Tamara Ristow
​Director

Miss Tamara has been at OSELC since it was a half day preschool program in 2000.  During that time she has enjoyed taking part in the growth and expansion of the center and getting to know the families we serve.  She is eager to see how OSELC continues to serve the community. 

Rae Lynn Leenderts Assistant Director

Miss Rae Lynn started her career at OSELC in 2008.  She began as an assistant teacher and in 2011 moved to her current position in the office as Assistant Director.

​OUR SHINING TEAM

Miss tammy 
float/lunch

Miss Tammy has been has been working at Our Savior Early Learning Center since 2017.  She graduated from Babbitt High School and spent many years working in retail.  She has 10 grandchildren ranging from 3-19 years in age.  Miss Tammy enjoys working with the children each day and our students love when she brings in her special books to read to them!

Miss jennifer s
pRE-K TEACHER

Miss Jennifer began her career in childcare in June of 2018, after working in retail for over 29 years.  She has been working at OSELC since Fall 2019.  Jennifer lives in Lakeville with her 3 wonderful children; James (21), Jack (19), and Lauren (16).  She also has 3 cats Cally, Boots, and Tiger.  Miss Jennifer has always enjoyed working with children and know this would be the perfect job for her!  

Miss sarah
​Pre-k teacher

Miss Sarah has been a teacher at OSELC for 19 years.  She graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College with a BS degree in Elementary Education.  Overall, she has been teaching students for over 26 years.  Miss Sarah lives with her husband Russ and has 2 adult daughters.  When she is not teaching she enjoys being outside and teaching Jazzercise. 

Mrs. K
​Pre-K teacher

Mary Ann, better known as Mrs. K during the day here has a BS in Elementary Education which she received from Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN.  Since that point she taught 4 years as a kindergarten teacher, first grade for 1 year, third and fourth grades for 9 years before landing here at OSELC.  Mrs. K has been teaching PreK at OSELC for 10 years.  When not at school Mrs.K enjoys spending time with her husband and 3 sons named, Hans (24), Markus (22), and Martin (19).  She is in education because she enjoys teaching kids, and seeing the world of knowledge come to life in them.

Mrs. Johnson 
3/4 Preschool Teacher

Anna Johnson has been at OSELC since 2010.  She has been in education for 30 years.  During that time she has worked with children 3 years old to 12th grade.  She has her BS from UW- River Falls in Education and a reading endorsement from Mankato State.  Anna, her husband, John and their 2 teenage sons enjoy scouting, history, geography, reading, and the Green Bay Packers.  Mrs. Johnson enjoys education and working in OSELC, because she believes that our greatest gift is children and their bright little minds.  She loves how joyful the children become when the learning clicks together and for the kids.   

Miss Connor 
3/4 PReschool Teacher

Miss Connor has been working off and on at OSELC since 2015.  She recently graduated from Belmont University in Nashville, TN with a degree in Motion Picture and Computer Science.  Our very own, Miss Teresa, is her mother and Miss Cate is her sister.  In her free time Miss Connor enjoys reading and binge watching her favorite TV shows.  Her favorite part of working with preschoolers is how goofy and funny they are.

Miss Teri
Toddler 2 Teacher

Miss Teri began her career at OSELC in 2016.  She is originally from Colorado but moved to MN in 2013 with her husband and two children.  She has been working in childcare on and off for more than 20 years.  She also worked for MN Reading Corps as a tutor for 2 years.  Miss Teri loves working with children and sharing God's love with them.  

Miss Kate
​Toddler 2 teacher

Miss Kate has been teaching at OSELC since 2017, prior to that she worked for Head Start.  Before her time with Head Start, she was an English teacher in Turkey.  Her education includes graduating from Rosemount HS and attending Hamline University to study sociology and education for several years.  She took a break from her studies but will be graduating from Rasmussen College in 2020.  She lives with her daughter and their cats a few blocks from OSELC.  She is in education because of the amazing teachers and professors she has learned from over the years.

Miss Maddy
Toddler 2 Assistant Teacher 

Miss Maddy initially started at OSELC in 2019, she left us for a portion of time but we are very excited that she is back!  Miss Maddy is currently in school going for her Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education and Child and Family Studies.  When she is not working or completing homework Miss Maddy enjoys being outside as often as possible.  She is happy to be back at OSELC and looks forward to seeing the smiling faces of the kids each day!

Miss Anne
​Toddler 1 teacher

Miss Anne has been with Our Savior Early Learning Center since 2018.  She started in our Infant classroom and is now a co-teacher in a young toddler room.  Miss Anne has many years of experience.  She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education.  After graduation she worked as a 3/4 grade teacher for 9 years.  Just prior to joining our team Miss Anne ran a daycare from her home for 22 years!  Miss Anne also has 4 children of her own, including our very own, Mr. Sean.  Miss Anne enjoys spending each day getting to know the children and families here at OSELC.  

Miss Larissa
Toddler 1 aide

Miss Larissa has been with Our Savior Early Learning Center since 2019.  She has worked in all of our classrooms at one time or another during that time period.  She is currently working in our young toddler room and finds it fun and exciting.  She loves working in the toddler rooms because there is never a dull moment in this age group and every single day is new and brings new adventures with it. 

Miss Teresa
​Infant Teacher

Miss Teresa has been a part of the OSELC team since 2019.  Prior to working here she spent her days working with students with high needs and ELL learners in District 196.  She decided to make a career change after hearing from her daughters, Miss Cate and Miss Connor, about their time in the infant classroom.  She loves all of the snuggles, learning, growth, giggles, and smiles that happen during the infant stage and is glad that she gets the opportunity to experience them once again as her own girls become young adults.   

Miss Jennifer R
Infant Teacher

​Miss Jennifer lives in Rosemount with her husband.  She is the mother of 2 adult children, Kelly and Alexis.  She has a BS in Early Childhood Education from Crown College.  Miss Jennifer R began working at OSELC in 2013.  She was the lead teacher in the infant classroom for 3 years.  At that time she left OSELC for a short time and worked in other early childhood settings for a few years.  She came back to OSELC in 2019 and joined our young preschool team. She realized she really  missed being in a Christian setting, the families, staff, and kids here at OSELC.  We are glad she decided to come back!

Miss Maura
Infant Teacher

Miss Maura began at OSELC in 2019.  She has her associates degree in Exercise Science.  Before beginning at OSELC Miss Maura worked in child care for the church. Her family has been a part of LCOS's congregation for as long as she can remember.  Miss Maura joined our team because she wanted to be closer to her own children during the day.  She enjoys working in the Infant room because she gets to see the looks of pride and joy from the children as they reach the many milestones that happen during this precious time in their lives.  

Miss lexi
high school aide

Miss Lexi is a Junior at Rosemount HS.  She has been working at OSELC since September 2019.  She lives with her parents and her younger brother.  She loves working with kids because she enjoys watching them grow. "Coming in to see their smiling faces everyday is such a blessing."