From the Associations

'Montessori Initiative' Taking Shape

A magazine and a school referral program are poised to begin in early 2006 according to the organizer of The Montessori Initiative, a multi-facet public outreach program started by the American Montessori Society (AMS) but open to other Montessori schools.

"One important goal," according to Michael Jacobson, who is heading up the initiative, is "reaching a large community of parents and letting them know that Montessori is an academic philosophy that works; that it is well-recognized and well-accepted."

School Referral Program

The school referral program, slated to begin in January, will, according to Jacobson, put information on Montessori schools on more than five thousand corporate intranets-in front of approximately 18 million corporate employees and spouses.

Schools appear on the list by registering with the Montessori Initiative and, for independent schools, agreeing to pay fees based on the tuition of students referred through the program. A school does not have to be a member of AMS to participate.

"One goal of the Montessori Initiative," Jacobson said, "is to help participating schools reduce their marketing and branding costs over the next two years. Through this and a support program that we will announce in January, we can help educate the greater parent community, build a sense of pride within the existing Montessori parent community by giving them the tools to explain Montessori to their friends and interest a parent in Montessori enough to make an appointment to attend an open house or interview."

Jacobson said the Initiative hopes to collaborate with AMI, the Montessori Foundation and some state organizations.

Magazine

M, the Magazine for Montessori Families , is expected to debut in early 2006 with distribution through schools that are members of the initiative.

Jacobson described the magazine as "newsstand-quality and written in language that parents can understand ..We are 'demystifying' the jargon of Montessori."

Jacobson announced a management team that includes:

Publisher Philip Berwish, an attorney who has served as president of the board of The Photo Review, and been guest lecturer on law and ethics.

Editor-in-Chief John Brady, a professor of Journalism at Ohio State University, the founding editor of The Artists Magazine and Writer's Digest with a client list that includes high-profile alumni publications (Harvard, MIT and Boston College), association publications (American Medical Association) and newsstand publications (Redbook).

Creative Director Greg Paul is a principal in the magazine consulting firm of Brady & Paul who has designed some 300 publications.

Montessori Content Editors Judith Cunningham, Head of Toronto Montessori Schools and Toronto Montessori Institute; David Kahn of the North American Montessori Teachers Association; and Catherine McTamaney, author of The Tao of Montessori.

The premier issue, he said, will include:

. The first of a six-part series by Dr. Angeline Lillard, author of Montessori: the Science Behind the Genius, on the research that supports the Montessori philosophy.

. The first of a six-part series on the Montessori Peace Philosophy by Todd Larson and Heidi Larson, of the Xavier College Lab School.

. An article by Alice Waters of Chez Panisse and Craig Keilberger on a food and nutritional program for schools.

. A column by Rozanne Gold, a James Beard award winner.

. An article by David Kahn on the meaning and value of Montessori's Erdkinder program.

Task Force to Study
Credential Acceptance

Responding to questions about the value of Montessori teaching credentials in the public sector, the Montessori community's teacher-education-program accrediting body has announced the creation of a task force.

In recent months public Montessori teachers have struggled to gain respect for their credentials. In some cases, because a Montessori credential is not accepted as proof of high-quality preparation, teachers were required to extensively document their work to achieve Highly Qualified Teacher (HQT) status required under federal No Child Left Behind legislation.

Elsewhere, during times of district-wide teaching staff reductions, Montessori-credentialed teachers have been laid off from Montessori programs, only to be replaced by teachers with no Montessori preparation but greater seniority.

According to Gretchen Warner, executive director of the Montessori Accreditation Council on Teacher Education (MACTE) Commission, that organization established a task force at its November meeting in Orlando.

"We feel that MACTE and IAME are the appropriate organizations to address the HQT challenge," she wrote in an e-mail. Each of the 50 states has a different certification age range and requirements for certification in a subject discipline." She said she is collecting data on the status of recognition in the states, beginning with the states in which accredited institutions and programs are located. "The goal is to use states in which substantial progress has been made as examples for states considering recognition."

Representatives from MACTE, the International Association for Montessori Education, and other Montessori organizations are expected to serve on the task force to draft a position paper to be presented at the MACTE meetings May 6-8, Warner said. Barb Jens and Adele Fondo will represent MACTE on the task force.

Individuals who want to volunteer their time and expertise are welcome to join; please contact Dr. Warner at war...@macte.org.

Fermoyle Elected IAME President

Carolyn Fermoyle has been elected president of the International Association of Montessori Education.

She was formally elected Nov. 12 after Michael Dorer, citing increasing demands on his time, resigned from the position. Dorer will become president of the American Montessori Society in March and is working on completing a doctoral program.

Fermoyle works in extension programs at Indiana University-South Bend and had served as secretary-treasurer of IAME. Pam Chrisman remains as vice-president and Aleta Ledendecker of Montessori Educators International, Inc. in Louisville, TN, will fill the position of secretary-treasurer.

IAME describes itself as "an autonomous membership organization composed of Montessori teacher education institutions/programs as well as teacher education organizations, consortia and independent programs." IAME is an educational and outreach organization which promotes Montessori teacher education on an international level and provides support to practitioners in the field.