JoAnn Schulzetenberg, a member of St. Patrick in Oak Grove and principal of Way of the Shepherd Catholic Montessori School in Blaine, also is the director of the newly created Catholic Montessori Institute (CMI) at the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota.
A trained Montessorian, Schulzetenberg said she felt inspired while studying in Rome from 2012 to 2016 to provide a training program bridging Catholic theology and Montessori education.
Montessori education is a method of hands-on learning for children. Its foundation, Schulzetenberg said, is respect for the whole child in the classroom, respect for the person as an individual within society and respect for oneself. Montessori education focuses on the child holistically, considering a child’s academic, social, physical, mental and psychological needs.
For an episode of the “Practicing Catholic” radio show set to air at 9 p.m. June 20 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM, Schulzetenberg told Patrick Conley, the show’s producer, that “I really desire to just bridge those people (Catholics and Montessorians) together in our community.”
Efforts began with conversations Schulzetenberg had with the Servants of the Child of Light in Mandan, North Dakota, as it developed a traditional Catholic program combined with Montessori at Christ the King in Mandan.
“With all these pieces coming together, I ended up at a wedding coincidentally with Monsignor (James) Shea (President of the University of Mary), and I was seated next to him,” Schulzetenberg said. “I felt at that time just called to say, ‘I think now is the time that we need to launch some sort of networking opportunity, a Catholic Montessori conference.’ I’ve been to other Montessori conferences around the country and felt very inspired by them, but there’s always that faith piece missing and so the formational aspect was so important to me to continue on as a Catholic Montessorian.”
The 2025 Catholic Montessori Conference will be held at the University of Mary Oct. 16-18.
The institute will use the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) training program and through this program, Catholic formation will be added in.
“This is a great opportunity for those around the country (who) are really looking for something more,” Schulzetenberg said. “This will provide an opportunity where I can confidently say this is a great place to come and get a Catholic training and be well-formed so that we can bring this back into parish schools, especially those that may be in dire need.”
To hear more from Schulzetenberg about the Catholic Montessori Institute, tune into “Practicing Catholic,” which repeats at 1 p.m. June 21 and 2 p.m. June 22.
Also on the program, Kathleen Soucheray, a columnist for The Catholic Spirit, shares how to continue growing in holiness during the busyness of summer. And Zach Jansen, the digital content producer for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, explores how the 1966 film, “A Man for All Seasons” explores St. Thomas More’s resolve in the face of death.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, “Practicing Catholic” can be heard after it has aired at archspm.org/faith-and-discipleship/practicing-catholic or choose a streaming platform at Spotify for Podcasters.
