About Us

Mike and Molli Piper

Co-Founder and Preschool Music Teacher, Mike Piper has spent a lifetime immersed in music and has trained in a variety of musical instruments, with a primary focus and passion for piano. With a degree in Early Childhood Education and Music, Mr. Mike worked for 17-years as a Music and Cultural Arts Instructor for the Chicago Parks District, expanding their programs across multiple parks and teaching music to large numbers of students in the community. Mr. Mike pushes to make a positive difference in the lives of his students by encouraging musical exploration through movement and delivers one-on-one private lessons as well as instructing our music staff.

Co-founder, Preschool Program Director and Lead Pre-K Teacher, Molli Piper follows the philosophy that Early Childhood teachers lay the foundation for a lifetime of learning. Molli holds a Type-04 Early Childhood Teaching Certificate and has over 15 years of experience teaching Preschool age children. The Early Childhood curriculum she has refined for her classroom promotes advanced reading, writing, math and language skill development in our youngest students. Her teaching strategy is to provide children with hands-on, engaging learning experiences, that are fun but also serve to challenge students to use their “higher order” thinking skills.

Will Piper

Will holds a MBA with a HR Management focus from Central Michigan, and a BS in organizational Leadership from ASU. Will has over 7 years experience teaching music privately, and has provided music lessons at Illumination Learning Studio since its opening in 2013. Will works to support all ILS staff as they create environments of learning that allow students the opportunity to explore and create in the different art forms. He strives to provide a structured environment of progression and creative exploration in hopes that he can instill understanding, passion and love for the cultural arts in the students at ILS.

Ky Osburn

“It’s okay to make mistakes, so long as we make a new one next time.” – Ezequiel Abadie

Lia Harper

Lia (She/Her) attended Seattle Pacific University and earned her BA in Theatre Education in 2024. She believes theatre provides students both with a space to express themselves and to discover the diversity of art and life safely and respectfully. Through her classes she hopes students will gain skills like collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and confidence both in and out of art.

Sophia Holland

Sophia has a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree from Indiana University. While studying at IU, she met and worked with creative open-minded people who taught her how important supporting the arts is. At ILS, she hopes to inspire confidence in her students’ artistic and creative abilities, in and out of the classroom.

“I want to show my students how freeing self-expression can be and help them fall in love with art the same way I did.”

Bridget Kirk

Bridget attended East Carolina University for her undergraduate studies, earning a BFA and teaching license in Dance Education, as well as a teaching license in Special Education. In summer of 2022, she obtained her MA in Dance with a concentration in education from Texas Woman’s University. With her background in Special Education, she has a true passion for cross-curricular integration – teaching writing, math, science, etc. through creative movement. Through her dance classes, she hopes to develop students’ motor skills, critical thinking skills, self-confidence, abilities to work in groups, and appreciation for what other people have to offer us through movement.

“The space in which I teach is a safe space where risks are rewarded, not for their success, rather for their bravery of their attempts.”

Syd Hernandez

Syd Hernandez graduated from Champlain College with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Media in Burlington, VT in 2021. Originally from New York, Syd now lives in downtown Seattle with a growing garden of indoor plants. They love comics, tea, and keeping the arts accessible and enjoyable for all ages!

Yi Lin Naumman

Yi Lin studied Computer Information Systems at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. Originally from Beijing China, Yin Lin currently lives in Ballard with her husband, two sons and dog Paulie. She is passionate about children and education, and strives to create a fun, supportive and safe environment for her students.

Jordan Taylor

Jordan grew up in North Carolina, but is excited to be back in Seattle for the second time!

She was previously an assistant at the ILS Locks Studio, and has since worked as a Youth Services Library Assistant, a first grade TA for the NC public schools, and most recently run an aftercare classroom at a private school.

When she’s not teaching, she’s probably working on her second novel or gardening with her corgi, Ein.