Team

Genevieve King
Founder, CEO and Author

Founder and CEO Genevieve is a long-time entrepreneur from the Flathead Reservation in beautiful western Montana where she grew up immersed in and connected to nature. Genevieve has over 25 years experience in early childhood education and an extensive background in environmental sustainability. She majored in Environmental Journalism and obtained her CDA credentials as well as her Preschool Teaching Certification. Genevieve ran two preschool programs in Washington through the Seattle Public School system for 5 years before moving back to Montana, and upon returning home, she founded and ran a preschool from 2002-2008.

Genevieve then accepted a position as the Executive Director of the non-profit Sustainable Business Council where she advanced the vision of helping her city become a prosperous, collaborative community that fulfills the promise of the triple bottom line: a healthy society, economy, and environment by promoting a vibrant local economy built on sustainable practices. She was among the first fellowship cohort with the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, a two-year program designed for leaders who are advancing the development of healthy, equitable local economies. Local Economy Fellows are selected based on their vision, their leadership, and their role as strategic connectors, supporters, and influencers of local entrepreneurs and their businesses. Whether leading entrepreneur networks, community business incubators, or regional economic development initiatives, they are practical champions of new ways of doing business and organizing economies that work for all.

After 4 years at the helm of SBC, Genevieve decided to combine her passion for teaching children with her expertise in the principles of sustainability with the opening of Origins Education in 2011 and Origins now has 4 brick and mortar locations with the 5th on the way.

By supporting children in fostering a solid intellectual, emotional, social and physical connection to the earth, Genevieve believes that we develop an understanding of our place in the ecosystems of life as well as gaining a love for life-long learning. With her background in sustainability and her many years teaching, Genevieve created a new paradigm curriculum that is nature-based and infused with eco-literacy and mindfulness, and that is both play-based and place-based. Origins Curriculum teaches children how to develop critical-thinking skills toward solving real-world problems like climate change, while gaining confidence in their identity, meaning, and purpose.

Genevieve is passionate about the environment, organic food, gardening, photography, mindfulness and music. When not watching over the magic happening at Origins she is spending time with her family enjoying all the beauty that western Montana offers and she is honored to teach children about the earth, its fascinating cycles, and how to respect and care for it, and all of its inhabitants.

Ashley Meyora
Operations Director & Contributing Author

Ashley is a licensed K-12 Art Educator and Professional Artist originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. She received a Bachelor’s of Fine Art in Painting and Art Education along with her Montana Class 2 Teaching License from the University of Montana in 2017, and she is currently represented by the Radius Gallery in Missoula, MT. Ashley specializes in content creation, graphic design, web development, and operations management.

Ashley’s personal teaching pedagogy is rooted in honoring the whole child by focusing on social-emotional and student-centered learning. She has worked as a content creator and educator for Preschool-12th grade for the past 7+ years, and she has worked as an artist for the past 16 years. She has developed curriculum, led educators, and offered public demonstrations on both art and education.

Ashley enjoys helping families and educators cultivate a love of learning and establish wellness in their lives. She currently calls New Jersey home and spends her down time painting and enjoying the wonders of Mother Nature.

Gena McGill, M.Ed.
Homeschool Developer & Contributing Author 

Gena is a licensed Pre-K-6 teacher and has nearly two decades of education and curriculum experience. She began her teaching journey working with Title 1 students in the Bronx, New York City. During this time, she completed her Masters of Science in Elementary Education.

She taught English to university students and professors in Bali, Indonesia then returned to the United States and completed another Masters degree in International Education with a focus on bringing global perspectives into US curriculum.

Gena worked as the Director of Global Education for the United Nations Association of the National Capital Area, bringing global education to over 2,000 students in the DC Metro Area.

Gena now calls Colorado home and is excited to share her passion for environmental and global education with Origins Curriculum homeschool families. 

Jennifer Ryan, M.Ed.
Homeschool Contributor

Jennifer is a licensed Pre-K through 6 Grade educator with over 10 years of experience working with Title 1 students in Southern New Jersey. After earning a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Maryland and then a Master of Science in Teaching, Learning, & Curriculum from Drexel University, Jennifer realized her passion for curriculum design and educational content creation. She is a strong believer in the power of curiosity and exploration in creating lasting knowledge and strives to keep engaging, hands-on activities at the forefront of every lesson she develops. 

