US Montessori Organizations

Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education (MACTE)
Gretchen Warner, PH. D.
University of Wisconsin-Parkside
Tallent Hall, Room 236
900 Wood Road, Box 2000
Kenosha, WI 53141-2000
Toll Free Voice: 888 446-2283
Voice: 262 595-3335
Fax: 262 595-3332
Email: information@MACTE.org or warner@MACTE.org

The MACTE (Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education) Commission is an autonomous, international, nonprofit postsecondary accrediting agency for Montessori teacher education programs. The Commission accredits (1) independent postsecondary educational institutions which offer comprehensive, in-residence courses of Montessori teacher education; and (2) programs or departments offering such courses which are located within institutions already accredited by another recognized agency. A Montessori teacher education course is defined as postsecondary instruction designed to:

• Develop expertise in the educational system developed by Dr. Maria Montessori, including its philosophies, teacher roles, and design of curricula and environments;

• Assure basic knowledge of child development, including major theorists and contemporary research; and

• Lead to certification in Montessori teaching with a specified child age range within the period from birth to age 18.

MACTE was created in 1991 by the joining of two previous groups: the Accrediting Association for Montessori Teacher Education (AAMTE), an outgrowth of an ad hoc committee of Montessori educators founded in 1987; and the Accreditation Council for Childhood Education Specialist Schools (ACCESS), which accredited Montessori teacher courses from 1982. It is of great significance that the MACTE Essential Standards and Criteria, which must be implemented in order for an institution or program to achieve accreditation, were written through consensus by representatives of all the major professional societies and many programs offered by independent institutes.

The Montessori Institute of America was officially founded in 1971 under the direction of Helen K. Billings, Ph.D. Following her training in 1960 in Italy, Dr. Billings developed a course of teacher preparation in Kansas City, Missouri. That original course has served as a model for all MIA training programs. The purpose for which the Montessori Institute of America is formed is:

1. Fostering and encouraging the Montessori philosophy and method of education throughout the world, with particular emphasis on the trainging and certifying of Montessori classroom directors.
   
2. Establishing,granting certifications, organizing, and overseeing schools which employ the Montessori method of education.
   
3. Promoting the rights of all children everywhere to develop themselves, with guidance, through Montessori principles, according to their highest capabilities.
   
4. Providing a measure of quality control through the MIA standards; a feeling of unity, protection, and cooperation; a sharing of talents and experiences and continued professional growth for its members.