Jaya Blakeslee is our beloved Administrative Coordinator at the Duane Street site. With years of experience and the greatest personality, Jaya is the point-person for all things Duane. You can contact her at duanefrontdesk@wms-nyc.org. Jaya is one of the reasons WMS is such a special place and we invite you to learn a little more about her!

What do you do at WMS?
I am the Administrative Coordinator at the Duane Street location.  I facilitate communication between teachers and parents, maintain all student files, and place orders for school supplies. I also work closely with Nurse Cheryl to track illnesses and absences and with Heather and Carrie to keep Duane St running smoothly.

Where did you grow up? What was your childhood like?
I grew up on an 80 acre interfaith community in Florida. My fondest memories are running around and playing games outside, swimming in our pond, trips to the beach and also learning at a young age the importance of taking care of others.

How did you end up joining the WMS community?
In 2013 I was working as a Family Assistant at Bank Street Head Start. My friend actually saw the job posting and thought of me. I quickly submitted my resume and as luck would have it, the next day Ronnie called me and the rest is history.

What’s your favorite thing about WMS?
The community!  The faculty, staff, parents, and the children all contribute to the remarkable learning environment that is WMS.  However, one of the greatest joys of my job is that I get to witness the amazing growth of each child from that first day of school to the last day of the year.

What’s the best memory you have from when you were in preschool?
We had our own Montessori preschool in our community.  I was fortunate to go to school with the same group of friends that I grew up with.  We did a lot of dramatic play, art and cooking projects and one of my favorite days was Mud Pie Day.