CEO & FOUNDER

Leela’s exuberance for life may only be matched by her passion for supporting others in illuminating their inner joy, calm and kindness. Her interest in Well-Being was instilled in her from a young age as her parents who were “wise beyond their years” modeled the importance of preventative and maintenance practices for both mental and physical Well-Being.

Over the years, Leela has developed her own Mindfulness practice and been trained through Mindful Schools in Mindfulness Fundamentals, Mindful Educator Essentials, School Implementation Clinic, Working with Difficult Emotions, and currently, the Mindful Teacher Certification Program and Mindful Communication.She was also trained at the Omega Institute in Yoga, Youth & Mindfulness. Leela is a provisionally trained teacher in the Community Resilience Model (CRM) through the Trauma-Resource Institute.

While working with youth from Washington, D.C. to Mexico and from Nicaragua to North Carolina, Leela has experienced the benefits of sharing skills that can proactively support children (who will become working adults, leading our countries) in handling the stress in their lives and increasing their capacity for emotional self-regulation. Additionally, Leela has a deep appreciation for and admiration of teachers whose job it often becomes to council, mother/father, model, discipline, coach and teach our youth.

Calm Minds Kind Hearts took seed while Leela worked amongst a group of incredibly passionate and dedicated teachers in Manteo, NC who embraced Mindfulness with open minds and hearts and who inspired her to share these skills more widely. Calm Minds Kinds Hearts dedicates its work first and foremost to our teachers, who help shape the minds and hearts of our students and future. 

Leela has her B.A. from Southern Methodist University in Corporate Communications & Foreign Languages and her M.A. in International Affairs from American University.

CALM MINDS KIND HEARTS COACH

Amy Sasscer has served as a passionate educator for over 18 years. After earning her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education at the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor in 2006, she moved to North Carolina to begin her teaching career with Durham Public Schools. In 2008, she was selected as a founding staff member of Morris Grove Elementary in Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools where she earned her National Boards in 2012 and was selected as the 2012-13 Teacher of the Year.
She moved to eastern North Carolina in 2015 with her husband Michael and twins, Luke and Molly. Amy served as an early childhood educator, review expert with National Boards and national edTPA evaluator with Pearson Education before being named the Executive Director of the Dare Education Foundation in 2018. During her time with the Foundation, she facilitated over 100 grant projects to meet local teachers’ instructional needs, managed 36 affordable teacher housing units to improve teacher retention, and earned numerous grants to enhance educational programs in her area. After earning her Master of Business Administration from the University of North Carolina-Wilmington in 2021, Amy founded Bright Light Collaborations, a business dedicated to illuminating innovative practices for the betterment of our communities.

Amy served as a teacher leader and instructional coach in Edenton-Chowan schools, an authentic-text assessment developer with Instructure, and a leadership trainer with Impact Early Education before dedicating her efforts full-time as a Business Consultant and Leadership Development Coach. Amy is a strong advocate for the direct instruction of Well-Being for the Whole-Child, and has been honored to be a founding instructor with Calm Minds Kind Hearts. 

In her free time Amy enjoys reading, nature and traveling with her family and friends.

CALM MINDS KIND HEARTS COACH

Drawing on more than 13 years of experience as a high school English teacher in the Bronx, Argos is an equity-driven educator and thought leader who leverages his mindfulness practice to engage communities in creating positive change. Argos first learned about mindfulness when he was searching for practices to support his high school students and the pre-service and inservice teachers he taught at Hunter College, CUNY.

Argos is the Director of Community Partnerships and Professional Development for WholeSchool Mindfulness, lectures at Hunter College in The School of Education Department, and serves on the Greater Good Education Advisory Board–organizations committed to helping schools flourish by integrating mindfulness, SEL, and wellbeing practices in their communities. His deep passion for empowering children and adolescents, and supporting other education professionals to do the same, is clearly evident in all aspects of his work.

Argos recognizes the power of love as a radical tool for personal and community change and shares mindfulness to foster healing and transformation, especially for communities most impacted by systems of oppression. Argos immigrated from Venezuela as a boy, grew up in Queens, and lives in New York.

CMKH VOLUNTEER

Cony's commitment to education goes beyond the conventional, as she has emerged as a beacon of well-being, resilience, and mindfulness in our community. Cony's transformative encounter with mindfulness took place during the challenging times of the pandemic, where she not only discovered its profound impact on her well-being but also recognized its potential to create positive ripples in the lives of those around her. Fueled by this revelation, Cony has evolved into a passionate advocate for well-being, eager to share the invaluable skills of mindfulness and resilience with our community.

As a bilingual teacher, Cony brings a wealth of experience, bridging language gaps and fostering inclusive learning environments. Her dedication to nurturing young minds and cultivating a sense of belonging is truly commendable. Beyond her teaching prowess, Cony possesses a unique eye for design, seamlessly weaving creativity into her educational approach.

Over the years, Cony has developed her own Mindfulness practice and been trained through Mindful Schools in Mindfulness Fundamentals, Mindfulness in the Classroom, Trauma Sensitive Classrooms and Mindful Communication.She is a provisionally trained teacher in the Community Resilience Model (CRM) through the Trauma-Resource Institute. Cony is also a yoga instructor in the community after completing her 200-RYTT.

Cony has her Bachelor in Education from Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso and her M.A. in Elementary Education from Greensboro College.