Stephanie Collins-Dowden

Special Projects Assistant, Special Rights Resource

Stephanie has much in common with the students of Scuola Italiana Enrico Fermi: she asks a lot of questions, adores fluffy creatures (cats!), relishes storytime, and feels her best when well-rested and meaningfully engaged with a task, an idea, or a friend.

A graduate of the University of Notre Dame with a degree in English and Gender Studies, Stephanie has an abiding interest in issues of language, identity, culture, and equity. She has studied educational psychology and literacy at the graduate level, taught in elementary and early childhood classrooms, imparted a feminist perspective to work as a nanny/educarer, and navigated the often daunting landscape of developmental therapies and school supports for her own gifted, neurodivergent child.

Stephanie believes strongly in the efficacy of authentic, inquiry-driven learning experiences and the power of nurture and personal connection in fostering all children’s growth. The Reggio Emilia-born concept of “the hundred languages of children”–inherently inclusive and delightfully subversive–emboldens and excites her!