Kathe Petchel has worked in early childhood education since 1980.

A graduate of Penn State University, Kathe earned her B.S. in Elementary Education with an early childhood emphasis. She began her education career working as a public school teacher before opening her own preschool center in Virginia in 1984. She now owns three sites serving more than 300 families in Charlottesville.

In 2017, Kathe joined the team at HINGE Advisors as a staffing and operations consultant to support selling clients in the early and late stages of their transaction process. Now in her Business Development role, Kathe focuses on building relationships with potential sellers and working alongside our financial analyst as a liaison to provide support as sellers seek the value of their company.

Kathe is the content queen at HINGE—presenting on a range of childcare topics from best hiring and onboarding practices to financial strategies for growth. She has spoken at state, national and international conferences and is involved with a number of associations including PACCA, VCCA, GCCA, CQEL, McCormick Institute, AELL, and the World Forum on Early Care and Education.