Our team | Plato's Playgrounds

Casandra Jones

Owner

A teacher with 20 years experience in Volusia County schools, Casandra founded and opened Plato's Playgrounds original location in 2018, in the hopes of offering a safe and nurturing environment to the preschool aged children in her community. She fund-raised for 6 years to build and open our local skate-park; Colin's Dream at Coleman park and was awarded a citizen of the year award from the Volusia League of cities for her efforts. She continues her work as a full time educator and oversees the managerial staff at our Plato's locations.

Emily Wadle

Staff and Family Relations manager

With a nurturing personality and hands-on approach towards learning, we are thrilled to have Emily as a part of our team. Her commitment to childhood education and strong leadership skills makes her the perfect addition to our administrative team. When she is not at work, she stays busy being a wife, and taking care of her four wonderful children. At Plato's she supports our directors and manages staff relations and family communications.

Jennifer England

Director of Plato's Playgrounds-original location

Possessing a contagious enthusiasm, Jennifer England has been an amazing asset for Plato's Playgrounds. Her warmth, creativity, and drive make her a great colleague and a perfect fit as the Director of our original location, which she helped open back in 2018. Working with staff members and parents to create a collaborative atmosphere, Jennifer is dedicated to making sure that every individual feels cared for and supported at our facility. With three grown children and one grandchild, she has close ties to the community of Orange City and feels a strong drive in helping our local families find the balance some new parents struggle with in their children's formative years.

Cari Darmanjian

Director of Plato's Playgrounds Lake Helen

Cari has worked in multiple roles during her many years at Plato's Playgrounds. From her time at our original location to her contributions to opening our Lake Helen location, she has taught every age level including VPK. She then proved her value as our staff support specialist, specializing in bringing behavior and curriculum resources to our staff by modeling and working hands on in their implementation. She is a true asset with her level of expertise, but is also valued for her kind heart and ability to relate to both staff and families while making the learning experience of our youngest minds both nurturing and enriching.