As a part of the North Seattle College Cooperative Preschool Network, each of our classes is assigned a Parent Education Instructor by the NSC Child + Family Education Division to advise teachers and help parents build parenting skills.

Our parent educators:

  • Provide formal parent education for at least one hour each month at the monthly parent meeting.
  • Attend All-School Board meetings and the business portion of the parent meetings, serving as a resource to the group regarding business and organizational concerns.
  • Participate in the classroom, working with children and parents as well as assisting the teacher.
  • Consult with and advise the teacher on classroom organization and curriculum.
  • Serve as a resource to individual parents regarding particular concerns.
  • Act as a liaison between parents, teacher, and NSC.
  • Assist on a teacher evaluation committee.

 

Meet our Parent Educators

Frances Coppa, Toddlers

Frances has been working in the field of children and families for 20+ years.  She taught kindergarten/1st grade, was a special education teacher, and then a school principal. She discovered the magic of cooperative preschool as a parent, finding community and learning alongside her kids. When they headed off to kindergarten, she became a parent educator at North Seattle College and has worked with many age groups, at Mary’s Place shelter and child care sites. Frances is also an ADHD/Executive Function coach for children, teens and parents of uniquely wired kids.

Frances loves working with young children for their curiosity, energy and freedom to be who they are.  With kids and families, she focuses on relationship-building, being relevant and relatable, and providing concrete tools to support families. Frances prioritizes inclusivity and weaves social justice and anti-bias education into her teaching and interactions.

In addition to being a mom of 2 kiddos – Lily (6th grade) and Wren (4th grade), Frances is a dabbler in all things active – biking, hiking, playing volleyball, coaching ultimate frisbee and open water swimming.  She is also a certified yoga instructor.

Paulina Cuevas Vega, Pre-3’s

Paulina Cuevas Vega was born and lived in Chile until 2013. She has a lifelong passion for learning and advocating for a world where everyone belongs. She was a Fulbright scholar at the University of Minnesota, where she received her MA Educational Psychology and K-12 School counselor license.

For more than 20 years, she has been supporting families, students, and educators, in public and international K-12 schools, in Chile, China, and the United States.

She is also a Positive Discipline Lead Trainer, a Yoga, mindfulness and SEL facilitator (500 RYT), a Training from the Back of the Room practitioner, and has a certification in Embodied Social Justice.  She is passionate about designing and implementing adult learning experiences from a social justice framework.

During the last 15 years, she has facilitated more than fifty 15-hour Positive Discipline Certification workshops and has certified more than 1000 educators around the globe, in positive discipline in the family, positive discipline in the classroom, and positive discipline in early childhood. In addition, she has facilitated adult learning, both in Spanish and English in multiple countries on topics related to parenting and educating from a trauma informed and social justice framework; providing education around gender diversity, and support for LGBTQI+ young people and their families, in school settings; using neuroscience, embodiment, and somatic practices to nurture self-care and wellbeing, as a social justice act. 

She has a vast professional experience in child development and a rich personal experience living in different cultures. She speaks English, Spanish, and Mandarin.

Both in her life and work, she’s passionate about supporting and nurturing communities of care that ensure every adult and every child develops a sense of belonging and significance that allows everyone to thrive, which she believes is a requirement to achieve social justice and save our planet.

She currently lives with her husband in beautiful North Bend, WA, where they enjoy kayaking, hiking, biking, foraging, swimming, and spending as much time as possible in the woods.

Betty Williams, 3 to 5’s

Betty has a BA in Psychology from Vanderbilt University and an MSW (with an emphasis in working with children and families) from the University of Washington. She worked in the child care field for many years as an infant, toddler and preschool teacher, program supervisor, and center director. She taught classes in Early Childhood Education and Parent Education Classes as a part-time instructor at Seattle Central and Edmonds Community Colleges. Since 2004, she has been working as a full-time instructor in Parent Education at North Seattle College and serves as the Parent Ed Program Coordinator.

Her vision for Parent Education is to provide a balance of opportunities for parents/caregivers to share concerns, discuss challenges and strategies, and receive information from the field of early childhood education. The vision of our parent education program is to build supportive, diverse, equitable, and inclusive community in which children grow, learn, and thrive.