AMI Recognition | Association Montessori International USA

AMI/USA Staff

Lynne Breitenstein-Aliberti

Director of School and Member Operations

Madison Courtney

Director of Communications

Soraya Lallani

Pedagogical Director of Consultation and Coaching

Chitra Subramanian

Deputy Director

Kazi Chad Dennis

Office and Bookstore Manager

Ayize Sabater

Innovation and Development Specialist

Dr. KaLinda Bass-Barlow

Interim Executive Director

Lynne Breitenstein-Aliberti

Lynne Breitenstein-Aliberti serves as AMI/USA’s Director of School and Member Operations guiding the AMI Recognition Program and supporting our Membership. In this role, Lynne works with parents, administrators, teachers, trainers, trainees, and consultants, in addition to the wider educational community. With over 25 years of experience within the Montessori community, she has experienced the power that Montessori education has to create a more peaceful world.

Lynne is committed to educational and outreach activities for advancing equity and access, and to collaboration, personal growth, and positive thinking. Previous roles were with North American Montessori Teachers Association, Ohio Montessori Alliance, and Ruffing Montessori. Lynne achieved the AMI Primary Diploma from Ohio Montessori Training Institute and a Master of Education degree from Loyola College of Baltimore.

lynne@amiusa.org

Madison Courtney

Madison Courtney is the Director of Communications at AMI/USA. With a bachelor’s degree in psychology with a specialization in child development from Georgetown College, Madison’s academic foundation paved the way for her role as a Montessori educator, a role that fostered her genuine connection with students and their learning processes. Transitioning to the realm of communications and marketing, she has spent the last four years refining her skills in effectively conveying messages to a variety of audiences.

Madison’s passion for Montessori education is evident not only in her professional pursuits but also in her unwavering commitment to advocating for children with disabilities. This dedication stems from a genuine belief in the transformative power of education tailored to individual needs. She is a founding member of the Lexington Elevating Abilities Foundation, which provides assistance for children with disabilities. When not working, you can find Madison hiking, in a yoga class, or reading in a hammock.

madison@amiusa.org

Soraya Lallani

Soraya Lallani serves as Pedagogical Director of Consultation and Coaching for AMI/USA. In addition to providing pedagogical expertise, Soraya is responsible for overseeing the Recognition Program, the Coaching/Mentoring program, and will help guide AMI/USA with the forthcoming Global School Accreditation Program.

Soraya’s passion in facilitating societal change stems from an ardent belief that through Montessori education, children can create lasting and effective transformation in society. They are our change makers.

She holds both AMI Primary and Elementary Diplomas and a master’s degree in education from Loyola University in Baltimore. Her 12 year experience in both primary and elementary classrooms was the catalyst for becoming a founding member, lead guide and director of a Montessori Childcare Center in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Soraya’s dedication to Montessori education continued in her work with the Arthur Waser Foundation. It was here that she spearheaded and oversaw innovative Montessori projects in East Africa. Witnessing the transformative power of Montessori education in these remote communities catapulted her into the AMI Training of Trainer’s Program where she achieved Auxiliary Trainer status. As a consultant and trainer, Soraya has delivered refresher orientation, refresher courses, and numerous workshops to numerous educational institutions before joining AMI/USA.

sorayapdcc@amiusa.org

Chitra Subramanian

Chitra Subramanian is an Indian American dancer, choreographer, educator, and nonprofit leader residing in Washington, DC. A Pittsburgh native and originally from South India, Chitra teaches, choreographs, and performs with a collective of artists called chitra.MOVES. Anchored by years of education work with young people and their families, Chitra explores themes centered on relationships, community, and institutions that have transformed her as a person. Chitra’s youth work involved serving as Deputy Director and Executive Director at M.O.M.I.E’s, as well as working as the Human Resources Manager at a local public Montessori school in DC. Chitra has two young daughters who have attended a Montessori school for many years and is excited about her journey to support AMI/USA.

