Jerry Speraw Director/Teacher
With more than 40 years in the child care field working with children and families, Mr. Jerry has a wide range of experience, co-owning and managing his family's child development centers in Riverside (The Growing Place & The Growing Place, Too), working in military child development programs in both the US and Europe, teaching children in Head Start, and directing both corporate and school-district parent co-op programs, in the latter of which he also served as preschool teacher and parent educator.
Mr. Jerryalso served as Legislative Representative for the Pre-School Association of California, and as Chair of the Men In Child Care Committee for the California Association for the Education of Young Children (CAEYC), and is a Life Member of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
- CurrentRed Cross training in Adult and Pediatric First Aid and CPR;
- AA in Humanities;
- AS in Early Childhood Studies;
- BA in Human Development with Specialties in Early Childhood Education, Child Care, and Developmental Education.
Diana Speraw Teacher
With several years of recent professional experience working in the Educational field as an Instructional Aide for Children with Special Needs with both the Monterey Unified School District and the Monterey County Office of Education, and many more years as a parent raising 5 children to adulthood, Ms. Diana also has a wide range of other experiences: working as a preschool assistant, teaching CPR and First Aid courses as an American Red Cross Instructor, and engaging members of the Deaf Community with her skills in American Sign Language (ASL).
In addition to her work in education, Ms. Diana's community work has also included activities with Meals on Wheels, the American Red Cross, the Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium, as a volunteer guide for more than a decade.
- Current Red Cross training in Adult and Pediatric First Aid and CPR;
- AA in Early Childhood Studies
- Intermediate proficiency in American Sign Language (ASL);