Sheila Brier

Sheila Brier, she was the founder of The Little Dolphin School pre-school and kindergarten in Queens, NY and two early childhood learning centers in Southern Maine, passed away Wednesday, March 8, 2023. She was 84.

Born in the Bronx, NY, Sheila was an early advocate for early childhood education and cultural diversity in the classroom. She graduated from Hunter College and began her teaching career in Spring Valley, NY, in a first-grade classroom. Later, she joined the Queens Y as a preschool teacher, where she found her calling educating young minds.

Sheila then went on to found the nonprofit Little Dolphin School in 1977. At a time when women did not often start their own business, Sheila created the school exactly as she wanted it to be – focused on children, music, art, movement and early literacy. She was a distinguished member of the Queens (NY) Council of Educators and an accreditor for the NAEYC, the national governing body for early education providers. Sheila loved working with the hundreds of children and their families who were first introduced to learning at The Little Dolphin School.

Sheila was an avid reader and enjoyed music, especially disco and doo-wop. She loved traveling with her husband Mike and friends and spending time with family was her greatest joy.

Sheila is loved and will be missed by her sister, Joan of Cincinnati; her husband of 63 years, Michael; her son Steven and his wife, Kim; her daughter Michelle and her husband, Tom; and her devoted grandchildren: Sami, Abby, Casey, Brooke and Merry.

Donations in Sheila’s memory can be at www.supportlittledolphin.org. Please indicate in the memo line, “Sheila Brier Scholarship Fund.”

Funeral services for Sheila Brier will be on Sunday, March 12 at 11am at

Mount Lebanon Cemetery Chapel

7800 Myrtle Ave, Ridgewood, Queens, NY