Our Team

Melissa Coyné is an Early Childhood Educator who has over 30 years of experience building relationships with children and adults who care for them. In addition to holding a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Child Development, she is a RIE Associate and a certified PITC (Program for Infant/Toddler Care) trainer. Melissa was first introduced to the Educaring Approach by the early childhood program where she worked for 22 years and cultivated her commitment to philosophical integrity. She facilitates RIE courses in the Los Angeles area and has presented workshops on how to respectfully parent tweens and teens. As a mother of a young adult and older teen, Melissa has seen the results of the power of relationships built on connection and collaboration that began in infancy. She is passionate about inspiring adults and children to be critical thinkers in areas of anti-bias practices, equity and self-awareness.

Abigail has been an Early Childhood Educator and Director for 27 years building relationships with children, young families, and teachers and managing a thriving non-profit preschool community. Abigail is a new resident of California, having moved here from the Boston area with her husband, Stephen, to start a new set of adventures.
Abigail was first introduced to the Educaring® Approach during her job search and immediately found that it resonated with her own philosophy about early childhood education and parenting. She has loved being a parent and says it is the best and hardest job she has ever had.
The schools Abigail taught in and directed, and the one she created, use a child-driven emergent curriculum where the children’s needs and interests drive all activities and programming. Abigail and her husband Stephen are the parents of two wonderful adults, a daughter in Brooklyn, and a son here in Eagle Rock.
Abigail is passionate about supporting non-profits, especially those which serve children and families, and looks forward to learning all about her new state of California.

Shannon Carr (St. Louis, MO) became a RIE Associate in 2020, but has been in inspired of the Educaring Approach since learning about it in 2002. She has worked with families and early childhood professionals in some capacity since 1994 as an early childhood professional, director, parent educator, advocate for children in foster care, and trainer. She holds a Master of Arts in Teaching and Bachelor of Science in Child and Family Development. Shannon is a Child Development Specialist, Consultant, Trainer, Mother & Owner of RISE where she provides workshops to parents and early childhood providers, facilitates parent-infant guidance classes, and consults privately with families and professionals. She is also the founder of Friends of RIE Community Engagement (FORCE) where parents & professionals gather, learn, connect, and collaborate (risechild.com/FORCE).

Angela R. Fisher, Ph.D. (South Orange/Maplewood, NJ), holds a Ph.D. in Infant-Toddler Developmental Psychology. She is an NJ-Infant Mental Health Mentor- IV [Policy], a Certified Infant Massage Educator, Childbirth Doula, and serves as an adjunct faculty member in the Early Childhood Graduate Department at City University in New York. She consults with parents, caregivers, and educators on developmentally appropriate and respectful practices with infants and toddlers nationally and internationally. She facilitates RIE^® Certified Parent-Infant Guidance™ classes in the New York/New Jersey area. Angela’s scholarly research and parent-infant observation tool are uniquely influenced by Magda Gerber’s work. She is dedicated to supporting parent-infant relationships across cultures based on Magda Gerber’s Educaring^® Approach. ababydr@gmail.com

Christine Ho has more than 15 years’ experience leading diverse teams in product development, commercial launch, and business operations.  She leads global teams in resolving complex issues and engages with clients and customers to ensure their needs are met.  As a new mom, Christine participated in RIE’s parent-infant classes and learned the value of listening and respecting the child’s individuality.  These lessons have influenced her both personally and professionally.  Christine holds a BA from UC Davis and a MBA from USC.

Raija Horstman is a mother of four and also an attorney focused on complex commercial litigation, including false advertising, trade secrets, copyright and trademark infringement at Crowell & Moring LLP. She was introduced to RIE by Melanie Snell and has seen the benefits of the Educaring approach after taking Parent-Infant Guidance classes with her. She is committed to helping RIE accomplish its mission of making the Educaring® approach accessible to as many babies and families as possible. Raija has a B.A. in German and a M.A. in German Literature from Texas Tech University and J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law. Raija is dedicated to raising her two daughters and two sons with respect and is enjoying watching them explore and grow into their own individual personalities.

Patricia Ryan (Berkeley, California) is a RIE Mentor Teacher.  She has been sharing the wisdom of Magda Gerber’s Educaring Approach to a wide audience of parents and professionals for over 25 years.  Patty holds a Master’s Degree from Pacific Oaks College in Human Development Specializing in Early Childhood Education.  She teaches RIE Certified professional development, parenting courses, and mentors RIE Practicum and RIE Intern students.  She is passionate about extending the reach of the Educaring Approach across the globe and has given workshops and seminars for professional caregivers and parents internationally and nationwide.  Patty is also a founding member of both the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento Area Infant, Toddler Networks.  She is the author of several published articles on infant, toddler development, has studied at the Pikler Institute in Budapest Hungary and at WestEd’s Program for Infant Toddler Caregivers.  She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and daughter, who is a freshman in college. patty@twopillarsconsulting.com

Melanie Snell  (San Fernando Valley, California) Melanie Snell is a mother of four children.  She and was lucky enough to find RIE® when her oldest was four months old. She and her husband have been practicing the RIE® philosophy in their home ever since. Melanie became a RIE® Associate in 2014 after slowly making her way through the professional development program,  pausing her studies occasionally to have babies. Melanie teaches RIE® Parent/Infant classes on Saturdays at the Los Angeles RIE® center. She also teaches RIE® Nurturing Nanny™️ courses and Before Baby™️ classes, as well as private consulting. During the week she is the Tot Center Coordinator at Kirk O’ the Valley school. Where she works with children 18 months to 3 years old.www.raisingwithrespect.com melsnell@sbcglobal.net