Press release from Fort Wayne Community Schools:
Bunche to be re-accredited by Montessori society
(December 10, 2010) – Bunche Montessori Early Childhood Center learned this week that it will receive re-accreditation by the American Montessori Society. Bunche is the only public Montessori school in the country accredited by AMS.
“Being the only public school accredited by the American Montessori Society means we serve as a national model of how to blend the Montessori philosophy with the need to meet state and federal education standards,” said Bunche Principal Marilyn Horan.
Bunche became a Montessori magnet school in 1991 serving students in pre-k through fifth grade. It was first accredited by AMS in 2003. In 2006, Towles Montessori Intermediate School opened as a first- through eighth-grade school, and Bunche became an early childhood center expanding the number of pre-k and kindergarten students enrolled in Fort Wayne Community Schools’ Montessori program.
Today, both schools have waiting lists at every grade level.
“Being accredited by AMS gives us credibility among parents who are seeking a Montessori education for their children,” Horan said. “Having that designation confirms that we have a staff professionally trained in the Montessori method who adhere to the Montessori way of teaching.”
As a Montessori school, the curriculum follows the methods developed by Maria Montessori, who believed children must cultivate their own natural desire to learn to become truly educated individuals who are motivated from within by a natural curiosity and love for knowledge. Classrooms are multi-age and look different than traditional classrooms. Materials are at the child’s level and offer a hands-on experience. Students are shown lessons and then work at their own pace.
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