Christie Smith
Four Year Old and After School Teacher
Kayla Fryar
Two Year Old Teacher
After graduating from Radford University in 2003 with a licensure in Early Childhood and Early Childhood Special Education, Caitlin taught First Step (a 4 year old program) for 4 years, followed by 1st grade for 7 years. Caitlin and her family moved from Hampton Roads, VA to Leland in August of 2014 and joined our team at CDS shortly after. In her spare time, Caitlin loves to read and go to the beach/pool with her husband and three boys. Caitlin was truly made to teach and shines the brightest when she's surrounded by her sweet Kindergarten students!
Ashley moved to North Carolina from Pennsylvania in 2003. Ashley attended WCCC for Early Childhood Education and later received a certificate in Childcare Administration in North Carolina. Ashley taught preschool at Coastal Day School for seven years before putting down the stickers and playdough to give more attention to daily operations. Her heart remains in the classroom; however, she loves working alongside our amazing teachers, parents, and students. Ashley loves spending her free time traveling and exploring with her husband, three kiddos, and dog!
Ashley Danko
Owner
Abbi is an NC local, raised in the Pender county area, graduating from Heide Trask Highschool in 2018! She got married in 2020 and moved to California. Her and her husband spent the next three years exploring the PNW and West Coast while he did an enlistment in the Marine Corps. Growing up in a family with 8 daughters, she’s very family oriented and loves children! Abbi joined the Coastal team in 2023 after moving back to NC. She and her husband are excited to start a family in the near future!!
Our AWESOME Staff!!
Melissa Wiltshire
Three Year Old Teacher
Jodi and her family moved to Leland in 2011 to plant Reach Community Church. Jodi attended ASU and loves putting her organizational skills to use in our office! Jodi has also assisted in various classrooms here at CDS since she joined our team in 2014 and loves when she gets to sub! In her free time, Jodi enjoys doing puzzles, playing games, and hanging out with her husband and three children!
Jodi Caddell
Office Manager
Melissa attended Cape Fear Community College for Early Childhood Education and worked in preschool for years prior to joining the team at CDS in 2014. Melissa loves teaching the two year old class and guiding families through their first year with us! Melissa and her husband have three amazing kids and enjoy traveling with them, as well as supporting them in their various sports and activities!
Emily Bradley
Two Year Old Teacher
Veronnica joined our team in 2013. She has a Bachelor's degree in Human Development and Family Studies with a concentration in Early Childhood from Penn State University. One of Veronnica's favorite experiences was teaching 2 and 3 year olds in the Dominican Republic for a year. Veronnica is happily married and mommy to a super cute little girl! Veronnica loves everything Wilmington has to offer and is excited to be a part of the CDS family!
Jordan Danko
After School Teacher
Laura Inskeep
Three Year Old Teacher
Caroline is from Chapel Hill, NC, and graduated from UNC in 1990 with a Bachelor's degree in Communications and a minor in Public Relations. Raised in a family that placed a very strong emphasis on academia, she grew up surrounded by authors, musicians, scholars and artists-but what she loved most were the children she regularly babysat. Married to Michael, she has three wonderful children of her own and they are every bit as precocious as she was when she was young. In addition to assisting with the oversight of Coastal Day School, Caroline is a full-time real estate agent.
Kayla has her degree in Early Childhood Education and has taught preschool for years prior to joining our team at Coastal in 2021. Kayla absolutely loves children, which is great since she has six of her own!! Kayla is a military wife and loves spending time with her husband of ten years! In their free time, they soak up as much family time as possible and love hanging out at the beach or pool!
Christie joined our team in 2022, bringing numerous child care certifications and 32 years of experience with her! She loves working with children and partnering with their families!! She is most proud of her amazing daughter that she got to spend 30 wonderful years with. In her free time, Christie loves spending time with her family and four-legged son!
Caitlin Baer
Kindergarten Teacher
Anna Hardy
Three Year Old and After School Teacher
Caroline Dugas
Owner
Taylor joined our team in 2023 after she, her husband, and their two sweet daughters moved to Leland in 2022 after living in 8 different states! They call Vermont home, but are excited to make Coastal NC their forever home!! Taylor has worked with children for many years, in many different capacities, and is excited to work with our four year olds! In her free time, you will find Taylor reading or
at the beach collecting shark teeth!
Janike was born and raised in Germany. She graduated from the University of Marburg with a Masters in Speech and Language Pathology. After working in a private speech therapy practice, she learned that working with young children was her absolute favorite! Janike and her husband moved to Leland in 2015 to start a new chapter together and their own family. After their two sons graduated from Coastal Day School, she joined our team in 2024! In her free time Janike loves reading, beach days, traveling and spending time outdoors.
Emily joined the Coastal team in 2023 after moving to Leland from Conyers, GA. Emily graduated from the University of Georgia with a bachelors in Human Development and Family Science in 2022. After graduation, she worked at UGA's Child Development Lab as an assistant teacher where she learned how much she loved working with children! In her free time, Emily enjoys spending time with her nephews, traveling, and going to the beach!
Veronnica Padala
After School and Summer Camp Director and Four Year Old Teacher
Anna moved to Leland in 2012 and loves the small town feel! Anna has worked in preschool for the last ten years, joining the CDS team in 2016. In her free time, Anna enjoys baking, reading, and watching movies! She loves all things Disney, Marvel, Harry Potter, and Hamilton!! Anna also enjoys spending time with her students outside of school, babysitting them and watching soccer games and dance recitals!
Maggie joined our team at Coastal Day School in 2015, after her older two children attended preschool and Kindergarten here. Maggie has spent most of her years in our four year old program and absolutely loves the eagerness and fun they bring to the classroom! Maggie and her husband have called Wilmington home for the last 15 years and enjoy spending time at the beach with their four children! They also love spending time in the kitchen together, creating and experimenting with different flavors and ingredients!
Maggie Sayers
Four Year Old Teacher
Janike Howard
Four Year Old Teacher
Taylor McAllister
Four Year Old Teacher
Abbi Yost
After School Teacher