Jennifer lives in New Jersey with her husband and daughter. In her spare time, she loves reading, traveling, and watching true-crime documentaries. 

Hillary Katz
Homeschool Developer & Contributing Author 

Hillary Katz is a curriculum writer and editor for the Homeschool team at Origins Curriculum. She holds a B.A. in English from the University of New Hampshire and an M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of the Pacific, and is a K-8th grade credentialed teacher. She has eight years of experience teaching 2nd-6th grades in private and public schools, and has written and edited curriculum for a wide range of educational organizations and companies. Hillary started her education career in San Francisco, where she lived for ten years. She taught poetry lessons in SF public elementary and middle schools, ran a literacy intervention program for K-5th graders at a Title 1 elementary school, and taught 2nd-4th grades at a private elementary school. Dedicated to developing curriculum that considers the whole child, Hillary strives to create relevant and engaging lessons that teach children about themselves and the diversity and wonder of our world. 

 Hillary now lives in her home state of Vermont with her partner, two children, and dog, all of whom she enjoys exploring the beautiful woods and mountains that surround them with.

Amanda Steffes
Preschool Developer & Contributing Author

Amanda has been working in the early childhood education field for seven years and holds a Montana teaching certification for children Pre-K through 3rd grade. During her time teaching Amanda has found that children learn best through play and constructing their own knowledge and she feels that children deserve to learn at their own pace with their interests kept in mind.  Amanda has formed a mindful, informed, and holistic approach to teaching by integrating mindfulness practices into the classroom, emphasizing social-emotional learning, facilitating independent problem solving, and providing children with stability, structure, and consistency.  She strives to create content that is developmentally appropriate, inclusive, relevant, and engaging. Amanda values social emotional development and communication skills while keeping academic preparedness in mind. 

Gabriela Monegat
Sales & Customer Success Specialist

Gabriela is a dedicated professional and mom of a 6 years old girl, with a passion for connecting people and understanding the curiosities of human behavior. As a Customer Success Specialist, she brings a wealth of experience and insight to her role, having studied and worked in a diverse cultural setting including Brazil, Ireland, and France with 15 years working in consulting, sales and customer service.

Born into a multicultural family, Gabby embraces diversity and values the richness it brings to every aspect of life. As a proud mama bear, she finds inspiration in the beauty of nature, animals, and the world around her. This love for the environment fuels her desire to make a positive impact both personally and professionally. 

With a natural curiosity and a love for engaging with others, Gabby thrives on conversations that broaden perspectives and deepen understanding. She believes in the power of communication and connection to drive meaningful change and foster genuine relationships.

Throughout her career, Gabby has remained committed to providing the best possible service by empathetically meeting the needs of those she serves. Her multicultural background and passion studying of the human behavior uniquely position her to navigate diverse environments and effectively connect with people from all walks of life.

In every interaction, Gabby aims to inspire and uplift others, believing that true success is measured not only by personal achievements but by the positive impact we have on those around us. With an unwavering dedication to mindfulness, empathy, and connection, she embodies the motto: "Understanding and compassion can unite us all, be kind."

Jesse Brockmeyer
Branding Manager

Jesse has worked with successful brands for the past 19 years. Whether it is global companies of Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, Don Julio, Citi Bank and Nutella, or smaller/local brands, he brings the same creative integrity to build successful brands. As a big thinker, Jesse keeps his focus and strategy on the long terms goals of a brand, while implementing the subtle details that drive a successful brand. 

Erin Montgomery, M.Ed.
Homeschool Developer & Contributing Author 

Erin is a CELTA-Certified ESOL Instructor with over a decade of domestic and international language teaching experience. She is also a seasoned, detail-oriented content writer, copywriter and editor working for clients around the globe. 

She began her teaching journey as a counselor and curriculum designer for wilderness and environmental summer camps. In the classroom over the years, she has taught French and English to students of all ages and levels, in the US, France, Malta, and Italy. 

