2018 Montessori Advocacy Panel
MaryAnn Boyd
Founder, The Boyd Schools
Board Member--Board of Social Services for the Commonwealth of Virginia
MaryAnn Boyd is the Co-Founder of The Boyd Schools, seven Montessori schools in the Northern Virginia area. MaryAnn currently serves at the pleasure of Virginia Governor, Ralph Northam on the Board of Social Services. MaryAnn served for many years as the American Montessori Society’s representative to Virginia Council for Private Education. MaryAnn enjoys working with the American Montessori Society's office of School Accreditation as team chair on accreditation teams across the United States.
Catharina Genove
Arlington County Montessori School at Drew, Principal
Catharina Genove began her teaching career with Miami Dade County Public Schools in 1991 and it is there where she earned her Master’s in Montessori Education from Barry University and her AMS credential 6-12. After teaching in a public Montessori program for 6 years she relocated to the Northern Virginia area. Her previous experiences with Montessori led her to be the founding principal of Monocracy Valley Montessori Charter School in Frederick, Maryland in 2002. MVMCS was the first charter school in the state of Maryland that year. Mrs. Genove earned her Administration and Supervision degree from the University of Virginia and continued her work with Frederick County Public Schools for nine years as an assistant principal . She joined Arlington Public Schools in 2012 Drew Model School which houses the countywide Montessori program available to Arlington County residents through an annual lottery process. Mrs Genove became principal of Drew Model School in 2015 and is currently serving as principal of the Montessori program at Drew who will be moving to a single focused school in the fall of 2019.
Charis Sharp, PhD
Metro Consulting, Executive Director
Dr. Sharp is the Board Chair for the Montessori Public Policy Initiative. She holds degrees in teaching, organization development, and leadership and change and a Montessori credential in Administration. She has served on board of the Washington Federation of Independent Schools and the Pacific Northwest Montessori Association and led the development of Washington State’s Montessori Verification project. Her day job is running Metro Consulting which guides Montessori schools and organizations in formation, development and continuous improvement.
Shanna Honan
Chesapeake Montessori School
Shanna has been active in the Montessori community since 1991. She holds Early Childhood and Elementary I and II certifications. Shanna is the Program Director for the Virginia Montessori Teacher Education Center in Chesapeake, Virginia. She is also the owner and Head of School at Chesapeake Montessori School. She earned her Masters of Arts in Education from St. Catherine University and has a BS in Early Childhood Education from Towson University, Towson, MD.
Evan Thomas
Arlington Montessori Action Committee
Arlington Montessori Action Committee is an organization of Montessori parents and educators whose primary goal is to promote and expand Montessori education. We are advocates for Montessori and are working for its continued support and expansion in Arlington Public Schools.
Founder, The Boyd Schools
Board Member--Board of Social Services for the Commonwealth of Virginia
MaryAnn Boyd is the Co-Founder of The Boyd Schools, seven Montessori schools in the Northern Virginia area. MaryAnn currently serves at the pleasure of Virginia Governor, Ralph Northam on the Board of Social Services. MaryAnn served for many years as the American Montessori Society’s representative to Virginia Council for Private Education. MaryAnn enjoys working with the American Montessori Society's office of School Accreditation as team chair on accreditation teams across the United States.
Catharina Genove
Arlington County Montessori School at Drew, Principal
Catharina Genove began her teaching career with Miami Dade County Public Schools in 1991 and it is there where she earned her Master’s in Montessori Education from Barry University and her AMS credential 6-12. After teaching in a public Montessori program for 6 years she relocated to the Northern Virginia area. Her previous experiences with Montessori led her to be the founding principal of Monocracy Valley Montessori Charter School in Frederick, Maryland in 2002. MVMCS was the first charter school in the state of Maryland that year. Mrs. Genove earned her Administration and Supervision degree from the University of Virginia and continued her work with Frederick County Public Schools for nine years as an assistant principal . She joined Arlington Public Schools in 2012 Drew Model School which houses the countywide Montessori program available to Arlington County residents through an annual lottery process. Mrs Genove became principal of Drew Model School in 2015 and is currently serving as principal of the Montessori program at Drew who will be moving to a single focused school in the fall of 2019.
Charis Sharp, PhD
Metro Consulting, Executive Director
Dr. Sharp is the Board Chair for the Montessori Public Policy Initiative. She holds degrees in teaching, organization development, and leadership and change and a Montessori credential in Administration. She has served on board of the Washington Federation of Independent Schools and the Pacific Northwest Montessori Association and led the development of Washington State’s Montessori Verification project. Her day job is running Metro Consulting which guides Montessori schools and organizations in formation, development and continuous improvement.
Shanna Honan
Chesapeake Montessori School
Shanna has been active in the Montessori community since 1991. She holds Early Childhood and Elementary I and II certifications. Shanna is the Program Director for the Virginia Montessori Teacher Education Center in Chesapeake, Virginia. She is also the owner and Head of School at Chesapeake Montessori School. She earned her Masters of Arts in Education from St. Catherine University and has a BS in Early Childhood Education from Towson University, Towson, MD.
Evan Thomas
Arlington Montessori Action Committee
Arlington Montessori Action Committee is an organization of Montessori parents and educators whose primary goal is to promote and expand Montessori education. We are advocates for Montessori and are working for its continued support and expansion in Arlington Public Schools.
