Azalea Montessori is a member of the Wildflower Network of schools. Wildflower is an ecosystem of decentralized Montessori micro-schools that support children, teachers, and parents. Wildflower aspires to give all children and families the opportunity to choose high quality, beautiful learning environments as they follow life’s unfolding journey.
At Azalea Montessori School, we believe that all children are naturally eager and inquisitive learners that thrive in a supportive and thoughtfully prepared environment. We are committed to creating meaningful experiences with nature that engage and inspire our students. Through an intentionally small school, we invite strong relationships between teacher-leaders, parents and families, and community partners.
– Our approach is child-centered and values the development of the whole child-social, physical, cognitive and socio-emotional.
– Our environment is beautifully and carefully prepared with specialized Montessori materials in the areas of practical life, sensorial, language, math and art. Working with these sensory-motor materials develop children’s cognitive skills through direct experience: seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling, touching, and movement.
– Children are given the freedom of movement and the freedom to choose work. An uninterrupted work time allows the child to develop concentration.
– Children work independently while the teacher introduces new materials and lessons through individual and small group presentations.
– A focus on Grace and Courtesy creates a peaceful and caring community.
Monday – Friday: 8:30 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Arrival time: 8:15 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.
Dismissal time: 3:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
We offer a nature-based after school (extended day) program: 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m., Monday – Friday.
Monday – Friday: 8:30 a.m. – 3:15
Arrival Time: 8:30 – 8:45
Dismissal time: 3:15 – 3:30
We offer before care in our Elementary building beginning at 8 a.m. Monday – Friday. We offer a nature-based after school program: 3:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m., Monday – Friday.
We would love to talk with you!
We can be reached via email:
[email protected]
Please visit our Facebook page to keep updated on what is happening with Azalea Montessori!
Our primary school year runs from September 5, 2023 to May 24, 2024.
Thanksgiving Break is November 22-24, 2023.
Winter Break is December 18, 2023 to January 1, 2024. School resumes on January 2, 2024.
Spring Break is March 25-29, 2024.
Additional holidays observed are Martin Luther King Day, and Memorial Day.
We have parent teacher conferences in October, March and May (kindergartners only) to collaborate on your child’s development.
Our elementary school year runs from September 6, 2022 to August 18, 2023. A three season option is available, running from September 6, 2022 to May 26, 2023. We take breaks (dormancy) throughout the year.
Thanksgiving Break is November 21-25, 2022
Fall Dormancy is December 19-30, 2022
Winter Dormancy is March 20-31, 2023
Spring Dormancy is May 29- June 9, 2023
Holiday break is July 3-7, 2023
Summer Dormancy is August 21- September 8, 2023
Additional holidays observed are Indigenous Peoples day October 10
Jeana Olszewski
Founding Teacher Leader
Jeana Olszewski began her Montessori career teaching in a 3-6 classroom in Dayton Public Schools. After taking some time off to be with her four children, she returned to Montessori as a lower elementary teacher at The Good Shepherd Catholic Montessori School in Cincinnati. She spent nine years there, and three years ago moved into a Montessori curriculum specialist role for a small group of schools north of Cincinnati. She is AMS credentialed early childhood and lower elementary, state certified kindergarten-grade three, and holds a Master’s Degree in education. She is passionate about Montessori education and is thrilled to be a part of the first Wildflower school in Ohio. She is grateful for the opportunity to serve the families in Norwood and Cincinnati and is looking forward to the journey ahead!
Amy Hruschak
Teacher Leader
Josh Shanklin
Teacher Leader
Emma Baldwin
Assistant Teacher
Emma Baldwin grew up on a farm in Liberty, Indiana and was homeschooled until a freshman in high school. She is a citizen of the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma and works with them as an instructor at summer language camps for children ages 6-16. Emma recently completed her AMS Montessori Certification at Greater Cincinnati Center for Montessori Education (GCCME). Emma started her Montessori journey at Southwest Montessori in Fort Wayne, IN and since then she has experienced working in a variety of capacities. This will be her 5th year of teaching with the Montessori philosophy. Emma is excited to join the Azalea Montessori community!
Erin Tuttle-Lockridge
Teacher
Erin has nurtured a love for the outdoors since she was a child and now finds great joy sharing this love with others. She has taught nature education for 16 years, ever since she earned a Naturalist Certification at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois. When she moved to Cincinnati, in 2011, she started Norwood Grows, which was a series of programs that taught garden, culinary, art, and nature-based skills to the children and teens of Norwood. She and her husband, Robert, also ran Moriah Pie for 8 years, a pay-as-you-can pizza restaurant that used only the food they grew in gardens around the neighborhood. In 2020, they closed Moriah Pie
and later reopened For the Life of the World Cafe, which now serves breakfast right across the street from Azalea. They love taking the gifts of our neighborhood (plants, animals, food) and offering it to friends and neighbors in a way that connects them to this place and to each other.
