New Team Members, Internships & Partnerships

Welcome to the Team!

Olivia Benson, Central Kitchen & Food Coordinator "Hello! My name is Olivia Benson and I am the Central Kitchen & Food Coordinator for Cultivate Mankato. Graduated culinary school at South Central College and in the culinary field for some years now as a pastry chef, baker and cook. I am a wife and new mother of one little boy. I enjoy gardening, biking, hiking and spending time with my family. I am very excited to become part of the Cultivate Team. This is a wonderful opportunity to help with building a healthy community by providing nutritional meals for your children. "

Stephan Stangler, General Property Manager "I was born in Japan but was raised in Höhfröschen, Germany until 5th grade. After moving to America I spent the rest of my childhood in Bellevue, Nebraska. I was lucky enough to have grandparents who have a farm in Cleveland, Minnesota and I spent many summers visiting them and spending time with my large family. I eventually made the move to Minnesota in 2014 to work at Unimin and am so glad I did. In my time away from work I am a landlord and enjoy exploring parks with my girlfriend and Great Dane, cooking, hunting for fossils and agates, and traveling. I believe that having quality early childhood education is pivotal in developing a foundation of learning for years to come while also nurturing creativity, and forming values essential for children to become contributing members of society. "

Megan Diedrich, Human Resource Coordinator Hello! My name is Megan and I am from Eagle Lake, where I live with my husband and 1.5 year old son, Silas. I am originally from Medford. I graduated in 2017 from Luther College in beautiful Decorah, Iowa with a degree in English. My passions have led me down many different trails, including working with Kindergarten through third grade building reading literacy skills, to a lead teacher in a toddler classroom, to being a paralegal. I have always had a passion for sharing knowledge with others and I began to pursue a teaching license at Minnesota State University Mankato before taking a break. After having my son, my vision has focused on building a better world for him and all children. I realized I especially enjoyed digging into the fascinating amount of growth achieved by children in their first five years of life. I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to join a team here at Cultivate Mankato that shares my vision and values! I cannot wait to help serve your family! In my free time, you can find me reading books on true crime, crocheting little hats, getting my hands dirty outside, or playing strategic board games.

New Internships & Partnerships!

Kaity Dabney, CADA Internship Cultivate Mankato is now a qualified field experience for Social Work and we are starting our very first project between CADA and Cultivate. The project is being designed and implemented by Kaity Dabney, a Cultivate Mankato toddler assistant teacher since September 2019! More information coming soon!

Claire Rasche, Recruiting and Onboarding Ambassador "Hello, my name is Claire Rasche! I grew up on a farm in Heron Lake, a small town in southwest Minnesota. I am currently a senior at MSU majoring in Human Resources. I have worked as a support staff and assistant teacher in the toddler classrooms for over a year and am now beginning a new journey at Cultivate as the Recruiting and Onboarding Ambassador! I have such a love for all the children in our care and have loved working with each and everyone one of them. I am so excited to start being able to help find others to work at Cultivate who have the same passion that I do!"

Sam Olsen, owner of Persist Therapy We are excited to announce a new community partnership with San Olsen from Persist Therapy. Sam Olsen specializes in occupational therapy for kids, family and sibling services and parent coaching. Sam already works with a some Cultivate families and is very familiar with the Cultivate community. She will also be contributing to our newsletter in the near future. More information to come!