About Us

Our Mission
Deschutes River Montessori School is dedicated to providing children with an exceptional early school experience through the careful execution of the Montessori philosophy and pedagogy. By maintaining a carefully-prepared environment and dedicated guidance, Deschutes River Montessori School strives to support children and foster their growth: emotionally, socially, cognitively, and physically; enabling them to grow to their fullest potential.

Our School
It has been two busy, happy years since we first opened our doors here in Bend, Oregon. We have watched our enrollment grow as new friends joined our class, and now we find that we have outgrown our space. Therefore, we are excited to announce our imminent move to the Old Mill District! We will be relocating to our new, expanded facility this summer near the beginning of July, when the renovation is complete. We will be moving into what was the Working Wonders Museum, 4100 square feet of space that will allow us to expand our offering to the families of Bend. We will now be able to offer not only Montessori preschool and kindergarten classes for children ages 3 to 6, but will also be enrolling toddlers ages 12 to 36 months into our new Montessori toddler program. Deschutes River Montessori School is proud to be a full member school of the American Montessori Society and employs Montessori trained and certified lead teachers in each classroom. We are also pleased to announce that we will be offering extended care hours beginning at 7:30 am and ending at 6:00 pm for families who need a safe, supportive, and respectful Montessori full day option for their children.

Our Director
Elaine May, director of Deschutes River Montessori School, comes to Bend from Southwestern Ohio, where she founded and operated Kinderfield Montessori School for ten years.

Elaine earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Education in 1990, with minors in Biology and German, from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio and obtained her State Teaching Certification for grades K through 8. Having already decided to follow in the footsteps of Maria Montessori, Elaine entered the Montessori Teacher Education program at Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio and earned a Master’s Degree in Education and the American Montessori Society Preprimary Certificate (ages 3 – 6) in 1991.

In her free time, Elaine enjoys hiking, biking, swimming, and exploring the mountains and high desert wilderness areas of Bend with her husband and their three boys, ages 17, 15, and 8.