Our dedicated and experienced staff are committed to the growth and development of children, families, and Montessori. We hold ourselves to the highest professional standard. We are the teachers, administrators, and scientists of Violeta Montessori School.
Nuestro dedicado y experimentado personal está comprometido con el crecimiento y desarrollo de niños, familias y Montessori. Nos mantenemos al más alto nivel profesional. Somos los maestros, administradores y científicos de la Escuela Violeta Montessori.
"We must help the child to act for himself, will for himself, think for himself, this is the art of those who aspire to serve the spirit."
- Dr. Montessori
Our Staff
Mardie Hinkley
Mardie is an accomplished Montessori educator with over 20 years of daily, hands-on learning with children ages 2.9-6 years. She is the English speaking Head of School. Mardie first discovered Montessori while volunteering on the Oglala Lakota Native American Reservation in South Dakota and came to recognize the potential Montessori holds for effective desegregregation and for closing the achievement gap. She gained her Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) Primary diploma from the Montessori Education Training Center of Arizona (now the Southwest Institute for Montessori Studies). She holds a B.A. in History, a M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction, and is currently working towards her Post Master’s Certificate in Early Education Research, Policy and Practice at the University of Massachusetts Boston. She is EEC Director 2 and Lead Teacher Certified. Mardie’s passion is working directly with children and their families, and her investment in individualized learning forms lasting bonds, giving each child the confidence and tools necessary for lifelong learning. She is also a lecturer, trainer, and mentor of new AMI teachers and volunteers with a variety of local charities focused on children, improving parks and serving the homeless.
Astrid Steverlynck
Astrid is a native of Argentina. She is the Spanish speaking guide and Head of School. Astrid has been involved with Montessori education since her children, now in college, entered a Montessori classroom. She helped create the first AMI associated Montessori training center in Buenos Aires (Fundación Argentina Maria Montessori-FAMM). She holds an AMI Primary diploma from the Montessori Institute of San Diego, a BA in Engineering from the Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires, a MSt. and PhD in Social Anthropology from the University of Oxford. Astrid lives in Cambridge with her husband and three of her four children. She loves exploring nature, skiing, and playing the guitar with the children.