depdir.chitra@amiusa.org

Kazi Chad Dennis

Kazi Chad Dennis is the Office and Bookstore Manager at AMI/USA. Kazi holds a bachelor’s degree in African-American Studies from Howard University. Kazi is passionate about history and social justice issues. Kazi wants AMI/USA staff, membership and the greater Montessori community to know that his job is to support them with information and books. He has been in this role since February 2022. He has been supporting the AMI/USA bookstore since December 2020.

bookkeeper@amiusa.org

Ayize Sabater

Ayize Sabater is a dynamic entrepreneur, educational researcher, author and thirty year educational visionary. He earned his doctorate at Morgan State University in 2018. Dr. Ayize has co-founded several organizations, including a Montessori Public Charter school in D.C. He received a 2021 Montessori Core Principle and a 2012 Orientation (formerly know as Assistant) certificate and is an honors graduate of Morehouse and Wesley. Ayize has been repeatedly featured as a Keynote speaker, has conducted presentations internationally and was a 2010 educational excellence award recipient, presented by First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House. Some of his published research articles are on family engagement, culturally relevant pedagogy, and Montessori education especially for Black folx. Dr. Ayize has been widely featured on TV, radio, in the NY Times, People & Emerge Magazines, and Back Enterprise. Ayize co-founded the Black Montessori Educational Fund and was appointed the 1st Black Executive Director of AMI/USA in November 2020.

ayize@amiusa.org

Dr. KaLinda Bass-Barlow

Dr. KaLinda Bass-Barlow joined the AMI/USA board July 1, 2018. She holds the position of Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Professional Development in the Kansas City Public Schools District (KCPS) in Kansas City, MO. Additionally, she is the visionary behind the establishment of KaLinda’s Collaborative Montessori Consulting (KCMC). Dr. Bass-Barlow has earned a Doctorate in Educational Leadership; her dissertation focus was on the experiences of educators of Color during Montessori training. She also holds an AMI Primary Diploma, AMI Montessori Core Principles Certificate, M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education (Montessori Concentration), M.Ed. in Educational Leadership (K-12), and a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies.

In 2016, her career shifted from a conventional educational school leader to a Montessori school leader when she began serving as the proud principal of Harold Holliday Montessori (HHMS) – a KCPS Signature School. After working with her team to transform HHMS, she was recruited to duplicate and exceed her Holliday blueprint at Border Star Montessori and to partner with Lawrence Public Schools to guide their work in opening the first public Montessori school in the State of Kansas. Dr. Bass-Barlow has achieved remarkable success as a Montessori leader and passionate advocate for children; she understands the urgency of learning for children and does not compromise at their expense. In her tenure as the leader of HHMS and BSM, she worked relentlessly with stakeholders to transform Montessori practice. She and her team worked with the mindset of Good, Better, Best to offer the children they’re privileged to serve rich Montessori experiences. KaLinda appreciates serving in the public sector and considers it an honor to be part of the public sector Montessori movement.

kalinda@amiusa.org

AMI/USA Consultants

Sheri Bishop

Human Rights & Social Justice Advisor

Sheri Bishop

Sheri received her AMI Elementary diploma in 2014 from the Montessori Institute of Atlanta, her M.Ed. from Loyola University of Baltimore in 2015, and her AMI Primary Diploma from the Montessori Institute of North Texas in 2022. After eight years of classroom experience, she founded Catalyze Consulting, LLC. She currently assumes her role at AMI/USA as the Human Rights and Social Justice Advisor, offers support to the Montessori Institute of North Texas as their Diversity and Equity Consultant, and occasionally enjoys the opportunity to reconnect with children as a Montessori classroom substitute.

