Our Teachers

Helene Hanson
Co-Director and teacher, Helene Hanson, has been working in the early childhood education field since 1999, wearing many different hats, and consistently returning again and again to teaching preschool aged children. She brings her patience, wisdom and humor to her work and is deeply contented by helping children to have a first-time school experience that is warm, respectful and loving. Helene is a proud member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Katie Statman-Weil
Co-Director and teacher, Katie Statman-Weil, has been working in education since 2000. Katie has her degree in Sociology from McGill University. Along with her work at Wild Lilac, Katie currently works with Volunteers of America facilitating parenting classes and playgroups for families referred by the Oregon Department of Human Services/Child Welfare. Katie is currently a mentor for a 17 year old in foster care. Katie is a proud member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Iris House Teachers

Naomi FayeCullen
Iris House teacher, Naomi FayeCullen lives in NE Portland with her husband, Sean, her 2-year-old son, Owen, and her 10-year-old black lab, The Dude. She has been teaching preschool since January 1997. She has worked as an assistant special education teacher, a lead teacher, an enrichment teacher, and a mentor teacher. She holds an AA degree in Early Childhood Education from Santa Monica College, she has written articles about child development, and she has spent time freelancing in the field of photography. Her hobbies include watching her son grow up, spending time with her husband, dancing, photographing people, writing poems, soliciting publishers for her children’s books, and browsing thrift stores. She is so excited to be a part of the Wild Lilac family.

Sean FayeCullen
Iris House teacher, Sean FayeCullen lives in NE Portland with his wife, Naomi, his 3-year-old son, Owen, and his 10-year-old black lab, The Dude. He has been teaching preschool since 1997. He has worked as a therapeutic companion, a lead teacher, an enrichment teacher, and a music teacher. He holds a BA degree in Music Composition with a concentration in Music Therapy from California State University at Northridge. Sean also spends time working as a musician with several world music bands in and around Portland as well as doing session work with national acts. . His hobbies include watching his son grow up, spending time with his wonderful wife, skateboarding, exploring Portland, meeting new people, playing soccer, composing children's stories and writing songs. He is deeply excited to be a part of the Wild Lilac family.

Amber Barrett
Daffodil House teacher Amber Barrett comes to us with five years of experience working in education, having worked with students of all ages. Amber got her start in education by teaching English as a Second Language in the Czech Republic. Bitten by the teaching bug, she's continued working with children ever since. Originally from Colorado, Amber just moved to Portland from Calgary, Alberta, and is smitten with Portland! She's looking forward to making the coming school year a positive, exciting and fun experience!

Helen Harris
Daffodil House teacher, Helen Harris, is a recent transplant to Portland. So far, she loves hiking, exploring the parks, smelling the roses, and going to the farmer’s market in this beautiful city. She has a Master’s degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education and an undergraduate degree in History. Helen decided to pursue teaching as a profession after many years leading camping, gardening, and arts and crafts activities at a summer nature camp. She is very excited to bring her love of the natural world and passion for learning to Daffodil House.

Michelle Marino
Michelle believes that to eat is to celebrate life! Growing up in Northern New Jersey, amongst her lively Italian family, exploring food-related projects has always had her full attention, dating back to her first food memory, the classic pound cake, complete with the licking cake batter off spoon routine. Though she's learned a lot about food since then, the kitchen is still her favorite place to thrive, and she's got a big heart for nutrition, especially when it comes to youngsters. She understands that learning to listen to our bodies from a young age, and keeping ourselves rich with foods that heal, will keep us happy! Michelle loves cooking foods that fuel the soul during cold weather seasons, like yummy stews and homemade breads, and looks forward to all the tiny hands that will be eager to help her to create, to eat, and to celebrate food!