DIKI HARMONY CENTER - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Toddler Education Director
Ms. Aferdita Alovic was born and raised in Queens, NY. Her family is from Albania.
She earned her Associates Degree in Liberal Arts and Humanities at LaGuardia Community College and she completed her Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education/Special Education with a minor in Psychology from Brooklyn College. She is currently attending Hunter College and working towards her Master's in Early Childhood Education.
Ms. Aferdita's interests include traveling, reading, writing and cooking.
Ms. Alison has spent her entire life around young children. She has learned a great deal of responsibility from being an adult figure to six of her younger cousins. Currently, Ms. Alison is working towards a Master's degree at Hunter College with a focus on Early Childhood Special Education. She was interested in this curriculum because she thinks working with young children is rewarding and enjoyable. It's crucial to be able to shape youthful minds
and instruct them in the best learning methods. Every child learns differently, so it's essential to her to get to know each one individually and make assessments based on that knowledge. She is excited and honored to be given the opportunity to join the Diki Harmony community!
Ms. Alison loves to bake, cook, and is interested in interior design. She began learning how to bake when she was in seventh grade, and she believes she has made significant progress since then! On the other hand, learning to cook and trying new dishes for her, have both been fun and
amusing. She has only recently tried to get into interior designing so she is still learning, but it's still something she is interested in. One more fun fact is that she got a pet tortoise not too long ago named Totoro, and he is the cutest thing ever!
Ms. Amarylis has always aspired to be a teacher ever since she was young.
She currently has an Associates in Early Childhood Education and is currently attending Hunter College to receive her Master's in Psychology and Early Childhood Education.
For the last eight years, Ms. Amarylis has been giving back to her community by teaching kindergarten and being a summer camp coordinator. She is honored to be given this new opportunity to continue her outreach to young children, and looks forward to helping your children grow and learn in a fun, safe and caring environment.
Job Titles:
- Toddler 2 's Lead Teacher
Ms. Ashley was born and raised in NYC. She currently lives in Astoria, Queens.
She graduated from Hunter College and received a Bachelor's with a major in English Literature and a minor in German. She is currently pursuing a Master's degree in Early Childhood Education at Hunter College.
During her free time, she likes to play video games and go for long walks.
Ms. Cathy Brown was born in Sydney, Australia and grew up in Westchester, NY. She comes from a British family.
She holds a Bachelor Degree in Textile Design from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Masters in Early Childhood Education from Hunter College. Ms. Cathy is also certified in NYS to teach Birth-3rd grade.
Two main driving forces in her life are creativity and her love for children. The strengths she brings are a creative thinking approach from her background as a textile designer, deep empathy, patience, problem solving skills and a love for cultivating the potential in others. Encouraging and instilling the belief in students that they are all capable of growth is at the heart of her teaching philosophy. Ms. Cathy also believes that young children learn best through play, exploration, and inquiry.
Ms. Chhimi Gurung was born in Benares, India and raised by her grandmother. Her parents are from Mustang (a small hidden kingdom of Nepal), close to Tibet.
She studied in Shining Star Boarding School in Nepal and came to USA at the age of 16 (in 1998). She received her GED from Cambridge Learning Center. She then completed a couple of Early Childhood Education courses from Bunker Hill Community College and from Urban College in Boston. She is currently working on completing her Associate Degree.
Ms. Chhimi lives in Everett with her 16-year-old son, Tengyal and believes strongly in co-parenting with her son's father. She loves spending time with her family and friends. She enjoys trying new cuisines and traveling . Some of the countries she has visited are India, Australia, London and Paris. She would love to visit Japan, Bali and Korea which are on her bucket list.
Job Titles:
- Infant / Toddler Site Director & Group Lead Teacher
Ms. Diki Bista grew up as the youngest daughter of eight children in Lo-manthang mustang, Nepal. She attended Nobel Academy for high school and also received her Bachelor's in Business Administration from Nepal.
Growing up in Lo-manthang mustang, Nepal, Ms. Bista saw the lack of education and poor medical facilities in her community and knew from then that she wanted to further her education in the field of Early Childhood Education. She hopes to continue to serve her community and contribute with her knowledge and experience in Early Childhood Education in the future. She has completed her Child Development Associate (CDA) from CUNY and graduated in 2021. She is currently continuing her education by pursuing her Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education from CUNY.
Currently, Ms. Bista lives in Woodside, Queens New York and is enjoying life with her partner and her 2 daughters. She also enjoys traveling, hiking, nature, and spending time with her friends and family in her free time.
Job Titles:
- Infant / Toddler Site Director
Ms. Diki Paldon was born in India and was raised in Darjeeling. Her family is originally from Tibet.
Ms. Paldon has completed her Child Development Associate (CDA) from CUNY School of Professional Studies and is pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education at Touro College.
Ms. Paldon lives in Queens with her husband and two beautiful daughters. Her vast experience in Infant & Toddler care and her growing passion has led her to become co-owner of the Diki Discovery Infant/Toddler center. Her goal is to provide a warm and loving learning environment for those first two years of a child. During her free time, she enjoys cooking and baking.
