Courtney Fincher
PreK Director and Team Teacher
Courtney Fincher is the director of the Odyssey Pre-Kindergarten program. She values the opportunity to nurture children through the rapid growth of early childhood and she believes it is never too early to instill the concepts of self-knowing, communication, compassion, and community.
Courtney strives to support the children in developing self-confidence in balance with interdependence. It is her goal that children leaving her class will have a core understanding of themselves and the skills that will serve them in every aspect of life. Courtney values working in a school where children can experience the developmental spectrum from early childhood through high school.
Courtney holds a B.A. in psychology from the University of West Virginia and has extended her coursework in the field of Early Education. She carries her love of service, psychology, and healing arts into her relationships with the children.
She is particularly interested in Interpersonal Neurobiology (the study of how relationships shape our brains) and what creates resiliency. She trained in Circle of Security in 2017 and now offers classes to parents on creating secure attachments. She attended the Interpersonal Neurobiology conference lead by Dr. Dan Siegel in April of 2019. She is finishing her third year of Somatic Experiencing training to deepen her understanding of the nervous system and regulation.
In harmony with the Odyssey vision, she sees a bright future for the children she teaches today, and looks forward to seeing what will happen as our special school community grows.
Courtney is engaged in our local early education professional community in a variety of ways. She has served on The AB Tech advisory committee for their Early Education program, was a NEXT Emerging Leader participant, and is a graduate of the Early Childcare Directors Institute. In 2015 she was awarded National Recognition for Childcare Excellence.
Current News & Events
Our Business Manager and extraordinary human @herby.knitter inspired us to make violet syrup this weekend. 💜 Odyssey faculty, staff, parents, and students are staying connected in beautiful ways this spring. 🌱 How was your weekend? #stayconnected #stayhome #stayhealthy #violets #makestuff #kidsofinstagram #integraleducation #holisticeducation #naturalbeauty #weekendvibes #spring #lifeinthetimeofcorona #asheville #ashevillenc #kidsgrowbetteroutside
We love you! 🤗 This message from our kindergarten teacher inspired a spontaneous tv hug from one of her students. We’re so glad her mom captured this moment to share. 🥰 We hope you can hug the ones you love - virtually or in quarantine together - and share the joy this weekend while staying home and staying healthy. ☀️ #stayhealthy #stayhome #virtualhug #virtuallearning #kindergarten #k12 #asheville #integraleducation #holisticeducation #emotionalliteracy #teachersofinstagram #remotelearning #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey #odysseyspirit #happyfriday #lifeinthetimeofcorona
Today, high school math teacher @little.yost led us in our first remote meeting Best Practice presentation! We wrote mathy poetry and were reminded to celebrate how often we teach from a place of “best.” #strongertogether #bestpractices #teachersofinstagram #theloveliest #remotelearning #remotework #stayconnected #stayhome #inspire #collaborate #writepoetry #integraleducation #k12 #asheville #ashevillenc #onlineodyssey #holisticeducation #mathteacher #emotionalliteracy #lifeinthetimeofcorona
Today, our 7th grade language arts class hosted three real live “Atticus” lawyers who work or have worked in the criminal justice system around the country. We used Zoom to have a panel discussion about the discrimination present in today’s world, the glimmers of hope or “baby steps” (as Miss Maudie would say) of progress, and the ways culture, institutions, and individuals interact to create just or unjust outcomes. Big thanks to our panelists with big hearts 👩🏻💻👩🏼💻👨🏻💻(@alrollins000 / Dennis, @hillsmissme, Allison) for helping us better understand our world and our reading of #tokillamockingbird ❤️ #seventhgrade #languagearts #integraleducation #remotelearning #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey #lawyersofinstagram #socialjustice while #socialdistancing
Coach Carly! Look at that motivating face! We are working to find the balance of online learning with physical exercise and time outside. 🌳🏋🏽♂️Also, Loom is a great teaching tool! #getmotivated #moveyourbody #physed #welovecoachcarly #hashtagforyourteacher #teachersofinstagram #remotelearning #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey #integraleducation #k12 #fourthgrade #asheville #ashevillenc
This remote hip hop dance lesson video intro from @therealaquaboogy is so sweet. We are loving all the ways our community is staying connected; the way our teachers are keeping students engaged, moving, and creative; the way parents are supporting their kids and cheering on our teachers; and all while we’re figuring out how to live in this new world order and breathe through the weight of change. 💃🏻 Don’t forget to dance. #dance #dancersofinstagram #hiphop #middleschool #k12 #remotelearning #himom #lifeinthetimeofcorona #integraleducation #creative #collaborative #learningcommunity #asheville #ashevillenc #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey
Look at this sweet #remoteschool set up! Morning Meetings help us stay connected. 💖 #thirdgradeteacher #thirdgrade #morningroutine #morningmeeting #remotework #positivediscipline #classmeeting #stayconnected #lifeinthetimeofcorona #integraleducation #k12 #asheville #ashevillenc #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey
Those are three hilariously befuddled faces. We’re doing a lot of planning and tech tool training today to prepare for our first day of remote classes tomorrow! 💻😷 We are so grateful for resilient, brilliant faculty who pivoted on a dime and did lightening fast research; grateful for an understanding and supportive parent community; and can’t wait to see our students’ faces again tomorrow when we launch! 🚀 Let’s do this thing! #teachersofinstagram #zoom #remotelearning #remotework #technology #coronaschool #asheville #ashevillenc #k12 @thatsxelantscience #remoteodyssey #onlineodyssey
A little metta loving kindness for your Friday evening ❤️ #community #communityprayer #mettameditation #asheville #global #k12 #integraleducation
Our kindergarten students shared their independent research projects today! From knucker dragons (who, I learned, are only somewhat ferocious) to robots, students shared their passions and hard won knowledge with big kids, parents, and faculty, completing their hero’s journey in academic inquiry. 🐉 🤖 #kindergarten #dontunderestimateme #herosjourney #research #individuality #dragons #dragoneggs #integraleducation #creative #independent #projectbasedlearning #k12 #ashevillenc #asheville
Pre-K Teachers
Featured Student Work
