K4 - K5 - Instructor

Julianna is our gifted Kindergarten teacher at CPLE. She was born and raised in Buena Vista and loves living in the mountains. Growing up, she was homeschooled from first through twelfth grade and graduated from Wilson Hill Academy, an online classical Christian school. She attended New College Franklin in Tennessee and graduated with a BA in Liberal Arts. She has always enjoyed spending time with children and has been a nanny for several different families over the years. In those positions, she consistently goes far beyond normal nanny duties and works with habit training and academic preparation for the children in her care. In her free time, she enjoys reading, being outside in her garden, hiking, kayaking, and baking. She has even published her own cookbook.

1st grade - Form 1B Instructor

2nd/3rd grade - Form 1A Instructor

Cindi McFadden lives in Salida with her husband, daughter, and son. Her love for education started when she was in high school, volunteering at a local elementary school in Iowa. She continued on to study elementary education in college in Illinois and taught 5th grade in Northern Virginia and 5th and 7th grade in Colorado. Her growing Christian faith led her to begin homeschooling her daughter for kindergarten and first grade. She began learning about the Charlotte Mason teaching philosophy as a homeschool parent. Cindi feels blessed to have the opportunity to teach 2nd/3rd grade at CPLE alongside the blessing of her children attending the school! Cindi also helps to teach youth programs at her church in Salida, and is involved in a ladies’ Bible Study.

4th grade - Form 2B Instructor

Haydn was born and raised in the small ski town of Crested Butte, Colorado where her mother and father owned an outfitting business. They spent a lot of time on horses and in the mountains. They also used their outfitting experience to travel and help missionaries learn how to pack mules into remote villages to bring the gospel to people who had never heard of Jesus. She has taken several trips worldwide working with children and families. During the summers as a high school student, she helped run their church VBS and helped with children’s ministry. She was homeschooled from K-12 and had the most precious homeschool graduation party surrounded by family and friends. After graduating high school, she ent to Ireland and Romania for a discipleship training school with Youth With A Mission for 6 months. There, they worked with street children and teens of all ages. She then got an apprentice job overseeing children and youth ministry at her home church.

She then decided to get a degree in nursing, which led her to study at Oklahoma Baptist University. During my studies, God led an amazing man into my life, and we were able to marry. Together, we led teen and college ministries on campus. I graduated with a bachelor's in science in 2010, and we found ourselves called to Salida, CO, where the Lord would bless us with housing, a nursing job at the hospital, an amazing church family, and work for my husband.

Haydn and her husband now have three children whom they have homeschooled since day one, and their desire is for them to have a deep appreciation for nature and the world around us. She has helped to lead different homeschool co-ops, and she currently volunteers to oversee the children’s ministry at church and teaches Sunday school to children of all ages. Sh is drawn to the community that CPLE offers and the support as a homeschool mom. Her three children will be attending CPLE, and she is thrilled to get to teach the 4th grade this year!

5th/6th grade - Form 2A Instructor

Genevieve Knowlton is a passionate homeschooling mom with over two decades experience using the Charlotte Mason method.  Her two adult children are currently in college. She is a Colorado native and has been back in her home state for five years.  She lived on an island in the Pacific Northwest for 25 years where she and her husband raised and homeschooled their family.  Travel was a regular part of their lives since her husband can work remotely.

Genevieve has taught at several homeschool co-op programs, and dedicated three years as acting co-coordinator for a homeschool co-op with over 90 children, grades K-7 while overseeing nine teachers. She holds a degree in Holistic Whole Foods Nutrition from Bastyr University.  Locally she has had the blessing of working for Young Life and has been involved in their ministry. 

Beyond the classroom, she loves skiing, hiking, knitting, reading, camping and many other outdoor activities.  She is excited about returning to a classroom setting and is committed to fostering an atmosphere where children love to learn.  

7th/8th grade - Form 3 Instructor

Julie Salazar has homeschooled her four children for more than fifteen years. Three of her children have graduated and gone on to college, and the fourth is currently in his senior year. Julie has led many homeschool co-ops over the years. Most recently, she led a homeschool co-op for high schoolers based on Charlotte Mason’s methods which included literature, writing, Plutarch, Shakespeare, artist, composer, and nature studies. Julie has a passion for reading and especially enjoys reading literature, history, theology, and educational philosophy books. Her interest in educational philosophy led her to the ideas of Charlotte Mason which she has studied extensively through books and online courses. She has applied the methods of Charlotte Mason in her own homeschool and seen great benefits for her children and herself. Julie has a B.A. in music from Colorado Christian University. When she is not reading or teaching, you can find her spending time with her family, singing at church and in the community choir, taking long walks, or paper crafting and journaling. Her heart's desire is for children to see and know God in all the ways he has revealed Himself, through His Word and His world.

Music

Katie is a dedicated music teacher with a love for nurturing students’ experience with music. With classical training in piano and voice through the esteemed Bradley Preparatory Program and the Royal Conservatory of Music, she brings her knowledge and experience to the classroom. She teaches privately, performs vocally and on the piano, as well as accompanies various performers on the piano. At Collegiate Peaks Living Education, her methods have been adapted to fully integrate the child’s learning day in the Charlotte Mason Method within their afternoon music time. Children will experience composers from their time period of study, learn how to read and understand music, sight sing and more. She is excited to inspire the next generation of musicians as well as light a spark for those still discovering the wonderful world of music. 

Teacher Assistant - Kindergarten, AAR 3, and Fine Arts

Mikaela grew up in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Colorado where she still lives with her parents and three younger siblings. She was homeschooled all the way through high school and is deeply thankful for that privilege. Having graduated, she is now pursuing an Elementary Education degree online at Colorado Christian University. She is excited for the opportunity to learn and teach at CPLE and encourage kids to delight in truth, beauty, and goodness in their education. 

For fun, Mikaela enjoys time outside with her family: hiking, mountain biking, paddle boarding, and ice skating. She is also passionate about creative writing, piano, baking, cherishing good books, Reformed theology, and most of all growing in the knowledge and love of her Savior.