Suzzanne Moore, B.S.- Cofounder/Program Director

After receiving her Bachelor of Science degree, specializing in Child Development, from Texas Tech University, Ms. Moore began her career as a Head Start teacher in Lubbock, Texas.  Relocating to Houston, she served as the Director of the Mangum Oaks Schools and subsequently assumed the role of Curriculum Coordinator, a position which sparked her interest in curricula design.  While raising her own children, Ms. Moore taught at the Second Baptist Preschool in Houston and then served as the Resource Coordinator for St. Luke’s Day School, developing a resource center that is still operational.  Ms. Moore then taught at the Poe Cooperative Nursery School, allowing her to experience first-hand the value of an inclusive learning environment incorporating parents and children in all areas of developmental typicality.  After her tenure with the Parish School of Houston as a beginning language instructor, Ms. Moore moved to Austin and established Over the Moon, a rotating setting-based neighborhood preschool.  She then joined Capitol School of Austin as a beginning language teacher where she met her future collaborator, Kelly Weis.  Together, they founded the Reach for a Star Pilot Program which ultimately evolved into The Moore-Weis Children’s Center of Austin, for which Ms. Moore has served as both teacher and currently, Program Director.  In addition to her administrative and educational responsibilities, Ms. Moore continues to serve as an educational placement consultant for both typical and atypical preschool children.  She has served on the accreditation steering committees for three schools, as well as the boards of the Poe Cooperative Nursery School and the West School of Houston.  She devotes countless volunteer hours to the early medical diagnosis and treatment of autism.  It is impossible to overstate the number of children who have benefited from her love, care, and professional expertise.  Although a teacher at heart, she believes that a perpetual and dynamic state of constant learning serves as her personal and professional cornerstone.

e-mail Suzzanne

---

Kelly Weis, M.Ed.- Cofounder/Business Director

Kelly L. Weis was born and reared in Houston.  A life-long interest in education led her to the University of Texas at Austin, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Learning and Development, with a specialization in Early Childhood, as well as a Masters of Education degree in Early Childhood Special Education.

Ms. Weis’ professional career has enabled her to touch the lives of children throughout Central Texas.  Her career began as a teacher of typical children at Children’s Discovery Center in Austin.  Her interest in children with special needs led to her pursuit of a master’s degree, as well as her transition to the Capitol School of Austin, where she served as the supporting teacher for the kindergarten and 1^st grade classes.  Her third year at Capitol School teaching beginning language led to her fortuitous meeting with Moore-Weis Cofounder, Suzzanne Moore.  In 1996, Ms. Weis and Ms. Moore developed and launched the Reach for a Star Pilot Program in Austin, Texas.  After jointly leading Reach for a Star, Ms. Weis continued the program independently for another year while developing Moore-Weis with Ms. Moore and serving as a pre-kindergarten and inclusion teacher in a Head Start program in San Marcos.  The initial collaboration of the Reach for a Star Pilot Program became the foundation for The Moore-Weis Children’s Center of Austin, where Ms. Weis has served as a teacher and currently, Business Director. 

Ms. Weis lives in Cedar Park with her husband and two children.  Her passion for both her family and Moore-Weis enriches her life every day.  Ms. Weis’ even temperament and soothing demeanor, combined with her tremendous sense of empathy, have enabled her to connect with autistic children and positively impact the parents and staff of Moore-Weis.   

e-mail Kelly