Temple Beth AMI

Temple Beth Ami Nursery School (TBANS) began in 1989 in the Temple’s old building on Hurley Avenue. We opened our doors with about 40 children and 12 teachers in 6 classes, sharing space with our religious school and using buckets instead of sinks for hand washing. Our first director, Karen Greenberg, was also a teacher for the three year olds. Beverly Kragen was a teacher then and continues today to nurture Temple Beth Ami families in the Ladybug Class. Current staff members Karen Asman, Ellen Bortz, Marsha Diamond, Jill Finci, Laurie Galfond, Deena Klopman, Karen Kominsky, and Jody Rosenblum were parents of our first students. In fact, 22 of our current 30 teachers started working here because their children were TBANS graduates. This is the most reassuring, comforting place in the world, and no one ever wants to leave!

Our goal in our first years was to provide a safe, loving environment for our neighborhood toddlers to spend their nursery years and our families to get to know each other. As the years progressed, we maintained our commitment to safety and to creating a warm and welcoming environment. In addition, we have learned a lot about early childhood education, responded to the latest research on child development and implemented the best practices for facilitating the social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of two to four year olds.

In 1998, we moved to our own wing in the Temple’s new building, and we have expanded to serve 135 children with 30 teachers in nine classrooms. We have been honored with the commitment of the Temple’s lay and professional leadership to the importance of early childhood Jewish education. We have been blessed with the resources necessary to create the highest quality educational environment and to secure the most knowledgeable, experienced, and dedicated staff.

Our first director retired after 20 years to spend time with her own grandchildren! Our second director, Paula Sayag, began on July 1, 2009. Our outstanding feature remains our incredible teachers. We pride ourselves on our keen awareness of each child’s development, our skills for helping each child progress, and our concern for each child’s utmost success. We are already serving children of our first students, and we feel lucky to continuously meet the needs of our community’s families. No one ever wants to leave Temple Beth Ami Nursery School!

Child Ages:

1 year - 5 years

Licenses & Accreditations:

Maryland State Department of Education Division of Early Childhood Development

Preschool:

Yes

Hours of Operation:

Monday - Friday: 8:30 am - 3 pm