Early Childhood Educator

My name is Allyson Michaud. I grew up in Carleton County and moved away for several years. At the age of thirty I left my job of ten years and went back to college to follow my passion in childhood education. I now reside in Perth Andover with my partner, son, and step daughter.

I love the outdoors, camping, Camp fires, wheeling, fishing, baking, swimming, coffee, plants, gardening, animals, nature, insects and bugs. I will be the first to grab a bug, or snake off the ground, show the children and let them experience nature's beauty and amazing things that it provides.

Preschool Educator

My name is Ms. April Michaud. I am the preschool educator here at Future Footprints Family Centre.

I have an associate’s degree in Early Childhood and over 18 years of experience working with children.

I believe that every child is unique and is capable of great things. I strive to create a warm, welcoming, and safe classroom environment where children feel safe to explore, learn, and have fun.

In my spare time I love to read, spend time in nature, explore our beautiful province, and spend time with my family and friends. I am continuously seeking out professional development opportunities to help make me a better educator.

I am excited to be a part of your child’s learning journey and look forward to creating an engaging and safe environment for them to learn in.

Coordinator / Director

I was born and grew up in the catchment area of Perth-Andover; graduated from Southern Victoria High School and went on to earn a business diploma, a forestry diploma, and then my early childhood education diploma. During my personal time I very much enjoy traveling, biking, hiking, camping, canoeing, reading, cooking, gardening and spending time with family and friends. I was hired by a volunteer board December 5th , 2010 as the coordinator/director to facilitate the establishment and opening of Future Footprints Family Centre. With the generous help of this wonderful community, Future Footprints was able to open its doors for childcare January 9th, 2012. I have very much enjoyed being part of an organization that has grown and thrived over the years and that continuously seeks to improve its services for families and their children.

Early Childhood Educator

Growing up I always knew I would end up working with children. As the oldest grandchild on my mother’s side of the family I grew up with a passion for taking care of my younger cousins and eager to take my babysitting course.

I graduated from CNHS in 2017 and took a couple gap years before returning to school. In those two years I took a trip to Ireland and worked at the Carlton Co-Op. Eventually I applied at the Oulton College in Moncton for their Travel and Tourism program and was accepted. Last minute I changed courses to their ECE/EA course and graduated with honours in 2020.

I started working at Future Footprints Family Centre in 2020 very shortly after I graduated with plans to become an EA (educational assistant) when the summer was over. However, I loved being and ECE so I’ve been here ever since. I currently work in the 2/3-year-old room but have spent lots of time with each age group. My goal is to create an environment that is calming, child led, welcoming and fosters independence. With the help of my co-educator, we have been adding aspects of Montessori into our program. I love to spend as much time as possible outside with the children in any weather, playing in water, having picnics or bringing activities or Storytime outside.

I have three cats and in my spare time I enjoy to spend time with my family and friends, play cards, shop, read and to be outdoors swimming, fishing, camping, skidooing, and side by siding or around a campfire.

Early Childhood Educator

Hi! My name is Rachel Savage and I began my Early Childhood Education journey when I was 19 years old.

I love working with children because it is fun, exciting and they always keep me on my toes.

When I’m not working I spend time with family and enjoy travelling, being outdoors or on the river.

Early Childhood Educator

I have been an Early Childhood Educator for 17 years and I love my job.

I enjoy teaching and learning from children every day.

I have two boys of my own and their names are Brandon and Nolan.

I also have two fur babies, a dog named Champ and a kitten named Shadow.

My favourite season is summer because I enjoy camping, hiking and swimming.

Early Childhood Educator

Hello, my name is Barbara Wilson Rutkowski, my friends and family call me Barbie. I am the youngest of 3 sisters and was born and raised in Ontario.

My dad was born in Nova Scotia and they moved a lot, so many of my cousins live in Hillsborough NB. I have always loved vacationing in NB every summer since I was born until my teenage years. Growing up in Toronto and then moving to the outskirts of the city was good, but something about the calmness of NB always stuck with me. My husband and I decided to move here in September 2022 and we are so happy that we made the decision to call Perth-Andover home.

As long as I can remember, I’ve always dreamed of being a teacher. When I was 5, my dad set up a classroom in our basement with an actual chalkboard so I could play school. I became an aunt when I was 7.5 years old and I was always playing school with my nieces and nephews; teaching them how to read and conduct science experiments.

After graduating high school, I decided to go to college and study Early Childhood Education. I graduated in 1994 from the 2 year E.C.E. program; I was on the Dean’s list, and I also graduated at the top of any 2 year program offered at the college and received a medal. Working with children has always been my passion. I have been working in the field for 30 plus years now and I still love what I do. I have always been an advocate for children because they need a voice too. Over my many years in the field, I have worked in large centres and started my own home preschool/kindergarten program in Ontario in 2008 after graduating from the Montessori program I had taken.

I was so excited to become a part of the team at Future Footprints Family Centre and started working here on October 31, 2022. I think it’s important to connect with the children, their families and my co workers because we are a family. I love working with children of all ages. In my experience, I have worked with children 2-12 years old and I am a mother of 3 adult children. It’s important to me to build connections with each child in my care so that I can help guide them as they learn how to regulate their emotions; build connections with peers; and learn about the amazing world around them through play and exploration.

Being an educator is what I was born to do and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

Early Childhood Educator

I am one of the Early Childhood Educators at Future Footprints Family Center. I was born and raised in

the Perth-Andover area and graduated from Woodstock NBCC in 2012 as an Early Childhood Educator. I

started my work journey with FFFC directly after graduating in 2012 and shortly after FFFC opened. I

have also had work experience with children in the school system as an Educational Assistant, as well as

working with adults with disabilities at Carleton Victoria Community Vocational Board Inc.

My experiences working with people that have various disabilities ignited a love of learning and working

with children who have disabilities. I have taken several courses and training sessions to enhance my

knowledge and techniques in working with all children, and I plan to continue my learning journey.

I am married and have two children, so when I’m not working at FFFC, I can be found spending time with

family and friends. We like playing, biking, cooking, camping, swimming and travelling.

I am always happy to meet and greet families and children when they arrive each day and love the

experience of getting to see things through the children’s eyes as they learn and experience new things.

It is my goal to provide a safe and inclusive environment where everyone is welcomed and loved.

Early Childhood Educator

I grew up in Medford New Brunswick and graduated from Southern Victoria High School in Perth-Andover. Right after high school I took the two-year early childhood education course at Woodstock Community College.

I chose to pursue early childhood education as my career because I want to have a positive impact on children. I want to be able to give children the opportunity to play, explore, discover and learn from the world around them in the early years of their lives.

As an educator working here at Future Footprints Family Centre, I strive to be a positive role model for the children.