Montessori & White Supremacy Culture
2025 PEACE SUMMIT
We have a problem.
As Montessori practitioners, we are grounded in the liberation of the child from the oppressive systems that constrain their ability to develop as they are trying to do. White Supremacy Culture perpetuates these oppressive systems that deeply impact the child, the family, and our communities as a whole.
It’s about time we talk about.
The PEACE Summit, Jan 26-Feb 2nd, 2025, is a community-focused virtual conference for parents & educators. Our international team of Montessori-trained educators provide workshops on important topics for discussion within the Montessori community. 85% of families in our parent education programs and 43% of teachers in our mentorship programs are able to access lower access fees because of our conference ticket sales. Please contact Mariana Bissonnette at mariana@thepeaceprogram.org if you need help accessing this conference. Thank you!
“Incredible conference! Thank you each for sharing and being so honest. It helped me connect, and realize that I’m not alone.”
— Syleste
Summit Snapshot
Preview Panel [Oct. 12th 9-10am PST]: We started the conversation on Saturday, Oct. 12th with a panel discussion on White Supremacy & Montessori.
2025 PEACE Summit [Jan. 26-Feb 2nd]:
Sunday, Jan. 26th: LIVE Introduction Webinar 9:30am PST with PEACE founder, Mariana Bissonnette
Pre-Recorded Workshops Available throughout the Week:
Sunday, Jan. 26th Montessori & Power Hoarding
Sunday, Jan. 26th Montessori & Right to Comfort
Sunday, Jan. 26th Montessori and Sense of Urgency
Monday, Jan. 27th Montessori & Perfectionism
Tuesday, Jan. 28th Montessori & Individualism
Wednesday, Jan. 29th Montessori & One Right Way
Thursday, Jan. 30th Montessori & Quantity>Quality
Friday, Jan. 31st Montessori & Fear of Open Conflict
Saturday, Feb. 1st Montessori & Either/Or Thinking
Sunday, Feb. 2nd: LIVE Discussion Panel 8-10am PST with all of the Summit Presenters!
“The PEACE Summit presentations were fantastic. They were all so clear, insightful, and practical. Really excellent conference.”
— Shawna
2025 Summit Schedule
MONTESSORI & WHITE SUPREMACY
JANUARY 26 - FEBRUARY 2ND, 2025
Live Webinar: Introduction
SUNDAY, JAN 26, 2025 | 9:30AM PST | 5:30PM GMT | 11PM IST
Join Mariana Bissonnette to kick off the PEACE Summit together with an introductory webinar with Mariana Bissonnette. Learn more about The PEACE Program, Montessori, and the intersections with white supremacy culture
Montessori & Power Hoarding
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON SUN, JAN 26, 2025
Join Madhuri Prasad to learn about how Power Hoarding shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Right to Comfort
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON SUN, JAN 26, 2025
Join Mariana Bissonnette to learn about how Right to Comfort shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Sense of Urgency
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON SUN, JAN 26, 2025
Join Debora Guimaraes de Arauijo to learn about how Sense of Urgency shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Perfectionism
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON MON, JAN 27, 2025
Join María Bautista to learn about how Perfectionism shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Individualism
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON TUES, JAN 28, 2025
Join Mary Ling to learn about how Individualism shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Belief in One Right Way
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON WED, JAN 29, 2025
Join Emely Flores to learn about how Belief in One Right Way shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Quantity>Quality
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON THURS, JAN 30, 2025
Join Joelene Draper Learn about how Quantity>Quality shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child
Montessori & Fear of Open Conflict
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON FRI, JAN 31, 2025
Join Anila Hussain to learn about how Fear of Open Conflict shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Montessori & Either/Or Thinking
WORKSHOP RELEASED ON SAT, FEB 1, 2025
Join Katalin Lovassy to learn about how Either/Or Thinking shows up in Montessori spaces at home and at school and how we can combat the embodying of this culture in our spaces, in ourselves, and with the child.
Live Panel: The Presenters
SUNDAY, FEB 2, 2025 | 8-10AM PST | 4-6PM GMT
Join Madhuri, Mariana, Joelene, María, Katalin, Emely, Anila, Mary, and Debora for a live panel discussion about the topics presented at The PEACE Summit. Have a listen and join the conversation!
PODCAST & CONFERENCE
The PEACE Team
EACH YEAR, MARIANA COLLABORATES WITH MONTESSORI TRAINED EDUCATORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD TO PUT ON OUR PODCAST AND ANNUAL CONFERENCE.
Mariana started The PEACE Program in 2016 with a free, drop-in play group for families in her local area to be with their babies and learn a thing or two about the child's development. The success of the program led Mariana to serve over 1200 families in the first three years of the program alone! However, Mariana was the only facilitator available to families.
In response to listening to and learning from Black and Brown activists in 2020, Mariana recognized that she would not always be the right parent-educator for all familie. To address this, Mariana created a Scholarship Program (now called PEACE Mentorship) where she supported four aspiring Montessori teachers during their training with mentorship and financial assistance. 100% of the PEACE Scholars were Black and/or Indigenous. From that program and in pursuit of supporting more teachers, Mariana began building a team of Facilitators to help her deliver parenting education in addition to supporting the mentorship of upcoming Montessori teachers.
About the 24/25 PEACE Facilitation Team:
67% of 24/25 PEACE Facilitators are Black, Indigenous, or of the Global Majority.
100% are multilingual
89% are experienced classroom teachers and are parents themselves
44% are experienced parent-educators and are cross trained in 0-3 and 3-6
54% live outside the United States (including Europe, Asia, Africa, and North America)
PEACE Facilitators work closely with Mariana and share responsibility for contributing to a culture based on our communal values of self-reflection, self-care, responsiveness to being/becoming Anti-Bias / Anti-Racist and a deep commitment to the whole child within the whole family.