Meet Our Secondary Teachers

Ms. Shelley Smith, Secondary Lead

Ms. Smith holds a B.A. in History and Sociology and an M.Ed. with an emphasis in Montessori elementary education. She holds Montessori 6-9, 9-12, and 12-18 AMS credentials, with additional experience at the primary level. Ms. Smith’s Montessori experience began in her own childhood, having attended both private and public Montessori schools in Dallas. She credits her early Montessori years for her love of learning, commitment to human values, and desire to foster a strong school community.

Ms.Smith reconnected with Montessori education while working on her Master’s of Education at Chaminade University of Honolulu, completing her Elementary I training at that time. As her own children progressed through early elementary, Ms. Smith wanted to learn about the rich upper elementary experience, prompting her to complete her Upper Elementary credential at our very own Montessori Center for Teacher Education, San Diego. As a retired military spouse, Ms. Smith has taught at numerous locations around the world. In 2018, Ms. Smith began teaching in the MMS Secondary program. She holds a Secondary I/II from the Cincinnati Secondary Montessori Teacher Education Program. Ms. Smith is also co-director of Maria Montessori School.

Ms. Riley Brennan

Ms. Brennan holds a B.A. in Elementary Education with concentrations in both Special Education and Spanish from Trinity Western University. Ms. Brennan’s classroom experience includes formal practicum courses in elementary classrooms, at both private and public schools. As a part of her undergraduate studies, she participated in classes that taught Montessori philosophies. The course requirements included creating lessons and projects for her practicum students. She has also received informal training under experienced guides Shelley Smith, Angie Buse and Rich Lugli, working in their classrooms and assisting with teaching, correcting and classroom management.