Before pursuing teaching and writing/editing roles full-time, Erin obtained a masters degree in urban planning, studying the cross-sections of land use and active transportation. During her tenure on an American Planning Association committee, Erin solidified her path as a writer and educator. An opportunity to live abroad took her to Europe, where she acquired CELTA certification and founded an English Services business that has been helping people speak and write more impactful English since 2012. 

Erin now calls Montana home, along with her husband and young son. She is thrilled to share her blended background supporting parents and educators on their home-education journeys.

Komodo Jones, MBA
Media Director

A natural leader and proven innovator, Komodo Jones has a special talent for seeking out and maximizing business opportunities. At 15 he turned a dish-washing job into a management position and soon after created a successful regional music promotion and production company.

Today he is a consultant utilizing his pior experience as the CEO at Media Monkeys Pro a brand engineering firm that was born from a previous venture KOJO Entertainment. His companies re- design and implement business brand strategies that help individuals, start-ups, filmmakers, entertainers and companies market their products, services, and brands to the world through social engagement and forward-thinking Internet
media.

KOJO Entertainment has helped GRAMMY and Oscar-winning artists like Patrick Williams, Al Schmitt, and Nan Schwartz promote their work and refine their brands and social marketing strategies. A recent project involved the supervision of Williams’ recent GRAMMY-nominated album, Aurora. Prior to forming KOJO Entertainment , Jones co-founded White Tigers Expressive Arts Entertainment and its sister company White Tigers Global Trade, where he served as Director of Operations, overseeing product development and international divisions in Indonesia. Jones also helped create and oversaw the Hip Hop United Project in Indonesia with corporate partner Bakrie – a project that was featured in Rolling Stone and Traxx magazines.

Valerie Krex, M.Ed.
Homeschool Developer & Contributing Author 

Valerie has been engaged in teaching, learning and dynamic curriculum development for the past two decades. After she completed her undergraduate work at University of Pennsylvania where she studied Anthropology, she went on to receive a Masters of Arts in Community Studies from the University of California at Santa Cruz. From there, she went on to receive a Masters in Education from Long Island University. Valerie has a certification in secondary education students with disabilities. After spending seven years as a New York City mathematics and special education teacher, Valerie launched a career as a national math curriculum consultant. Her passion is helping children find confidence and engagement through the magic of math. Valerie lives in Missoula, Montana with her husband and her sons. When she is not writing math challenges, you will find her skiing Montana’s snow peaked mountains or swimming in its glacial fed lakes with her family. 

Laura Oliphant, M.Ed.
Preschool Contributor

Laura is a licensed Early Childhood and Montessori 3-6 Educator. Originally from Oklahoma, she currently resides in Denver, Colorado. Laura has worked with children in a variety of capacities since 2003, including teaching English in South Korea and teaching children’s yoga. These days she teaches PreK full time and develops curriculum part time.

Laura’s goal in teaching young children is to plant and nurture a life-long love of learning. When a child has learned to recognize their own needs and starts to take responsibility for having those needs met, they have the capacity to build knowledge of the world around them. Therefore, emotional intelligence is essential to academic growth as well as becoming a global citizen.

When she’s not teaching or writing, Laura enjoys spending time with her family. Skiing, hiking, running, camping, and practicing yoga are favorite pastimes. Just as she teaches children to have their mental, emotional, and physical needs met, she practices prioritizing these needs in her own life.

Ayinde Abiola, M.Ed.
Reading Curriculum Developer

Ayinde Abiola has over nine years of experience working with pre-k and elementary school students. He has a master’s degree in education and has worked in the public school system as a lead teacher since the beginning of his career.

Ayinde specializes in teaching reading and helping struggling students reach grade level expectations. His goal in teaching is to make sure that every student discovers the enjoyment of reading and reaches their full potential.

Ayinde is an author and creates digital resources to help students learn to read. He uses structured literacy and decodable texts to individualize learning to each student’s learning goals. 

When he’s not teaching or writing, he enjoys reading and traveling. His goal is to see every state in America by next year.