hrsjsheri@amiusa.org

AMI/USA Board of Directors

Virginia Wannamaker Brooks

Kelly Jarrell

Allison Jones

Kimberly Palacios-Rolston

Michelle Becka

HRSJ Co-Facilitator

Alva Waller Dial

Secretary

Jacqui Miller

HRSJ Co-Facilitator

Virginia Wannamaker Brooks

Virginia holds a Master’s in Education with focus on Montessori from Loyola University in Baltimore, Maryland and a Bachelor’s Degree in History from Marquette University, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is AMI-trained at all three levels, having earned the Assistants to Infancy Diploma from The Montessori Institute in Denver, Colorado, the Primary Diploma from the Montessori Institute of Milwaukee in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the Elementary Diploma from the Montessori Institute of Milwaukee in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Virginia has been an Elementary guide in AMI Montessori schools in South Carolina, Colorado, Virginia and Texas. She is a member of the Board of Directors of MACTE.

Kelly Jarrell

Kelly Jarrell brings a wide range of experiences in Montessori education and working with people. She holds a BA in psychology, a Masters in Social Work (MSW), a NAMC diploma in Primary Montessori Education, and an AMI diploma in Elementary. People are her passion. She first came to Montessori as a child, experiencing two years in Children’s House. Fast forward to motherhood, she was the founding director of a Montessori-based preschool program in the Central Texas hill country, Rio Blanco Montessori. She later became the founding administrator of a new elementary program for a long-standing primary Montessori school in the surrounding Austin area, Cedars Montessori School. At that time, she decided to get her diploma as an AMI Elementary Guide. In 2008, she joined Austin Montessori School. She has served in multiple roles, including assistant, upper and early elementary guide, enrichment programs developer, and campus coordinator. She currently serves as the founding Movement and Sports Coordinator. She has completed the AMI Montessori Sports course and now serves on the International Team of Coordinators for AMI Montessori Sports.

Kelly has served on the AMI/USA Human Rights and Social Justice (HRSJ) Advisory Council since 2021. She is committed to the Work of Equity, Belonging, Anti-bias and Anti-racist Education, and Social Justice. As a white woman, mother, educator, program developer, social worker, and people lover, she fully embraces the never-ending work required to amplify these principles and values that determine the well-being of all human beings. These concepts are embedded in AMI/USA’s strategic plan, and she is ready to apply her skillset of a systems perspective and strategize how best to move from concept to action in AMI/USA’s commitment to Peace Education through its strategic plan.

Allison Jones

Allison is a primary and elementary trained Montessorian with over 20 years of experience, including teaching, coaching, special education, school administration, bilingual Montessori, and DEI in public, charter, and international school settings. She holds an M.Ed. from Loyola University. Her passion is ensuring that Montessori is implemented in a way that serves all children and is rooted in each child’s identity and community. When she is not working with teachers, she likes to read, travel, dance, swim, and write.

Kimberly Palacios-Rolston

My name is Kimberly Palacios-Rolston, I recently joined AMI/USA as one of the Board of Directors. My teaching career began at the Rosarian Academy in 2001, where I spent 14 years there mastering the Montessori model – a child-centered educational approach that values the human spirit in the development of the child’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive abilities. I received an Associates Degree in Early Childhood Education with a Montessori track, an Associate Early Childhood Credential from the American Montessori Society and an International Montessori Teaching Diploma. Aside from Montessori training, I am currently pursuing my Ph.D. in Philosophy of Education from Liberty University. I graduate December 2024. I have a masters degree in Educational Leadership from Southeastern University and a bachelors degree from Grace Christian University in Leadership and Ministry.

Outside of school, my husband and I work closely with a non-profit organization that provide needs and smiles for each child. For more than 25 years, Little Smiles has served children in difficult circumstances throughout South Florida. As an advocate to helping children in need, I sat on the City of West Palm Beach’s Educational Advisory Board. For 5 years, I have served as an advocate for young children who come from a life of substance abuse, poverty and trauma. I also served on the Board for Back to Basics – a non-profit that provides a one-on-one educational experience conducive to each individual’s learning style, regardless of age. The mission is to inspire personal growth, build self-esteem and support learning goals. Lastly, I recently took on the position as an Ambassador for Take Stock in Children-a non-profit organization in Florida that provides a unique opportunity for deserving, low-income youth to escape the cycle of poverty through education. In 2015, I left the day-to-day teaching to build a daycare and school for pregnant and postpartum women who battle with substance abuse at Gratitude House as their Director of Childcare. Upon completion of my mission, I moved to the Drug Abuse Foundation in Delray Beach where I continued my work advocating for children born into substance abuse.

