History of Peaceful Pathways Montessori
Our School's History
Peaceful Pathways Montessori, Inc. was founded in August 2004 by Shawna and Brian Watkins. The Christian Montessori preschool and kindergarten was the beginning of Shawna’s larger dream of a preschool – elementary academy through grade 8. The school is owned and operated by Shawna and Brian Watkins and became a reality due in large part to the generosity of friends and family who financially supported the start up costs.
The school began as one classroom for 3-6 year olds and opened it's doors in February 2006 with just a few children. The following year a class of 24 children met in our single classroom. In the fall of 2007 P.P.M.A. added an additional primary class by renting a store front location at the corner of Route 126 and Route 47 in Yorkville as well as a small elementary classroom of 9 students. By Fall 2008 three full classrooms were offered between the two locations serving 71 children.
In May 2009 a new building large enough to hold five classrooms was constructed and opened for the Fall 2009 school year. A new toddler classroom offering a morning class and a parent-child class were added to our program offering during Fall 2009. Another renovation took place during the summer of 2011 which more than doubled the elementary classroom space and added an adolescent classroom that serves students ages 12-15. In January 2016 a new building was completed and now houses our elementary classrooms.
During 2015 - 2017 Peaceful Pathways Montessori began an intensive self-study involving the school’s entire community - students, staff, faculty, administration, board members and parents. This self-study was the first step in attaining full accreditation by the American Montessori Society.
During the accreditation process every aspect of the school was examined and documented including governance, curriculum, fiscal and personnel policies, facilities, health and safety practices, teacher preparation, and learner outcomes.
At the end of the self-study period in October 2016, a thorough onsite peer visit was conducted. In addition to determining whether the school mets AMS standards, the review team evaluated the school to see how well we are achieving our mission and goals and that what we say is what we do.
In March 2017 we were granted our full accreditation from the American Montessori Society.
Peaceful Pathways Montessori is a Christian Montessori school that is located on 6.5 acres along State Route 71 between the towns of Yorkville and Oswego. The school currently houses our toddler, primary , and elementary communities.
