Remembering Pearl Vanderwall

Pearl Vanderwall, founder of the Montessori Training Center of St. Louis and a student of Dr. Maria Montessori in Sri Lanka, passed away earlier this month. A lifelong Montessorian, Ms. Vanderwall taught at several schools in the United States, including Countryside Montessori in Creve Coeur, Missouri, and Incarnate Word in St. Louis, before opening her own AMI school, Villa di Maria Montessori, in 1967. Mario Montessori invited Ms. Vanderwall to open an AMI training center in 1972. Ms. Vanderwall trained many notable Montessorians at the MTC of St. Louis, including the center’s current director of training, Dr. Annette Haines. Ms. Vanderwall’s legacy is strong, and she will be missed.