Ms. Dipti Shrestha Sherpa was born in Nepal. She grew up there and completed her bachelor degree in Business and Administration in 2010.
Ms. Dipti started her job career as a pre-primary grade teacher in 2004. She upgraded her skills of teaching and way of learning psychological behavior of children in her working years. She has 10 years of experience in teaching and handling Pre-primary and Primary level kids.
Currently, Ms. Dipti lives is Elmhurst, Queens with her husband and her 9 years old son. She enjoys cooking, dancing, visiting new places and spending quality time with her family.
Job Titles:
- Preschool Assistant Teacher
Ms. Dorjee Lhamo is from Thimbu, Bhutan and at an early age, she moved to India with her parents and siblings. She completed most of her education in India.
She earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree and 2 years of Teachers Training in India. Afterwards, she worked as an Elementary School Teacher in a Residential School located in a small town called Mussoorie in North India.
She currently lives in the city of Revere with her husband Tenzin and their two children. During her spare time, she likes going hiking and camping. She loves to be close to nature. Besides I also love to go on a long road trips. Me and my family have driven to Florida, South Dakota and Canada enjoying the landscape of this vast country.
Ms. Elizabeth was born in New York City and grew up in Astoria, Queens. She comes from a family of Mexican immigrants.
She graduated from Middle College High School at La Guardia Community College and attended Hunter College where she received her bachelor's degree in English/Creative Writing. She is currently pursuing her Children's Program Administrator Credential (CPAC).
Currently, Ms. Elizabeth lives in Newark, NJ with her husband and baby boy. During her free time, she enjoys writing, dancing and traveling to new places. The most important thing for her is spending time with her family and friends.
Ms. Julia Hannigan grew up in Newburgh, NY until her mid teenage years and then moved to Texas until her late 20's. She then moved back to New York, specifically to Brooklyn to be closer to her family. She attended public schools all of her childhood and graduated from
We encourage and empower our employees' enthusiasm for learning. As part of our commitment to providing quality care in our centers, we'll enhance our staff's skills through yearly training, staff development opportunities and provide funding for the early childhood degree program to help our staff to reach their highest goal.
Job Titles:
- Toddler 2 's Lead Teacher
Job Titles:
- Toddler 2 's Assistant Teacher
Job Titles:
- Assistant
- Assistant / Floater
Ms. Lhakpa is an Assistant Teacher for all classrooms. She is great at helping the teachers out and is an awesome teacher with the children as well. She likes working with children because she learns from them and everyday is a new journey and a new experience for her. On her spare time, She likes to meditate, cook and spend time with her daughter.
Job Titles:
- Education Director & Pre - K Lead Teacher
Ms. Rita has been working with children since she was 12 years old. Since she began her journey, I've worked with children of many ages and abilities, using various approaches and curricula.
Ms. Maricris was born in Venezuela and came to the U.S. when she was 11 years old. She grew up in Queens.
She graduated from Hunter College with a Masters in Early Childhood and Special Education. She is currently certified in Early Childhood and Special Education from Birth-2nd grade.
Currently, Ms. Maricris lives in Long Island with her family. During her free time, she enjoys reading and watching anime. She loves to be able to see and compare students from the start of the school year and towards the end of the school year, being able to observe all the progress that each of the children make. "There is no greater joy than to be part of the growth each child has".
Job Titles:
- Infant / Toddler Lead Teacher
Job Titles:
- Infant / Toddler Assistant Teacher
Ms. Ngodup Tsomo is from Lhasa, Tibet. She grew up in Tibet and attended school there until she graduated High School.
She then moved to the United States in 2017 and has been here since.
She currently lives in Malden with her husband and four daughters. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family. Since she is a mother of four daughters, she loves to be around children. She also enjoys organizing her home, watching movies and cooking.
Job Titles:
- Toddler Assistant Teacher
Ms. Rinchen was born and raised in Tibet. While living in Tibet, she was a house mother in TCV, Suja: a Tibetan Children's Villages School. She worked there for 10 years. Her responsibilities included supervision of children in her care and providing excellent, nurturing care. A few years later, she came to New York City and has worked as a nanny/babysitter.
Ms. Rinchen currently lives with her daughter who is studying Childhood Development. She enjoys spending time with her family and close relatives.
Job Titles:
- Toddler 2 's Assistant Teacher
Ms. Roslyn was born in New York City and grew up in Woodside, Queens. She comes from a family of Mexican immigrants.
She graduated from High School of Applied Communications in La Guardia Community College and she received her associates in Early Childhood from BMCC Borough of Manhattan Community College. She is currently attending Queens College for her bachelors in Family Services and will be pursuing her masters in Education.
Ms. Roslyn currently lives in Corona, NY and something she loves to do in her spare time is paint and finding calm places to drink coffee and admire a great view.
Ms. Skylar currently holds a BA in Psychology with a concentration in Child Development from Albertus Magnus College, New Haven, CT. Ms. Skylar has worked in the field for more than 3 years and her experience ranges from preschool, afterschool and summer programs.