Jason Waters
Teacher Leader
Michelle Geter
Elementary/Primary Teacher
Michelle has been a Montessori educator for the past 10 years. Her career has consisted of one year in a 3-6 classroom, six years in a 6-9 classroom, and three years in a 9-12 classroom. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Montessori Education from Xavier University and received her certification for Montessori ages 6-9, and has completed courses for both the 3-6 and 9-12 certification programs. She is thrilled to be part of the Azalea community and to combine her love of nature with Montessori education. She will be with the elementary program in the
morning and the primary program in the afternoon.
Azalea is no longer accepting applications for the 2022-2023 school year.
We are accepting applications for the 2023-24 school year for our Upper Elementary program only. The Primary classroom and Lower Elementary classroom is full for the 2023-24 school year.
Applications do not roll over from year to year. Applications must be received for each school year.
We would love to meet you and talk about Montessori, Wildflower and Azalea!
Azalea Primary (preschool and kindergarten) will host family tours in the months of October, November and December.
Azalea Elementary will host an Open House in November.
Please email us at [email protected] if you have any questions and/or would like to be added to our list of families to notify of Primary tours and the Elementary Open House.
Meeting the Teacher-Leaders and visiting Azalea is an important step in our enrollment process and we look forward to connecting.
1. Attend an Open House or reach out to us at [email protected] for small group tour options offered in October, November and Deember.
2. Please fill out an application. Please click here for our online application. Please contact an Azalea teacher-leader to request a paper copy.
4. After attending our Open House or tour, Teacher Leaders will communicate with you next steps in the enrollment process. A $100 enrollment fee is required upon receipt of all enrollment materials.
Our 2023-2024 primary full day tuition rate is $7,900 which is consistent with other private Montessori schools in the area. Our 2023-2024 elementary tuition rate is $8,000 for four seasons or $6,000 for three seasons. Other Montessori school’s tuition rates range from $6,849 to $12,450 for both full day preschool and kindergarten. We do offer full day part time options for both the primary and elementary programs, and also offer part-time enrollment in our primary outdoor program. If you are interested, please contact us for rates and availability. After care tuition is $75/week for full time 3:00 p.m. until 5:30 p.m, or $6.00/hr for part time use. The tuition rate for Azalea is intended to be an “all inclusive” rate and will not add lots of extra fees or additional donations on top of the tuition rate. Financial transparency is important to us, so please know that whatever the tuition rate, it will be the true cost of educating your child.
At Azalea Montessori School we believe educational opportunities should be available to families in our community regardless of financial means. Our goal is to create sustainable pathways that provide at least 30 percent or more of our school population with tuition assistance based on financial need.
We participate in the Publicly Funded Child Care program offered through Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services. Information about the program and eligibility requirements can be found here: ODJFS Child Care information
We are a provider of the Ed Choice Scholarships from the Ohio Department of Education. More information on the program and eligibility requirements can be found here: ED Choice Scholarship Eligibility
Azalea Montessori School admits students of any race, color, gender, nationality, and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities made available to students at the school. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, nationality or ethnic origin in administration of the educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship programs, and other school-administered programs.
Azalea Montessori is the first Wildflower School in Ohio, and our aim is to be an experiment in a new learning environment. Our network is supported by a foundation that works to build capacity, systems, tools and research to grow and strengthen the network. It is our hope that we will be the start of additional Wildflower schools opening in the Cincinnati area.
Wildflower is an ecosystem of decentralized Montessori micro-schools that support children, teachers, and parents. Our schools aspire to give all children and families the opportunity to choose high quality, beautiful learning environments as they follow life’s unfolding journey.
Wildflower Montessori began as the labor of love of our founder, Sep Kamvar. Unable to find a school which combined Montessori education, an inclusive family environment, and a small, responsive school size, Sep was inspired to create his own with veteran Montessori teachers in Cambridge, Mass. In 2016 Sep worked establish the Wildflower Foundation, an independent nonprofit organization that builds platforms to support the growth and development of Wildflower Schools. Our schools are small and teacher-led, with deep parent engagement.
Learn more about our story.
Blurring the boundaries between home-schooling and institutional schooling, between scientists and teachers, between schools and the neighborhoods around them. At the core of Wildflower are 9 principles that define the approach.
After the first Wildflower school was created in January of 2014, there was intense interest in the school and the approach. This interest led us to open-source the model and help other family groups and teacher-leaders to create new Wildflower schools. Each teacher-leader at each Wildflower school serves on the board of at least one other Wildflower school, creating a community of schools that are linked by both a shared philosophy and a network of shared relationships.
Azalea Montessori is a 501(c)(3) non-profit school. We provide high-quality early childhood Montessori education for children 3-6 years old. Azalea believes educational opportunities should be available to families in our community regardless of financial means. We create sustainable pathways that provide at least 33 percent or more of our school population with tuition assistance based on financial need.
Currently, Azalea Montessori is raising funds to create a scholarship funds for families experiencing finacial hardships. This will enable us to serve more families. Please consider donating to Azalea Montessori School. We appreciate any support you might offer our community. All contributions are tax deductible.
