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Maria Montessori was born.
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Casa dei Bambini opened by Maria Montessori
The first Montessori environment was opened in San Lorenzo, Rome, Italy, by Dr Maria Montessori. -
Period: to
The Early 1900s
In the United States, The Montessori Education made a big impression. There were over 100 Montessori schools in the U.S by the end of 1913. As the Montessori Method gained popularity, however, it also inspired detractors. There were big movements calling Montessori method as outdated. As a result, by 1920, there were virtually no Montessori schools left in the U.S. -
Association Montessori International was founded
It was founded to provide teacher education and guidance to the many Montessori schools opening around the world. -
The 10th International Montessori Congress
New York Educator, Nancy McCormick Rambusch met Mario Montessori, Maria’s son and her successor as head of the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI). Mario urged Rambusch to take coursework in Montessori education and to bring the Montessori Method to the U.S. -
The Rambusch family moved to Greenwich, CT.
Rambusch and her family moved to Connecticut, where she met a small group of parents who were similarly dissatisfied by the education offered by local Catholic parochial schools and who were interested in establishing a Montessori school in the United States. -
Whitby School was founded
Nancy McCormick Rambusch was the head of school. Whitby School was opened in a carriage house just outside Greenwich, Connecticut. The school’s name was inspired a story from Whitby Abbey in Yorkshire, England where an Abbess invited a stable boy to join their education program after she recognized his musical talent. -
Appointed the representative of AMI
Rambusch was appointed the representative of AMI in the United States. She was tasked with forming Montessori schools in the United States, establishing an institution for training teachers in the Montessori method, and helping to establish a Montessori Society in the United States that would be affiliated with AMI. -
The American Montessori Society was founded
The American Montessori Society was founded by Nancy Rambusch. The goals of AMS mirrored those of AMI: to support efforts to create schools, develop teacher education programs, and publicize the value of Montessori education. -
The Saturday Evening Post
Time magazine and The Saturday Evening Post published articles on Whitby School. These stories helped foster national interest in Whitby and the Montessori method. -
Independence of AMS
AMI withdrew its recognition of AMS as a Montessori society, and from that point to the present AMS has existed independently of AMI. -
Long Letter from Mario Montessori
Mario Montessori looked back on the origins of the American Montessori movement. Despite their differences, he spoke of Rambusch with admiration as “[t]he young woman who, unknown in the educational field, alone, unqualified and unexperienced set herself to struggle against the might of organized prejudice in order to achieve the re-introduction of Montessori in America.” He credited her with the revival of the Montessori movement in the United States. -
MACTE
The Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education (MACTE), founded in 1995, is dedicated to improving academic degree and certificate programs for Montessori professional educators who teach and lead in schools at the Infant and Toddler through Secondary II levels and to assure the public of their quality. -
NCMPS (National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector)
NCMPS grows and sustains Montessori in the public sector with a focus on equity and access. More and better public Montessori schools will give children hit hardest by racism, poverty, and structural inequality access to this transformational model.
NCMPS was launched by the American Montessori Society (AMS) in 2012, and incorporated independently in 2015. -
MPPI (Montessori Public Policy Initiative)
AMI/USA and AMS formed MPPI in 2013 to be the unified voice in advocacy and a platform for coordination of public policy efforts. -
AMS Today
From its humble beginnings in New York City, AMS continues to support schools, teachers, and therefore students around the United States and internationally. They focus on: quality assurance, research, teacher education, and more. They also are becoming more and more involved with education policy in the public sector.