Opening and closing
By David Ayer
New public programs
Even as schools across the country have contended with teacher shortages and the challenges of emerging from the pandemic, at least ten new public Montessori programs opened this year:
Denver Public Schools (Denver, Colorado) added a new classroom of 15 three- and four-year-olds at College View Elementary in southwest Denver, in partnership with the Montessori Collective, covered on MontessoriPublic here: Montessori on the move in Denver.
Creekstone Montessori School, a new K-6 charter school in Red Wing, Minnesota, opened its doors in September, serving 114 children with waiting lists at all levels. The school offers a fee-based preK with some financial assistance available.
Tulsa Public Schools (Tulsa, Oklahoma) has added a third Montessori school at Eugene Field Elementary. The school opened with three- and four-year-olds and will expand through elementary at a grade per year.
Whitmore Lake Public Schools, in Whitmore Lake, Michigan took over a struggling private program, Go Like the Wind Montessori, and is incorporating the school into the district. The program is tuition-supported for three- and four-year-olds, and has plans to expand through fifth grade.
Canutillo Independent School District opened the first public Montessori program in the El Paso, Texas region at Gonzalo & Sofia Garcia Elementary School. The program opened with free, full-day, dual-language Montessori for students who will be three years old during the 2022-23 school year.
Hillsborough County Schools in Tampa, Florida, opened a Montessori magnet program in September, offering three classrooms for three-to-six year-olds at Montessori Academy at Essrig Elementary School. NCMPS worked closely with the district to support the launch.
Lawrence Public Schools in Lawrence, Kansas, has launched a new program at New York Elementary, starting with three classrooms of three- and four-year olds and expanding to Elementary in the fall.
Premont Independent School District in Premont, Texas, launched a kindergarten class at the Premont Montessori Academy, a new program which will grow to a K-5 model over the next few years.
The Riverseed School, the first campus of DC Wildflower Schools, a charter network in Washington, DC, opened its doors with three- and four-year olds, and plans to grow through 5th grade.
Lansing School District in Lansing, Michigan consolidated its two existing Montessori programs into a single PK-8 program at Wexford Montessori Academy.
Sadly, we’ve seen a few schools close this year as well:
The Lagunitas School District Montessori Program in San Geronimo, California, will be merged with an “Open Classroom” elementary program this fall. It’s not clear if the new program will be Montessori.
Penfield Montessori Academy, an innovative charter in Milwaukee, Wisconsin serving children with special needs and sponsored by the Penfield Children’s Center, a long-standing program for children with developmental delays, looks to be closing its doors after a series of funding shortfalls.
The National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector adds new schools to the Montessori Census, a national database of public and private Montessori schools. Schools can search for their listings, claim them, and update information if needed.
David worked in private Montessori for more than twenty years as a parent, three-to-six year-old and adolescent teacher, administrator, writer, speaker, and advocate. In 2016 he began working with the National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector. David lives in Portland, Oregon.