Our Teachers

Linda Romanowski – Kindergarten

Linda Romanowski graduated with a B.A. in Elementary Education from Purdue University in Indiana and a Masters of Education in Reading from the University of Arizona. Linda holds an Oregon Teaching License. Prior to moving to Oregon, Linda taught elementary school in Arizona, New York and Florida. She continues to take classes at Portland State University and Portland Community College, and attends a variety of workshops.

Linda began teaching at Cedar Hills Kindergarten & Preschool in 2002. She has taught the threes, fours, and now the Kindergarten classes. Both of Linda's sons attended Cedar Hills Kindergarten & Preschool before she began teaching in the preschool. She believes the cooperative philosophy builds a strong foundation for life long learners and provides a nurturing space for children and parents to grow.

When she is not at work Linda enjoys backpacking with her family, hiking, reading, gardening, and jogging.

Lora Dierker - Fours Classes

Lora holds a current Oregon Teaching License, earned a BA from the University of Oregon in 1986, and received her teaching credential from San Francisco State University in 1993. She began her teaching career as a Spanish-bilingual elementary school teacher in California. Lora also worked as a reading resource teacher and a bilingual resource teacher.

Lora began teaching at Cedar Hills Kindergarten & Preschool in 2004 as the Threes class teacher. She has two sons who attended cooperative preschools in Portland, where she fell in love with the parent cooperative model.

When Lora is not teaching, she makes time to parent, cook, read, play banjo, practice yoga, garden, experience the great outdoors, and travel.

Lori Gamroth - Threes Classes

Lori Gamroth holds a Masters Degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a specialization in Early Childhood Education from Portland State University. She also holds a BS in Education and an AAS in Early Childhood Education. Lori is also an active Community Trainer with the Oregon Registry for Career Development in Childhood Care & Education, and a Certified Positive Discipline Parenting Educator. She is always seeking out new information relevant to working with young children and their families through yearly NAEYC trainings and specialty classes/workshops related to child development.

Lori brings to the classroom an impressive 25 yrs of teaching. Kids in Lori’s class benefit from her diverse teaching background, which includes conflict resolution, child development, developmental art, cooking, physical development for children and adults, music and movement, language and literacy, and numeracy development. She has taught in both public and private school settings, and brings experience in working with typically developing children and children with special needs. She has taught at the NW Nannies Institute, and was the 2004 recipient of the Parent Child Preschools International District Award for distinguished teaching. She has worked with parents and children at CHKP for over ten years.

Lori loves the unique opportunity to connect with both parents and children in the cooperative setting. “Working at a cooperative school allows all of us to learn by experience and example from the children as they teach us and show us the joy of discovery from the eyes of the young child."

When Lori is not in the classroom, she enjoys spending time with her incredible best friend and husband, 2 grown children and one really, really cute grandson. Her hobbies include reading, playing with her family, traveling, and Dog Agility training and competition with her Golden Retriever Jack.