Our Team

Our educators and administrators are the backbone of Les Petits Francophones. We couldn’t do this work without them. Most of our team is francophone and multilingual, bringing a richly diverse mosaic to our school community. Each classroom includes at least one anglophone and one francophone educator, ensuring a balanced and immersive learning environment.

Laetitia Medrano, Executive Director

Laetitia joined Les Petits Francophones as Interim Executive Director/Director of Education Development in June 2021 and was promoted to Executive Director in September 2021. Her work focuses on program development, teacher development, and support for school operations.

Originally from France, Laetitia moved to Canada after completing her master’s degree in Social Studies. She spent 12 years living across the country, from the East Coast to the West Coast. Driven by her passion for teaching, she returned to the University of Ottawa to earn her Bachelor of Education. She was then hired by the Vancouver School Board, where she taught grades 2–5 and became a Head Teacher.

Seeking new opportunities, she later moved to California and spent three years teaching in a Francophone school in Oakland. Constantly embracing new challenges, Laetitia joined the Board of Les Petits Francophones as Secretary in October 2020 before stepping into her leadership role.

A mom of two—a 17-year-old son and a 12-year-old daughter—Laetitia loves cooking and spending time outdoors. Dedicated to delivering the highest-quality education, she is passionate about creating inclusive projects, enrichment activities, and joyful learning experiences for children.

Sahar Aghba, Lead Infant Program - On-Site Director

Sahar joined LPF as a lead teacher in January 2024. Born in Iran, she graduated from high school as an electrician before immigrating to Canada with her family in 1998. There, she studied art in college and later earned a license as a makeup artist. During that time, she discovered her true passion for working with young children, returned to school, earned her childcare diploma, and became a fully qualified teacher.

Sahar gained experience by babysitting for families and working in daycare programs. In 2003, she married and moved to San Francisco, where she and her husband are now raising their three teenage daughters and their small Yorkie, Coco.

With over 25 years of experience, Sahar has worked with children ages 6 weeks to 5 years, and has felt especially fulfilled working with infants and toddlers since 2010. She continued her education in Early Childhood Development and, through her dedication and leadership, became LPF’s Director. Supporting children’s well-being and confidence from the very start brings her great joy and pride.

Outside of work, Sahar enjoys dancing, music, shopping, art, and spending quality time with her family.

Tass Dif - Francophone Teacher Assistant in Chenilles

Tass joined LPF in September 2025. She is married and has two adorable children, a boy and a girl. She holds a Master's degree from a University in Algeria, where she also worked as a lawyer for 10 years.

During her studies, she gained 3 years of experience working in a daycare. After moving to the United States, she worked as a nanny in a home daycare, which strengthened her passion for early childhood education and child development.

She speaks Amazigh, Arabic, and French, which allows her to support multilingual families and connect easily with children from diverse backgrounds. She enjoys helping children learn through play, creativity, and a caring environment. She is thrilled to contribute to the school community.

Lydia Ghouar - Francophone Teacher Assistant in Papillons

Lydia joined LPF in September 2025. She is originally from Algeria and speaks Berber, Arabic, French, and conversational English, which I continue to improve.

She holds a Master’s degree in Network Administration and Security. Her passion for early childhood education began when I worked as a nanny for her cousins. She later completed formal training in early childhood education and gained experience working at a Sonatrach daycare center. Working with children helped her realize how meaningful this field is to her. She is now committed to continuing her career in early childhood education here in the United States.

Yonglin Huang, English Teacher in Papillons

Yonglin joined LPF in February 2024. She earned her B.A. in Education Science from UCI in 2023 and has experience working in both preschool and after-school programs. Yonglin enjoys working with young children, and her goal is to support each child’s curiosity, independence, and social-emotional growth. She feels grateful to witness so many of the children’s “firsts” as they reach new milestones.

She also enjoys traveling, cooking, and spending time with her family.

Laurence Young, Lead Teacher Canetons/Francophone Teacher

Laurence joined LPF in July 2019. She is originally from Brittany, France. She currently lives in Dublin, CA. Laurence worked as a French teacher in Raleigh, NC, and over the last three years has been diligently pursuing her AA in Early Childhood Education. She has been living in the US for 18 years. She previously lived in Arizona and North Carolina. She is married and has two daughters. She likes spending time with her husband and daughters, playing board games, going to the movies, and exploring local areas. She enjoys reading historical fiction and nonfiction about France’s history. She spent one year leading our 3-4-year-old class; since September 2021, she has been leading the Canetons' classroom.

