hawaiian market and cooked in a rustic Alaskan lodge. Last year I lived in Maineand worked for an AmeriCorps program, FoodCorps, where I educated kids about nutrition through gardening and cooking classes.
Montessori nurtured my sense of curiosity and adventure. I enjoy experiencing different cultures and over the past few years I pursued unconventional career opportunities because I thought they were worthwhile experiences for me. I am very experience driven and place a high value on personal relationships and meaningful work above all else in my career. Montessori created a strong foundation to enable me to pursue these adventures.
Some of my most vivid memories of being at Litchfield Montessori include nature walks, building forts in the woods, all the plays that we performed together and our unique field trips. The Native Americans, Black Snake Woman and Traveling Medicine Dog made a huge impression on me, especially when we spent an overnight on their compound. Also, so many of the art projects my parents still keep in their house and are a constant reminder of all the creative opportunities I had at Montessori.
I am currently working at Litchfield Montessori, in Admissions and Volunteer Coordination and have thouroughly enjoyed seeing familiar faces of my past teachers. It has been a great experience reconnecting with so many people from my childhood and being back in the community I grew up in. Litchfield Montessori is still the welcoming and nurturing school I remember from my youth.
Jane's father has recently rejoined the LMS Board of Trustees.
