Montessori public in Comerío

The Montessori Public project arrives in the town of Comerío in 2016 as a result of the interest of a group of teachers to improve the quality of education for their students and provide better learning alternatives for them.  

The Juan Agosto Alicea Foundation, and Don Juan, its founder, join this dream and support it in its development. The Foundation has a deep commitment to its town of Comerío and its progress, which is why they promote and give priority to educational projects that contribute to the training of its citizens.

The Juan Agosto Alicea Foundation, interested in bringing the Montessori Public project to its town, supports the guides in their training, and raises funds for the purchase and assembly of materials and equipment. From the first moment, he closed ranks with Comerío's teachers and they joined the dream. 

The directors of the public schools Inés María Mendoza, elementary, Luis Muñoz Marín, intermediate, and Juana Colón, superior welcomed the proposal made by a group of teachers and began dialogues with their school communities. 

Having all three schools working Montessori would give the town of Comerío access to the Montessori program from Andarines to Fourth Year.   

The mayor of Comerío, Josean Santiago Rivera, joined this group of schools and gave them consistent support. Having the Montessori model, a project of academic excellence and a culture of peace, was in harmony with his vision as mayor, of transforming his town into a more peaceful and prosperous place. 

Professor Maria Melendez, then a science teacher at the Juana Colón school, recalls that the proposal came at a time when the youth of Comerío were facing various crises. Montessori brought a high-barred human alternative that would help them. 

In addition to the academic program, Montessori brought the community building component that would help to reach peace and unity of purpose.

By 2016, the school was facing, like many others in Puerto Rico, a high dropout rate, drugs inside the school, continuous fights between students, low enrollment, and a large number of teachers who had been redundant. The departure of these teachers worsened the situation with the increase in students per classroom. 

For María, the Montessori project was synonymous with stability, for them as teachers, for their students and their community. Montessori brought a pedagogy that was born from love and deep faith in each of her students, a pedagogy that connected with their nature and their stage of development and would serve them well. Each and every young person could be successful and successful. 

Currently the three Public Montessori schools in Comerío serve around 600 students from the first year of age to the fourth year of high school. Significant results are already being seen in student retention and the battle against “dropouts”. 

''As we added elements of philosophy to our practice, we saw the changes,'' said María, who is now principal of the Luis Muñoz Marín Montessori Middle School. 

At the moment there are 15 Montessori environments, 15 certified guides and teachers from the three schools in the process of certification with the New School Institute. 

We want to continue sharing with you the transformation of these schools. Stay tuned to our social networks so you can get to know the faces and their experiences with the Montessori Public project.