Our Team
L’Atelier (pronounced “LA-tell-yay”) is founded and staffed by a team of three native French teachers, each with over ten years experience.
We opened in 2013 with the vision of providing an academically rigorous French immersion curriculum (no English is spoken), modeled on French preschool methods, and combined with a motherly approach to our students’ emotional needs and comfort. In France, such schools are known as “les écoles maternelles.” We are moms ourselves, with bilingual children, and we love what we do.
Cécile Depraetere, co-founder
Born in Lille, France, Cécile studied French and English at L'Université de Lille lll, Charles de Gaulle. Since moving to New York City, she has taught early childhood French immersion at The Language Workshop for Children and at Le Jardin A L'Ouest before co-founding L’Atelier.
Besides interests in poetry and photography, Cécile is passionate about literature, both for adults and youth, and enjoys sharing her discoveries with the children.
Emmanuelle Benoit, co-founder
Born in Lyon, France, Emmanuelle realized at a very young age that her vocation lay in the care and education of young children. After graduating from the French National Teacher’s Institute (L’Institut Universitaire de Formation des Maîtres, Paris), she spent six years teaching preschool in Paris. Emmanuelle then moved to NYC and continued her career as a French school teacher at the Lyceum Kennedy and at Le Jardin A L’Ouest on the Upper West Side.
Emmanuelle has a passion for music and loves to sing and share her passion with the class.
Aurélie Boquet, co-founder
Aurélie was born in Creil, France and holds a Master 1 FLE (French as a Second Language) from the Stendhal University in Grenoble. She worked as a French school teacher in Westchester, NY and for L'Alliance Française in Florida before joining the team at Le Jardin A L'Ouest on the Upper West Side.
Aurélie is passionate about languages and Latin America and also speaks fluent Spanish.