Annie Josephs, Director

It's a pretty remarkable feeling driving into the Sourdough parking lot each morning, and having the opportunity to work at a school that holds so many memories and so much meaning for me. I feel very fortunate, that I can call myself a "Bozeman Native". Bozeman is a pretty magical place to grow up in, and I had the unique opportunity to grow alongside Sourdough Montessori School, and experience the hard work my late mother Kathryn and my father (who is still the owner) created. I became a certified Montessori teacher in the wake of the pandemic and ever since then, teaching and supporting my family's school has been my passion and one of the most rewarding parts of my life. 








Emily Sandefur

Emily began her Montessori journey right out of college, after graduating from Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana with a degree in Spanish Literature. She moved back to her home state of Kentucky and taught six to nine year olds in Lexington, where she received her American Montessori Society (AMS) Elementary I Credential. After Kentucky, Emily and her husband, Brian moved to the intermountain west and Emily taught three to six years old at the Montessori School of the Tetons in Wilson, Wyoming. Continuing their exploration of different mountain towns, Emily and Brian moved to western North Carolina where she returned to teaching in an elementary classroom at Mountain Pathways School.


After a couple of years, Emily and Brian decided to head back to the west and landed in Bozeman, which they now call home after 20 years. After completing her AMS Early Childhood Credential with the Mid-American Montessori Teacher Training Institute in Omaha, Nebraska, Emily joined Sourdough in 2016. At Sourdough, Emily teaches in the Lower Class, where her twin children were once students. Beyond school, Emily loves to explore, take road trips, play outside and create memories with her family.

Gitte Davidson

I feel very fortunate to be part of the team at Sourdough Montessori, where I teach downstairs in the mornings and upstairs in the afternoons. I hold a degree in Apparel Engineering as well as a Montessori Assistant Teacher certification and I have two decades of teaching experience working with young children and college students.


I grew up in Cologne, Germany, helping in my family’s small grocery business and during my college years running my own stand selling clothing and bags at local open-air markets. I also loved spending time outdoors with family, from skiing trips in the Alps to summers near the Mediterranean coast. As a high school junior, I had the life-changing opportunity to spend a year in St. Paul, Minnesota, as a foreign exchange student, and later moved to the United States more than 30 years ago. My husband, Mike, and I feel lucky to have raised our three sons here in Bozeman.


What I love most about Montessori education is the focus on creating a calm and caring environment where the children feel encouraged to explore, learn and grow independently. It is so rewarding to me to observe their genuine excitement for learning as their confidence grows.

Outside of school, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends, walking my dogs, hiking, gardening, sewing and cooking.


I look forward every day to working with the wonderful children, supportive parents, and caring staff at SMS.

Brooke Kinkade

I grew up in Utah and recently made the move from Asheville, NC to Bozeman, where I’m excited to call Montana home. I am currently studying social work online through the University of Utah and am passionate about creativity, art, and community.


I love teaching art at Sourdough Montessori and enjoy watching the friends experiment and express themselves through their creations. When I’m not at Sourdough Montessori, I spend my time climbing, playing volleyball, exploring the mountains, or starting a new art project.











Brealyn Eschenko

I grew up on cattle ranches across Colorado and Montana with my 3 younger siblings. Now, I live here in Bozeman with my husband and our dog and cat. I love spending time outdoors whether that is through walking, hiking, camping, gardening or fishing.


I also spend my free time baking, reading and crafting. Something most people may not know about me, is that I am very passionate about holistic wellness for both people and animals. I have been an assistant teacher at Sourdough since February 2025. 













Hilary Rasker

Hi, I'm Hillary! I'm a Bozeman native and teach the pre-k program at Sourdough Montessori. I hold an English Literature degree from the University of British Columbia, with a focus on First Nations storytelling and oral history.


After 8 years of managing customer service relationships in the tech world, I’m back to my true loves: playdough, mud pies, early literacy, and meeting each child where they are. I love creating a warm, engaging classroom where young children feel confident and excited to learn.


In my free time, I enjoy biking, trail running, and baking goodies with my husband and two children.








Riley Smith

Hi, I'm Riley! I grew up in a small ski town in Colorado and moved to Bozeman in 2022. I have always loved working with children and supporting their growth, learning, and development. While I’ve worked in different educational environments, I especially love the Montessori approach because it encourages independence, curiosity, and a long love of learning! I really enjoy anything related to the outdoors and hands on activities! 















Jay Josephs, CPA, Owner/Co-Founder, Business and Facilities Manager

Education: MBA, UC Berkeley 1987; BS (Business) UC Berkeley 1981. Hometown: Los Angeles, CA.
Experience: Co-founder and owner of Sourdough since its inception in 1997. A 30 year career in property and business management during which I have managed several successful enterprises, (besides Sourdough) including the Elk Grove subdivision, and some consulting engineering companies.
Passions/Interests: Spending time with the ones I love; my wife and kids and my friends. Puttering around Sourdough trying to make it just that much better. Taking looong walks with my dogs. Cooking and eating. Reading. Writing. Talking. Oh yeah - and skiing. Few things give me the joy I find when I find myself on a long, steep face that is thick with powder.


In my own words: There is something about being around kids that brings out the best in a person. I know this because I see what the challenge of running a school like this has done not just for me, but all of us that make up this amazing community called Sourdough. Our staff, our parents, the service providers and craftsmen that regularly help us out, and as I say myself, all of us seem driven, as if by some shared but invisible force, to do our best and be at our best for our kids. This is the best part of owning Sourdough – to be a part of something so positive, based on such a giving spirit. The miracle of it all is that in the instant we do for our kids, we help ourselves almost as much as we do them.