Hello, my name is Michael LaPointe and I am very excited to be part of the Spirit At Play family.  I moved to Missoula from Brooklyn, NY where I lived for seven years.  While there I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in theater with a minor in education.  After graduation I began working for an early childhood fitness program on Manhattan’s upper-east side. Though I thoroughly enjoyed my life in the city it has long been a dream of mine to make my home here in Montana. I am so very excited to be here and to have received such a warm welcome from the Missoula community and particularly from Spirit At Play. 

I began working with children at age 16 as a summer camp counselor for a YMCA resident camp in northern New Hampshire.  Growing up in New England I developed a passion for the outdoors, spending many a day on the mountainside and many a night under the stars.  My love for acting brought me to New York City to fully submerge myself in the theater world. However during my studies I found early childhood education to be substantially more fulfilling.  As a college sophomore I began working towards my New York State Teacher Certification.  I completed my student teaching at an inner-city performing arts high school and worked hard to attain my license to teach.   It has always been my interest and passion to incorporate the concepts of play and imagination with the act of learning. After years of city life I have returned to a community with access to nature in search of new experiences in the outdoors and to continue my learning process.

            It is my hope to continue my education at the University of Montana and to build a life for myself here in Missoula. I am very pleased and excited to have found a learning center that welcomes and supports my style of teaching and a staff that I have so much to learn from.  I look forward to meeting you all and getting to know the Spirit At Play community.

Sincerely,

Michael LaPointe