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The Executive
Director
 The Director of
Ravinia Nursery
School,
Kathy Olsen,
grew up in
Glenview and has
spent the
majority of her
life, personally
and
professionally,
in the suburbs
of Chicago. She
has been happily
married for over
thirty years and
has two grown
children who are
also in the
education field
as teachers.
Kathy started
her teaching
career as a
special
education
teacher at Cove
School. For the
last twenty-five
years she has
been involved in
the early
childhood field
as both a
teacher and a
director. She
has served as a
director for the
last fourteen
years. Two of
the schools,
Tri-Con Child
Care Center
(Highland Park)
and Wilmette
Community
Nursery School
have been on the
North Shore.
Kathy has also
been an active
member of the
early childhood
community,
serving on
various boards
(Oakton
Community Early
Childhood
Advisory Board
and North Shore
Early Childhood
Council),
presenting
several
workshops (to
students,
teachers, and
staff members),
and belonging to
professional
organizations (CAEYC
and NAEYC).
Educationally,
Kathy attended
both
Northeastern
Illinois
University for
undergraduate
work in Early
Childhood and
Special
Education and
National-Louis
University where
she earned her
MA in
Educational
Therapy. She is
certified in
Early Childhood,
Elementary
Education and
Special
Education with
an emphasis in
Learning
Disabilities.
The Director is
responsible for
supervising all
phases of the
program.
The Teaching
Staff
The staff of
Ravinia Nursery
School is highly
educated and
professional.
All are college
graduates with
educational
degrees, some
having advanced
degrees. All
staff members
come with early
childhood
experience, many
have been here
for a number of
years and all
are responsible
to the Director.
Throughout the
year the staff
attends a
variety of
seminars and
professional
workshops in
order to remain
current with the
activities and
trends in the
early childhood
field. As part
of the DCFS
guidelines, all
staff members
are required to
earn 15
in-service hours
each year. The
staff is also
certified in CPR
and First Aid
training. All
staff members
are members of
the National
Association For
the Education of
Young Children,
which is the
professional
organization for
Early Childhood
Educators. Staff
members continue
to attend
workshops and
college classes
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