Dr. LaVonne Plambeck opened the first of the Montessori Educational Centers in 1968 following formal teacher training in Chicago under the direction of the finest European Montessori instructors. She was inspired by the success stories that she had heard, about a philosophy of education that put much of the responsibility and freedom for learning within the childs control.Soon after she opened her first school, she launched the Mid-America Montessori Teacher Training Institute to provide professionals with the training and certification necessary to guide this philosophy of education.For more than 40 years, Dr. Plambeck and the Montessori Educational Centers, Inc. have remained on the cutting edge of education, earning acclaim and respect all over the world. Dr. Plambeck is a fierce advocate for early childhood education, and has served on numerous committees at local, state and national levels to help shape educational policy. With a network of seven locations including Kopecky Elementary School for grades 1-6, as well as the Mid-America Montessori Teacher Training Institute, Montessori Educational Centers, Inc. is one of an elite group of Montessori programs affiliated with the American Montessori Society, the foremost advocate for quality Montessori education in the nation.