I am thrilled to return to my first love, the classroom, and share my passion and enthusiasm for learning at Turtle River Montessori. My most recent accomplishments: 2024 The President’s Lifetime Achievement Award, 2024 Palm Beach Chamber of Commerce Woman of the Year Nominee and 2021 Teacher of the Year in Palm Beach County.

Michelle Becka

Michelle Becka received her Primary Montessori Diploma from Montessori Northwest in 1997, and her MEd from Loyola University in the same year. After working with young children for 17 years in a classroom in beautiful Portland, Oregon, she entered the AMI Training of Trainers Programme. She achieved full Trainer status in 2017.

Michelle currently works as a Teacher Education Designer and Instructor at Bezos Academy. She very much enjoys working with the adult learners and creating opportunities for them to grow and develop on their Montessori journeys. She is especially committed to continuing to learn and expand her own personal understanding of what it means to be an anti-bias and anti-racist educator. As an Instructor, Michelle is dedicated to ensuring that conversations about bias, racism, identity and intersectionality are a continual part of the courses that she designs and offers. She hopes that the adult learners leave with a strong understanding of how to create a culturally inclusive environment for all children and families in their communities.

board.mbecka@amiusa.org

Alva Waller Dial

Alva Waller Dial is Chief Executive Officer of Legal Resolutions Inc. (LRI), specializing in mediation and alternative dispute resolution. Alva spent over 20 years as a lawyer in the public sector, working as a trial attorney and later as staff and managing attorney for the Office of the Monitor for Pigford v. Vilsack (D.D.C.), a class action lawsuit involving more than 22,000 African American farmers suing the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) alleging race discrimination. Currently she serves as Deputy Ombudsman for the In re Black Farmers discrimination lawsuit against USDA.

Working with claimants, class counsel, advocacy groups and other stakeholders, Alva has gained extensive experience overseeing and coordinating the implementation of consent decrees and compliance measures. In her role as Deputy Ombudsman, Alva serves as a mediator for litigants and makes recommendations to the court on issues related to the implementation of the settlement agreement.

Prior to her work on Pigford v. Vilsack and In re Black Farmers, Alva served as a public defender for the First Judicial District of Minnesota, where she handled a variety of adult criminal matters through trial and represented court–involved youth in delinquency proceedings. She also served as guardian ad litem in child protection matters where she was first appointed to oversee a family court custody case.

board.awaller@amiusa.org

Jacqui Miller

Jacqui Miller completed her AMI Elementary training in the early ‘90s and now approaches the work through her intersectionality as a Montessorian of Color, a public sector practitioner, a social justice advocate, and a champion of adolescents. After working with elementary children for four years, Jacqui was an adolescent guide for the next 16 years. She became a leading developer of the Adolescent Program at Arbor Montessori School and contributed to the NAMTA/AMI Orientation to Adolescent Studies for 10 years as a presenter and design coach. For the past 7 years, Jacqui has engaged in the work of adapting Montessori for transformative urban education. She currently serves the Cleveland Metropolitan School District in a new position as the Director of Montessori Programming and Operations, and previously was the Founding Principal of Stonebrook Montessori, a public charter school.

Jacqui sees herself as an educational architect, envisioning Montessori beyond its current reality and designing systemic change toward a vision. She experiences her dedication to the legacy of Maria Montessori as a responsibility to propel Montessori pedagogy toward its potential of truly serving all children. Jacqui joins the AMI/USA board embracing the opportunity to support the staff in a time of organizational change and advance the work of AMI in ways that are responsive to the US context.

board.jmiller@amiusa.org