Support Seton Montessori Institute
The Katherine Melsa Endowed Scholarship Fund honors Katherine’s lifetime commitment to the education of young children while financially supporting new Montessori certification candidates as they prepare to take on this critical work.
Become a Seton Montessori Institute Supporter
Join the Seton Montessori community in celebrating the life of Katherine “Kathy” Melsa. A graduate of Seton’s Early Childhood teacher certification program, Kathy was a skilled and committed Montessori educator and school administrator. In her more than two decades as a Montessori professional, “Miss Katherine” worked with parent-child communities and with toddler and early childhood students. Beginning her Montessori career at Little Flower Montessori School (now Montessori Academy at Edison Lakes) in South Bend, Indiana. She later went on to open her own school, Countryside Montessori School, in Indiana before moving to Illinois in the late 1980s, where she continued her work at the Montessori School of Lisle. Katherine frequently expressed her gratitude for the transformational experiences she had as an adult learner at Seton Montessori Institute (then MECA-Seton) under the guidance of Celma and Desmond Perry. Mother of six, four generations of her family have now been touched by Katherine’s wholehearted belief in Dr. Montessori’s vision for the child and for the future of the world - some even becoming Seton-educated students, Montessori educators, and school leaders themselves!
Seton Montessori is a 501(c)3 organization; donations are tax-deductible according to IRS regulations for charitable organizations.