History and Alumni

For more than five decades, Evergreen School has been at the forefront of Montessori education in the Washington D.C. region.

Our roots date back to the early 1960s when the Washington Montessori Institute (WMI), An AMI teacher training center was established. Some of WMI's first students were Sybil Deveraux, Connie Corbet, and Robert T. Green. At that time, they launched Cor Jesu Montessori School at Temple Shalom on Grubb Road in Chevy Chase.

In the 1970s, Sybil and Connie departed to start a Montessori school in Florida, and Lynn Pellaton took over as Headmistress. Lynn also taught primary and elementary classes. The school flourished and came to be known as Montessori Children's House.

In 1994, the school was incorporated as a non-profit organization and rebranded as Evergreen School with a nine-member Board of Trustees led by President Mary Jane Lagomarchino. Evergreen had two locations at that time, including one in Temple Emanuel on Connecticut Avenue in Kensington.

Lydia Moser served as Head of School from 1995 to 2002, and in 2002, Evergreen relocated to its current location at the historic Hughes Methodist Church. Marcia Jacques took over as Head from 2002 to 2010, and our current Head of School, John DeMarchi, began his tenure in 2011.

On March 28, 2023, Board Chair Deepa Sundararaman announced the opening of a second campus, serving the Rockville area. "We are thrilled to have the opportunity to expand our reach to Rockville and provide even more families with the exceptional education that Evergreen School is known for," said John DeMarchi.

Our alumni community is an important part of our school culture.  We encourage all alumni to stay in touch and keep their contact information up to date.  Update your alumni information, and join our Alumni Facebook Group, too.