Debra King Ellman
Teacher, Director
Debbie has a B.A. from Guilford College in N.C., is director qualified by the State of Colorado, and is a C.S.U. Master Gardener. She had six years of teaching experience when she founded Sunflower in 1981 and has been the owner, administrator, director and a teacher ever since. Debbie has enjoyed designing and implementing the ever-evolving Sunflower curriculum for over 25 years. She is enthusiastic about the success of the science-based theme curriculum and the evolution of the interactive outdoor environment. She has been happily married since 1977 and is the mother of two "twenty-something" Sunflower graduates. Her personal interests including traveling wherever her two daughters might be, gardening, hiking and the great outdoors.
Carrie Dovo Luttrell
Teacher, Office Manager, Speech Therapist
Carrie has been a teacher at Sunflower since August of 2000. Carried received her B.A. from SUNY Buffalo in Communicative Disorders and Sciences. She has 15 years of teaching experience, and enjoys being a Sunflower teacher. Her non-teaching responsibilities include office administration and enrollment. Carrie has been providing private speech and language therapy for children 3 to 6 years of age for the past nine years. Carrie's personal interests include NIA, camping, hiking, travel, long walks and spending time with her husband Alex, their son Max and dogs Forbin and Byrney.
Kathy King
Teacher/Substitute Director
Kathy originally began teaching at Sunflower with Debbie in 1985 when the program was four years old. Over the years she has been part of the growth and development of Sunflower. Kathy enjoys combining her love of children and yoga. As part of her teaching responsibilities, she enjoys a weekly yoga class with the children. Kathy has an AA degree in Early Childhood Development and is currently tking continuing education classes to update her director qualification for the state of Colorado. Kathy is a mom and step-mom. She enjoys the Colorado mountains, experimenting with gluten free baking and adores her little white poodle, Chloe.
Marcia Platt
Teacher
Marcia's first experience at Sunflower was as a parent in 1996. She started subbing when her son, Dylan, was in his third year, and officially joined the Sunflower Staff in 1999. She has a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Colorado with an emphasis in child development. Marcia especially enjoys creating new materials, interactive bulletin boards, and games for the math area. She has two children, Dylan and Natalie, both Sunflower graduates. Her personal interests include swimming, hiking and spending time with her family.
Sunflower Mars
Teacher
Sunflower Mars joined the Sunflower team in 2001. Her involvement began with internships for studies in Early Childhood Education at Front Range Community College. She is Director Qualified, and has been a teacher at Sunflower Preschool throughout the years. She is also the co-creator of Herb Camp for Kids, and has taught after-school Nature and Crafts classes at University Hill and Columbine Elementary schools. "Sunny" has recently rejoined the staff after a maternity leave. She is happy to be part of the team again, and looks forward to creating art, building relationships, and helping the Sunflower children reach their highest potential. Her son, Sol, is a Sunflower graduate and her daughter, Luna, is almost two. Her personal interests include her family, travel, dance, and nature.
Melissa Carter
Teacher
Melissa joined the Sunflower staff in June 2008. She attended Foothills Junior College, in the bay area for over a year, where she studied business and Early Childhood Education. In 1991 Melissa relocated from Santa Cruz, CA to beautiful Boulder, where her talent in competitive sports and her love of the great outdoors, quickly turned into a successful sports and fitness modeling career. After the birth of her first child in 2001, Melissa retired from modeling as she realized her passion became nurturing and educating children. She then opened her first of two successful in-home child care business. After several years of in-home child care, Melissa closed her business and currently attends Front Range Community College, where she is pleased to be continuing and completing her Early Childhood Education certificate. Melissa enjoys any and all outdoor activities, and being with her family and friends.
