People
Tovah P. Klein, Ph.D. - Director
Tovah P. Klein, Ph.D (tklein@barnard.edu) has a doctorate in developmental and clinical psychology from Duke University and holds a bachelor's degree from University of Michigan in Psychology. She is on faculty in Psychology at Barnard College and conducts research on children's social development and parents' experiences parenting young children, including the challenges of combining work and family. Other research areas focus on trauma and young children, as well as children's use of play to communicate and process emotions and stressful experiences. She is on the Advisory Boards of Room to Grow, Per Dev, Rwanda Educational Assistance Program, Ubuntu Education Fund, LearnNow.org, and has been an advisor to Sesame Street. Dr. Klein is an advisor to children's TV and film, and is frequently quoted in parenting magazines and the media as an expert on toddler development and parenting issues. Dr. Klein's book How Toddlers Thrive: What parents can do today to plant the seeds of lifelong success was published in 2014. Follow her on Twitter: @tovahklein. She is the mother of three boys, all Toddler Center graduates.
Alison Davis - Associate Director
Alison Davis (aldavis@barnard.edu) received her bachelor's degree in psychology from the University of Michigan and her Masters in Social Work from Hunter College. She spent many years working with children and families as a social worker before returning to Hunter for a Masters in Early Childhood Education. Prior to joining the Toddler Center in 2018, she spent nine years as a teacher at Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church Day School. Alison is the mother of two children- a Barnard College sophomore and a recent college graduate.
Andrea Carmosino - Center Administrator
Andrea (toddlercenter@barnard.edu) is the Center Administrator with a longstanding connection to the Toddler Center. She is the mother of three Toddler Center graduates - one whom is also a Barnard College '19 graduate. Andrea is a CU alum and formerly worked at the Columbia University School of Social Work.
Sophie Smyke - Research Coordinator/Asst. Teacher
Sophie (ssmyke@barnard.edu) graduated from Barnard in 2021 with a degree in Psychology and Human Rights. Sophie will be coordinating the Toddler Center's research projects and also teaching in the Wednesday classes. She loves to take walks in Riverside Park with her dog, Nellie. When not outside, Sophie loves to cook and cheer on the Boston Red Sox.
Serena Baroudi - Head Teacher
Serena (sbaroudi@barnard.edu) received her bachelor's degree in Psychology from Susquehanna University in 2014 and earned graduate degrees in both Early Intervention and Social Work in May 2020 from Bank Street College and Hunter College. This will be Serena's fourth year teaching at the Toddler Center. Serena considers herself a foodie who loves to travel, discover local coffee shops, and indulge in her musical hobbies such as playing guitar, dancing, and karaoke.
Hannah Corrie - Teacher
Hannah (hcorrie@barnard.edu) returns to the Toddler Center this year after taking time off to work on her second graduate degree. A Barnard grad with a master's in writing, Hannah is working toward a degree in Early Childhood/General Ed at Bank Street. Hannah writes poetry in any spare time she finds.
Leslie Perrell - Assistant Teacher
Leslie (lperrel@barnard.edu) graduated from Barnard, worked in its Speech Perception Lab, and got to watch her two year old son at the Toddler Center while observing for her Developmental Psychology class. After spending decades in the corporate world, she decided it was time to try something new. Now in her third year at the Toddler Center, she is working on obtaining a Child Development Associate accreditation. Some of Leslie's free time is spent visiting her two sets of twin grandchildren.
Sunita Shah - Assistant Teacher
Sunita (sshah@barnard.edu) begins her first year with us as an assistant teacher. She is the proud mom of two high schoolers. She loves doing arts and crafts and spending time with her family. Sunita is excited to return to teaching this year in our Wednesday classes.