Melissa Brent, M.Ed.
Preschool Contributing Author

Melissa is a Licensed Professional Educator with 7+ years of experience managing classrooms of 30+ students. She is an expert at creating, developing and implementing curriculum that encourages both academic achievement as well as social-emotional growth.

Melissa earned her Bachelors in Elementary Education and then went on to obtain her Masters in Early Childhood Education and has worked for years in classrooms at both the preschool and early elementary grade levels. Striving to find out everything she could about the way children engage with education, Melissa has dedicated the most recent years of her career to researching child development and creating lessons that prioritize classroom relationships and social emotional wellness, and before joining the Origins family, she was the Curriculum Coordinator for an online early education platform focused on social and emotional development at the pre-k level. Using play as the driving force, Melissa hopes to encourage fun, excitement, and a lifelong love for learning in Origins students.

Living in the North Carolina mountains with her husband, her toddler and her dog, Melissa finds her zen in books, iced coffee, and Mr. Sketch markers.

Juliet Pailes, M.Ed., PhD Candidate
Homeschool Contributor & Consultant

PhD candidate Juliet has had over 35 years of experience in education. She acquired a Bachelor’s Degree in Child Development and a Master’s Degree in Educational Psychology and Counseling with an Early Childhood Emphasis, both from California State University, Northridge. She is set to graduate within a year with a PhD in Education, focusing on Curriculum and Instruction, from New Mexico State University. At NMSU Juliet is researching parent involvement in early education.

Currently located in Southern California but born in Pennsylvania, Juliet had a bi-costal childhood which helped create a love of the earth. This shaped her beliefs about eco-education and biodiversity that are woven throughout her philosophical tenets to this day.

After enjoying a career as a hands-on school-based caregiver for young children for 5 years, Juliet directed and managed three different schools for young children for another 6 years, coordinating one from the ground up. She has directed schools both large and small – ranging from 40 to 200 children. She has worked in multiage group settings, stand-alone classroom settings, academic schools, play based schools, and school district preschools.

She has mentored new directors as a Director Mentor for the California Early Childhood Mentor Program and as a Public Policy Intern for The California Association for the Education of Young Children (CAAEYC) in Sacramento, California. She spent three years as a Public Policy Chair on the board of an affiliate chapter of CAAEYC in Verdugo Hills, CA. In addition, she served as a grant writer/project coordinator for a statewide non-profit educational group, The Homeschool Association of California (HSC). Now she serves as the co-chair of the Legislative Action Workgroup within the larger, statewide, Public Policy Committee for The California Association for the Education of Young Children (CAAEYC).

Juliet has four daughters ages 20 years, 18 years, 16 years, and 11 years, and a 14-year-old son. All of them have been homeschooled since kindergarten. Two have begun college and three are still homeschooling. They have played music their entire lives and music plays a central role in her family's daily routines.

Juliet enjoys classical music, researching, hiking, yoga, and long walks with her family. Her favorite household chore is doing the laundry, which is good because she has a lot of it to do!

Juliet is most often working online grading papers, in a zoom meeting, researching, editing, or listening to music in the car with her children when traveling to or from their activities. When not doing these things, you can find her dreaming up curriculum ideas for her own children and the children she writes curriculum for.

Penelope Baquero, M.Ed.
Homeschool Contributor

Penelope has been involved in a variety of education organizations and initiatives with the common thread of contributing to societal transformation. Her drive to contribute to positive change has led her to work with children, student-led organizations, nomadic eco-activism, ecovillage leadership, performance art, women’s initiatives, and working in formal and informal education, in Montana, Latin America, and Indonesia.

She earned a degree in Finance and International Relations in Colombia, her country of origin, and a masters in Integrated Arts and Education at The University of Montana, both degrees representative of her interdisciplinary profile. After three years living and working at the Green School in Bali, Penélope has returned to Missoula to design and implement eco-logically minded pedagogy, curricula and artistic experiences to support the emerging movement towards ecological, regenerative consciousness.

Zachary Morris, M.Ed.
Homeschool Contributor

Zach is a thought-leader in education. He is committed to the cultivation of thriving person- centered learning communities built on compassion and whole person growth. Zach supports individuals, families and organizations in creating supportive structures for people workign to make a change in themselves and in their community.