Lesley has been teaching in the Autism Program at Nokomis South since 2013. Prior to that she taught at several SPPS schools as a Learning Disability and Emotional/Behavior Disability Teacher. Before coming to SPPS Lesley was a special education teacher at New Spirit School in St. Paul for 9 years. She began her teaching career at The Loyola University Day School in Chicago

Lesley grew up in St. Paul and attended St. Paul Public Schools. After attending college in Wisconsin she lived in Chicago, then Sarasota ,Florida, before returning to St. Paul.

Lesley has 3 adult children. Tynan is a graduate of Central High School, Casey graduated from Great River Charter School, and Jordan graduated from Open World Learning Community. She has 2 grandsons, Royal and Noah, and 2 dogs, Olivia and Carly.

When she’s not teaching, Lesley spends a lot of time caring for her 2 grandsons. Being a grandmother has been one of the best experiences of her life. She also spends time with her immediate and extended family. Lesley enjoys doing projects such as sewing and knitting, tries to keep up with current events, and enjoys quiet time at home.

Lesley considers her work in the Autism Program at Nokomis South her favorite teaching position she’s had. Her students are always interesting and fun. She loves getting to know them and their families. She works with an incredible special ed staff and finds the entire Nokomis staff and community to be supportive and inspirational.