Mai Yu, English Teacher in Canetons

Mai joined LPF in August 2022. She was in Laos and lived in Thailand for a couple of years before moving to the US to start working with children. She was an Early Head Start infant assistant teacher and toddler teacher for more than 10 years.

She enjoys exercising, swimming, cooking, gardening, and spending time with her family.

Amina Bouamara - Francophone Teacher Assistant in Canetons

Amina joined LPF in August 2025. She holds a master's in psychology from Algeria. She has work experience in the education field as a primary teacher. She also worked as a psychologist at a center for students with special needs. She loves helping children learning through playing, bringing a lot of creativity and a positive environment.

She moved to California in 2024 and lives in Oakland with her husband. She loves spending time with her loved ones, as well as cooking and traveling. Amina speaks Amazigh, Arabic, and French.

Emily Millot, Bilingual Teacher in Canards

Emily joined LPF in March of 2022. She has worked for three years as an assistant preschool teacher in Oakland, California. She initially went to school to pursue a career as a social worker, but put it on hold to raise a family. She has dedicated the last twenty-eight years to raising three sons, all of whom have graduated from the French American International School and are embracing adulthood. She recently returned to school to attain her Associate Teacher Certificate and is deeply committed to children's education for future generations.

Crystal Anaya, Lead Toddlers Program - English Teacher in Cygnes

Crystal lives in Oakland with her husband and son. She has lived in Oakland all her life and loves her community. She enjoys spending quality time with her family outdoors and traveling to different countries. Since she was very young, she had known she wanted to be a teacher. She began in the educational field immediately after high school while she attended college courses and completed her degree. She has about 20 years of experience in the academic field and counting. She has taught infants to kindergarten.

She has been a happy teacher at LPF since July 2024 as a Lead Toddlers program. She enjoys working with children because they are delightful and inspiring. She feels grateful to have a job where she can support their growth and nurture their love of learning. There isn't a day that passes, which doesn't include a hug, a silly story, or even a smile that makes her work day! She believes that as early educators, we help build a strong foundation that positively supports children's educational and human journeys.

Melissa Khalfaoui, Francophone Teacher Assistant in Cygnes

Melissa has been a teacher assistant at Les Petits Francophones since November 2025. She was born in Kabylie and got her Master's degree in English Language and Communication. She previously worked as a Language Teacher.
She has always enjoyed helping children learn and express themselves in a fun way. She speaks Berber, French, English, and Arabic.
She enjoys spending time with her husband, family, and friends. She loves reading and watching movies, traveling, and making memories.

Courtney Lee, Francophone Teacher Lions

Courtney joined the LPF team in January 2024. She currently lives in Hayward, CA. She spent time as an assistant preschool teacher in 2018-2019. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in French and Francophone Studies from UCLA in 2023. In addition to speaking French, she also speaks Mandarin Chinese.

She enjoys spending time with her family, reading books, and exercising. She also enjoys learning different languages and cultures. Her son is also attending Les Petits Francophones.

Antoinette Chaplin, English Teacher Lions

Antoinette joined LPF's team in July 2022. Born in San Francisco and raised in Oakland, she has worked with children for the past eight years. Antoinette's emphasis is on supporting and developing children's social and emotional needs, helping them recognize their feelings, and guiding them in finding safe ways to express themselves. Her goal is to help children learn and grow into wonderful people. She is grateful for the opportunity to work here with your children.

Antoinette has a dog named Jack, and when she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her family, practicing drawing, and doing cosplay.

Keisha Hadley, Chef

Keisha has worked in the culinary field for many years. She attended culinary arts school in Miami and, with her experience, has worked in the Bay Area as a pastry and baking chef and has supervised and managed kitchens.

One of her most recent positions was a seven-year role as a supervisor in food and nutrition services in the medical field. Today, she is the chef at LPF, where she enjoys creating meals for children and staff.

Jayjay Badilla, Assistante Chef/Teacher Assistant

JayJay, an Oakland native, joined the LPF team in January 2025. She enjoys cooking and trying new recipes/food, so much so that she previously sold homemade lumpias around the Bay Area to share her Filipino roots.

Since working at LPF, she has found a new passion for supporting young children's growth and development. She’s currently taking Early Childhood Education classes to receive her Associate Teacher Certificate.

In her free time, she likes to paint with acrylics on canvas, read, play board games, and spoil her fur baby, Turbo.