Mariana Uliță, AMI trainer, Children’s House level, President of Montessori Institute of Bucharest
Mariana studied Special Education at The Psychology and Educational Sciences Faculty at the University of Bucharest, followed by a Master’s Degree in Educational Management and Assessment.
The Montessori training course for 3-6 level at the Montessori Institute of San Diego, California (2004 – 2005) was for Mariana a wonderful discovery of the child and of her own self and a beautiful new beginning.
After two years of working with children in two US Montessori schools, she came back to Romania and became, in 2008, the Educational Director at The Montessori Kindergarten of Bucharest and founding member of the Montessori School of Bucharest in 2011.
After 8 years of working with children, Mariana started the trainer- in-training program. Since 2013 she has been leading the Montessori Institute of Bucharest, the only AMI affiliated training center in Romania. The work as a Director of Training for Primary Diploma Course at MIB is a great opportunity for Mariana to contribute to the development of the Montessori movement in Romania. One of her goals is to help the Romanian Montessori trained teachers keep their inner flame alive and remain in deep contact with the child. Mariana cooperates as a trainer with Montessori Institute of Prague and gives Assistants Courses in Romania, Portugal and Ukraine.
Mariana is one of the founding members of the Association for the Development of Montessori Education in Romania and of Montessori Institute of Bucharest, both AMI affiliated organizations in Romania. One of her dearest projects is to cooperate in Montessori social projects for disadvantaged children in Romania.
Diana Janitzek
Diana’s encounter with Montessori Institute of Bucharest represented an opportunity for development and for supporting something she believes in.
Mădălina Duțescu, translator
Mădălina graduated from the Foreign Languages Faculty of the Bucharst University where she studied English and German as majors. After graduation, Mădălina started working as a translator. The occasion to work as an interpreter occurred pretty soon. Today, 15 years after her first translation, Mădălina is mostly working as an interpreter. What fascinates her is the opportunity to come into contact with people from the most varied fields of activity.
In 2013 she began her collaboration with the Montessori Institute of Bucharest as interpreter of the training course for the 3-6 level. Mădălina is also a translator for the conferences and seminars organized by the Institute.
Her encounter with the Montessori pedagogy and principles was really meaningful. Mădălina obtained an AMI Assistants programme – Children’s House certificate and hopes to be granted, in the future, the AMI Montessori Diploma as well.
Miruna Paul, translator
Miruna graduated from the Foreign Languages Faculty, Bucharest University, majoring in French and English, but her experience as a translator started long before when, at 14, she became translator within a folklore festival organized in her natal town.
After graduation, beside various collaborations in the field of translations, Miruna worked in the media for a while, first for a research magazine in the field of chemistry, then for the news websites of two major TV stations from Romania, while being constantly preoccupied by education issues.
In 2013, she became interpreter and translator for the training courses, seminars and conferences organized by the Montessori Institute of Bucharest, starting with the AMI training course for the 3-6 level. This provided the occasion to go into more details about Montessori pedagogy and to enthusiastically discover a world having the child at its center, guided, not taught, towards the natural development, balance and a life based on self-confidence and optimism.
Madlena Ulrich, trainer AMI, Children’s House level
Madlena Ulrich is AMI trainer for the 3-6 Montessori course organized by MIB in Bucharest.
Madlena spent her childhood in Germany where she attended a Montessori elementary school. Her family moved to Norway when she was a teenager. She graduated from preschool university studies and is attending the Master Degree studies in Pedagogy at Vestfold University in Norway.
She first attended the AMI 3-6 training at the Mount St. Mary Montessori College from Dublin, Ireland. Since 1995 she has been working as a Montessori teacher, as she got involved in developing the Montessori education in Norway by holding conferences and from her role as Vice-President of the National Montessori Association Council of Norway, NMF.
In 2088 she began her training as a trainer, thus working for two years with Molly O’Shaughnessy in Minnesota and taking part in a summer course held by Ulla Wikefeldt in Sweden. Currently she’s part of the AMI teachers board in China and is holding courses in conferences in Norway as well as in other countries.
Marja-Leena Tyrväinen, trainer AMI, Children’s House level
Marja-Leena Tyrväinen is AMI trainer for the 3-6 Montessori Course organized by MIB in Bucharest.
Marja-Leena has over 30 years of experience of working with children. She graduated from the Helsinki Teachers College in 1979. After working as a preschool teacher in Finland for a few years, she moved to California where she attended the AMI 3-6 Course, obtaining her diploma in 1984. After working as a Montessori teacher, she spent three years of training to become Montessori trainer with Ulla Wikefeldt in Sweden. Her last year in the training of trainers was in Helsinki with Hildegard Solchbacher and Nikki Hughes and she graduated in 2001.
Marja-Leena has been working as a Montessori teacher since 1987, except for the years of her training for trainers. She has two daughters and is now living in Espoo, Finland, together with her husband and the youngest daughter.
Marja-Leena is licensed in Education and finished her Masters Degree at the Jyväskylä University. She is Director of Training for Montessori courses in Finland. She is also consultant to the Montessori Association from Finland, holding Montessori courses and conferences and is an authorized AMI examiner.
Sharlyn Smith, trainer AMI, Assistants to Infancy level, Children’s House level
AMI Assistants to Infancy Director of Training Sharlyn Smith, an international trainer, presenter and AMI examiner, lives in Juneau Alaska. She holds AMI diplomas at both the 0-3 and 3-6 levels and has more than 25 years of classroom experience as well as having been a Head of School. She earned B.A. degrees in Japanese Language and Literature and International Affairs from the University of Colorado and holds a M.Ed. in Montessori Education from Loyola University. Sharlyn enjoys spending time outside; hiking with her dog, Piper, scuba diving and snowboarding. She spends her free time traveling with her husband and his daughter.
Kyla Morenz, trainer AMI, Assistants to Elementary level
Kyla Morenz is an AMI Elementary Trainer from Toronto, Canada. She has a B.A. from the University of Waterloo and her M.Ed. from Loyola University in Maryland. In 2011, she obtained her TESOL certificate from the University of Toronto, Woodsworth College. She has AMI diplomas at both the 3-6 and 6-12 levels. She has taught in 6-9, 9-12, and 6-12 elementary Montessori environments in Canada and Morocco. She has particular interest in bilingual education, developing language materials for the elementary classroom. Kyla regularly mentors teachers and schools with elementary programs in Canada, Morocco, and the Czech Republic. She has lectured on courses in Ireland, England, Canada, United States, and France. She has worked with both simultaneous and consecutive interpretation in France and the Czech Republic. Kyla is a Co-trainer at Montessori Institute Prague, Czech Republic
What a privilege this has been, to be part of new roots of Montessori in Romania and to come across all the people that slowly, but surely, started to feel like home at the MIB. What a privilege to find a purpose so close to my heart and to understand how beautiful our mission is: to witness children’s natural growth. Thank you for making all these possible!
Anca UrsuWhen you start a course like that you have to be very determined that you want a transformation to happen to you, since you cannot be at the end the same human being as at the beginning.
Sorina ManoliuWhat a wonderful journey of discovery!
Aura CadisI used to believe that I was someone tooking for the path. But thanks to you, the path found me. Thank you for being part of my own journey.
Adela MunteanuI am very grateful for everything I learned and people I met. I feel like a child in a train station with his luggage full with memories and knowledge, ready to take the train to explore the world
Anca Fagaras