Klahanie School admits students of any race. Klahanie School does not discriminate against applicants or students on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnic origin or financial abilities.
Klahanie School staff completes yearly ongoing education through various trainings in Early Education learnings: Trauma Informed, Mental Health First Aid, Gender Inclusion, Anti-bias in Early Education, ongoing-updated Neurological Research supported trainings and Montessori Special Needs.
Teachers
Emily (Emmy) Graham: AMS Lead Teacher/Executive Director/ Founder
Emily moved to Vashon Island with her husband Alex (a returning Vashon raised) and sons in 2008. With the birth and passing of their daughter Nora in 2007, Emily found continued healing through nature, writing and celebration of family. Because of these important personal growths of resiliencies, Emily is even more committed to the enrichment of children’s empathy, as well as family and community on-going mentorship connections. Emily is a University of Washington Graduate with an emphasis in Conflict Resolution curriculum development through Comparative History of Ideas and Montessori certified through Montessori Education Institute of Pacific Northwest (MEIPN/AMS certified). Since 2001, she has worked with youth ranging from birth-to-teen and found many happy years working with 3-6 year olds at Montessori Country School (Bainbridge Island, WA.) as Lead Teacher, as well as facilitator/trainer in Teen Talking Circle Project (Bainbridge Island, WA.), BHS graduate. Emily recently co-founded Vashon Sisterhood-now Circles/DOVE Vashon, offering circles in schools programming for Vashon Island School District: CES, McM & VHS. Emily proudly continues annual ongoing education through varying certifications in professional development specialized focuses through nationally accredited Montessori learning institutions, three month long courses:
Center for Guided Montessori Studies Certification: Special Education in Montessori Early Childhood Classrooms 2021
American Montessori Society: ABAR Antibias Antiracism Certification 2023
This class introduced power, privilege, oppression and techniques for recognizing personal bias, describing the impact of personal bias on your actions, describing the impact of personal bias on teaching and conducting a deeper exploration into your identity. The three month course explored the historical context of Dr. Montessori’s work as well as the importance of transformation. Once we have ritualized honest self refinement, from that place we can more effectively go about the work of interrupting inequitable systems, schools, and curriculum. This ABAR course gives participants very real practice with reflection and resistance and to develop action steps towards liberation within our personal lives, schools, and broader communities.
American Montessori Society: Early Childhood Reading Re-Certification 2025
Deborah Wallace: Montessori Assistant & Animal-Nature Specialist
Deborah (Deb for the kids might be the easiest to say- either is fine with me) is from Arnold, Maryland and moved out to Seattle almost 15yrs ago. She is an avid lover of the outdoors, nature, and animals as well as arts and crafts! She has been on Vashon Island for 2 yrs now. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and 3-D design from Salisbury University located on the eastern shore of Maryland. For the past 4 yrs she’s worked at a large local animal shelter, helping create care and training plans for a multitude of dogs, cats, and small critters, like rabbits and guinea pigs. She’s previously worked with Earth Corp, assisting in forest restoration, and Mountains to Sound Greenway, hiking along the I-90 corridor maintaining trails and repairing trail structures. My other interests include SPACE as well as history. More recently, she has been exploring different forms of movement meditation, such As Tai Chi and Qui Gong.
Celena Becerra: Lead PM and Teacher Aide
Hi! My name is Celena Becerra, I just graduated from VHS class of 2023. I love photography, my friends and family, and being in touch with my spirituality. I love being involved, I fulfilled that in middle and high school by being involved in ASB, I was co-vice President my senior year. I am also very passionate and interested in sexual and reproductive health, along with mental health awareness, which I fulfilled that interest by being a member of Teen Council my sophomore-junior year. I hope to be in the medical field one day, hopefully under some sort of reproductive health department. I hope to gain childcare experience to be an au pair in a foreign country at some point in my life but also I just want to be able to surround myself with kids and their fun energies, especially during this year for me as I am dealing with the emotional hardship of not being able to go to college this fall anymore. I think kids just have such a pure energy that will keep me happy and motivated.
Brooklyn Stumpf: Lead PM, Teacher Aide
I am the third of four siblings. My youngest sister Amanda graduated as a Kindergartener at Klahanie School and I am happy to return for teacher aide support at Klahanie. I am a second year student at University of Seattle. I enjoy playing softball, volleyball, crocheting, and arts and crafts. I lived abroad autumn 2025 in Thailand and excited to share my cultural learnings with Klahanie Schoo students when I return in January.
Perla Ordonez Ramirez: PM Lead, Teacher Aide
I’ve so far lived here on Vashon my whole life and interned at Klahanie School since sixth grade/McMurray and now in my 11th Junior VHS year and started Running Start. I enjoy being with my dog, hanging out with my friends, exploring new places/things, and being in the outdoors. I love learning about new cultures and I’m really happy to be with you all.
Tallulah McKight: Teacher Aide
Lelah Assink: Specialist and Substitute
Hi! My name is Lelah, and I was born and raised on Vashon Island. I attended the University of Washington and recently completed my master’s degree in Amsterdam. I’m passionate about the outdoors and deeply interested in environmental conservation and the impacts of climate change on communities around the world. I’ll soon be exploring these topics further by traveling throughout Southeast Asia and Oceania, hoping to learn firsthand. While I’m still on Vashon, I’m super excited to help at Klahanie School, where I’ll be surrounded by sweet, energetic children and have the chance to learn from them.
Shelly Stumpf: Quarterly Art Specialist, Substitute
Hi, I’m Shelly and I’m really appreciative of the opportunity to walk beside these magical children as they explore, learn and grow. I moved to Vashon with my husband and 4 daughters in 2018 when my oldest was 17 and my youngest was born. Before moving “on island” my daughters had been commuting to McMurray and VHS and we had been dreaming about living in this community that felt like home the first time we visited. When my older daughters were in elementary school, I worked as a paraeducator in the Highline school district providing support to students in grades K-6. I was also a Camp Fire leader (another Vashon connection to amazing Camp Sealth) for many years. Long ago, I earned my MA at the University of Washington in Speech Communication specializing in interpersonal and small group communication with a certificate in mediation and conflict resolution from the UW School of Law. I am co-director at Vashon Kids! If I had spare time I would use it to travel with my family (we love road trips!), spend time in nature, read, learn and go to the movies!
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