Staff

Preschool Teachers and Administration

Jolene Meeks - Director

My name is Jolene Meeks.  I am a mother of 6, 4 of my own, and 2 stepchildren.  My family and I relocated from Des Moines to Ripon in June of 2017.  I ran In-home childcare for 8 years where I was a State Registered, ChildNet Certified, and QRS rated provider.  I also participated in the states food program (CACFP) to ensure children received healthy meals while in my care.  Since joining the Discovery team in January of 2018 I have had the pleasure of working alongside Jan Kerch in the preschool room as well as working in our childcare room.  Knowing that this is a passion of mine I have also earned my Child Development Associate (CDA) in preschool since joining the Discovery team. I have always enjoyed working with children and this all started when I was 12.  I am excited to take on this new role as Director and continue working with all of our wonderful families.

Jan Kerch - Lead Preschool Teacher

kerchj.discovery@gmail.com and jkerch@discoverdiscovery.org

Jan joined the educational team at Discovery Preschool in 1989. She is now teaching her second generation of little learners. Her greatest joy is to be honored with the opportunity to teach children of her past students, returning students and meet new families. Her teaching philosophy is to instill in each child the excitement to learn. Her teaching focus is on building the confidence, joy and self- esteem that each child acquires as they learn and demonstrate new skills and enhance developed skills appropriate for their age. 

Jan is the preschool lead teacher and is responsible for curriculum development and organization of the preschool program. Her creative curriculum is based on past experiences of working with children and adults with varying learning styles and abilities. Jan holds two associate degrees, an Associate of Arts and a Child Development Associate as well as Director Certification. 

Jan lives in Ripon and has been married to Joe for the past 39 years. Her hobbies include traveling and visiting new cultures, (daughter, son- in- law and 2 granddaughters lived in Germany and currently live in Morocco), hiking (with naturalist and artist son ), cooking new foods with family, crafts and reading.

Lea Salas - Registrar

discoverdiscoverypreschool@gmail.com and registrar@discoverdiscovery.org

Lea has been with Discovery for a number of years. She is a one-stop-shop! She is the currently the preschool registrar, office manager, and billing/payroll department! Lea has extensive knowledge of Quick Books and is an active member of the School Board. In her spare time, she enjoys fitness, travel and being with family.