Duffy, M

Have been involved in Montessori education for 35 years, since their daughter entered a Montessori school at age 2 1/2. D'Neil, who had been a teacher in the traditional public and private schools for 12 years before gravitating to Montessori, has Association Montessori International certification at the 3–6 level and American Montessori Society certification at the 6–12 level. She founded her own Montessori school in Georgia in 1979 and was the school’s administrator for 21 years, teaching at every level but toddler. Michael, who had been a journalist by profession, was AMS-certified at the 6–12 level in 1990 and taught lower and upper elementary classes. Both joined the faculty at the Center for Montessori Teacher Education (New York), and they have trained Montessori teachers in New York, Phoenix, Boston, Toronto, Vancouver, and Puerto Rico. Recently they helped establish the Montessori Elementary Teacher Training Collaborative. The Duffys have given workshops at national and international Montessori conferences, and they gave a presentation at the first conference of the International Big History Association in 2012. They have authored three books on Montessori education, including Children of the Universe: Cosmic Education in the Montessori Elementary Classroom. Both have master degrees in education, D'Neil with a specialty in Guidance and Counseling, and Michael with a specialty in Media Education. They retired from the classroom in 2001 to devote more time to teacher training, writing and educational consulting, and they currently live in the mountains of Virginia.