She has a passion for helping as well as teaching children all ages. She loves working with children and it's always a pleasure for her to be a part of your child's learning journey.
Job Titles:
- Toddler Assistant Teacher
Ms. Tashi grew up in Nepal. She finished her 10th grade in Kathmandu, Nepal at Manjughoksha Academy. Then, she moved to the U.S. and
Job Titles:
- Preschool Assistant Teacher
Ms. Tsemtso Dolma was born and raised in India. Her grandparents are from Tibet, also known as " The Roof of the World". She graduated High School from Central School Tibetan Dalhousie in India.
After High School, she got a degree in Massage Therapy and worked 3 years as a therapist. In 2015, she moved to Canada and worked in housekeeping for 5 years. Then in 2021, she moved to the United States. She completed her CPR, First Aid training and completed her Early Childhood Education training.
Ms. Dolma currently lives in Cambridge with her husband. During her free time, she enjoys watching movies and exercising. Some special things to her are her dog Tommy, spending time with her family and friends, the Summer and the beach. Her favorite food is Momo (Dumpling). Her favorite person is her grandma.
Ms. Tsering Dolker was born and raised in the eastern part of Tibet. She later moved to India where she received her secondary education, before coming to the United States.
She has over 15 years of experience working with Infants and Toddlers in an early childhood setting. Her warm, nurturing care and peaceful approach to our youngest Diki students makes for them their first learning experience, a pleasant one.
Ms. Dolker is a mother of a charming young man. During her free time, she enjoys meditating, cooking and spending time with her family.
Job Titles:
- Site Director
- Director / Co - Owner of Diki Harmony Playhouse
Ms. Tsering Lhamo is the site Director/Co-owner of Diki Harmony Playhouse.
At Diki Harmony, she wants to create an environment where children are encouraged to explore, are motivated to learn, and driven to develop compassionate attitudes. She believes in giving children a loving atmosphere that emphasizes collaborative social learning and harnessing kindness. She learned the importance of mindful child care from her mother, who has over 40 years of childcare experience. After exploring other careers in fashion, marketing and retail, she realized that she yearned for a meaningful profession.
She loves children and has a keen sense for assessing what a young mind needs to evolve and grow. She then decided to practice mindful childcare, taking care of children ages 2 to 7 in private homes and summer camps. Now, Ms. Tsering is currently attending Medgar Evers College and is majoring in Early Childhood, Special Education.
She is looking forward to bringing her family's philosophy to the children at Diki Harmony Playhouse.
Job Titles:
- Infant / Toddler Assistant Teacher
Ms. Urgen was born and raised in Tibet. While living in Tibet, she was a house mother in TCV, Suja: a Tibetan Children's Villages School. She worked there for 8 years. Her responsibilities included supervision of children in her care and providing excellent, nurturing care. A few years later, she came to New York City and has worked as a nanny/babysitter and caregiver.
Ms. Urgen is currently living with her family in Queens. Her hobbies include cooking and watching movies.
Ms. Usha Rai is from Nepal and was born in Kathmandu (Capital City of Nepal). She completed her school from Nepal Central High School in 2012 and in 2014 at Nava Jyoti College.
After completing her High School, she joined Nepal Commerce Campus for a Bachelor Degree and graduated in 2018 in Business Studies. She completed a 3 month internship in Agricultural Development Bank Ltd. Afterwards, she returned to Nepal Central High School, this time as a Teacher. She also worked as an accountant in a traveling company for more than a year.
In 2020, Ms. Usha came to the United States. She currently resides in Malden, Boston with her husband. During her free time, she likes to watch movies and anime. But her favorite is spending time with children of all ages. She loves to do art and crafts and share her thoughts and ideas with children.
Ms. Yankey Bhutia is originally from Tibet. She grew up in a small town in India. She completed her schooling (KG-12) from Central School for Tibetans in Darjeeling.
She attended Government College in Kalimpong, India and received her Bachelor Degree in Arts. She has had such a wonderful experience in working with under-privileged children for more than 10 years in a school in India. She is currently in the process of getting her Lead Teacher Certification.
Ms. Yankey currently lives in Cambridge with her two children and husband. She loves to spend time with her family. She enjoys cooking, going out together and watching movies.
Job Titles:
- Toddler Education Director
Ms. Zhane developed a love for teaching young children at an early age when she started to babysit her nieces and nephews often. From then on she knew she wanted to become a teacher and decided to further her knowledge on the development of young children after high school in 2016. In the height of the pandemic she earned her BS in Early Childhood Education, minoring in Liberal Arts from SUNY Buffalo State College in 2020. While in college Ms. Zhane worked in the Buffalo State College Daycare on campus while student teaching at the local Buffalo public schools. Ms. Zhane is well rounded with experience in working with both infants and toddlers up to Elementary School children.
Currently, Ms. Zhane lives in upper Manhattan and enjoys the life of living in New York City. Besides her love for children, she also enjoys fashion and photography, and spends time reading fashion blogs and magazines.