Michelle Burton has been in the Early Childhood field for 15 years. She worked in a Montessori Center for several years before opening her own program exclusively for infants and toddlers. She has been with Child Care Resources since 2019 and is a distance learning editor for Child Care Training and a Professional Development Specialist.  She holds a bachelor's degree in Biology, a Juris Doctor degree, and has completed additional college coursework in early childhood education.  

Contact: mburton@childcaretraining.org

Denise Herman 

Contact: dherman@childcaretraining.org

Deb Huestis holds Bachelor Degrees in Child Development and Family Relations and Cognitive Psychology from the University of Idaho. She has been involved in the Early Childhood Care and Education field for 19 years. She started her career as a preschool teacher and has worked her way through Education Coordinator of a Children’s Museum, Early Childhood Core Instructor for UM Western, coordinator for Montana’s Early Learning Guidelines Birth - 36 months, and is currently a PDS III for Child Care Solutions MT.

Contact: dhuestis@childcaretraining.org

Charrisse Jennings

Contact: cjennings@childcaretraining.org

Ann Klaas holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Alfred University in New York and a Master’s in Early Childhood from MSU. She ran her own family child care for 6 years, worked for the Resource & Referral Agency, Child Care Connections as their trainer for 11 years and has been the Professional Development System Coordinator at the Early Childhood Project for 13 years.

Contact: aklaas@childcaretraining.org

Lucy Marose has been with Child Care Resources for a long time. Lucy wears many hats at the agency; an Early Childhood Specialist, and a Professional Development Specialist, an Instructional Coach and now is working with CCT. Lucy has worked as a Contract Program Evaluator and an Accreditation Observer for the National Association of Child Care Providers (NAFCC), and an Early Childhood Project-Longevity Clause Observer. Lucy holds a B.A. in Social Work, a Master’s of Education in Early Childhood and a Master’s of Education in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Special Education. She also completed the Graduate Preparation Project through Child Care Plus+ and the University of Montana-Missoula. Early on in her career, Lucy taught in a Head Start classroom for several years, and, when her children were young, did in-home child care. In her free time, Lucy is a hospice volunteer and a quilter.

Contact: lmarose@childcaretraining.org

Lauralea Sanks has lived her entire life surrounded by the beauty and majesty of Montana, a place she is proud to call home. As a mother of three adult children and a grandmother to three wonderful grandchildren (two in Billings, MT, and one in Ragley, LA), family is at the heart of everything she does.

With over 30 years of experience in the Early Childhood Education field, she has worked with children from as young as two weeks old to eight years old. Lauralea's educational journey includes a bachelor's degree in social work, an associate's degree in early childhood education, and a master's degree in early childhood education with an emphasis in special needs.

Lauralea's career has been rich and varied, encompassing roles as a teacher, owner, and director in family, group, and center-based childcare settings. She has also developed and facilitated courses for ChildcareTraining.org and served as a mentor in Child Care Resources Infant/Toddler Mentoring and Accreditation Mentoring Programs.

In April 2016, Lauralea joined Child Care Resources full-time as an Early Childhood Trainer, Professional Development Specialist III, and STARS Consultant. She takes pride in supporting early childhood professionals as an instructor, mentor, and advocate to help foster the growth and development of children during their most formative years.

Contact: lsanks@childcaretraining.org

Jennifer Williamson is the Provider Services Coordinator at Child Care Resources who has been shaping the world of early childhood education since 1997. Her extensive journey includes roles as a home childcare provider, Assistant Director of an NAEYC-accredited Montessori preschool, quality coach, and conference planner. Jennifer is deeply dedicated to inclusive education, bringing years of expertise in supporting children with diverse physical, cognitive, and behavioral needs.

An expert in creating and providing professional development, she loves empowering children, educators, and parents. Jennifer holds a B.A. from the University of Montana and achieved a Level VI on the Child Care Practitioner’s Registry via Montana State University-Bozeman. When she is not training the next generation of educators through CCT, she is advocating for high-quality learning environments where every child can thrive.

Contact: jwilliamson@childcaretraining.org