Our Campus

From a single building housing 9 students, to a sprawling 150+ acre campus that serves over 380 children from 6 weeks through High School, Oak Farm Montessori School is on a path to become the premier Montessori School that our founder, Lorene Dekko Salsbery, envisioned us to be.

Her desire to provide parents with educational choice in Northeast, Indiana led her to found the school. The Montessori curriculum was purposely chosen because of its dignity of children; empowering them in their own education and meeting the child where they are individually.

Through her philanthropy and commitment to protecting the Montessori philosophy, the school is only one of two independent accredited schools in Indiana; certified both by the American Montessori Society (AMS) and the Independent Schools of Association of the Central States (ISACS).  This distinction allows us to provide an authentic Montessori experience that is not encumbered by tests or mandated policy.  All lead teachers in the classroom are Montessori credentialed in addition to school wide training in Positive Discipline. 

With carefully prepared environments, both the classroom inside and the natural environment outside, we are able to encourage inquisitive learners who are independent and feel valued.  By implementing the eight principles of Montessori education (Movement & Cognition, Choice, Interest, Avoiding extrinsic rewards, learning from & with peers, Learning in context, Teacher ways & child ways and Order in environment & mind) at each level, the portrait of an Oak Farm Montessori graduate unfolds naturally; emotionally literate, global citizen, life-long learner and a leader.  

Our Infant through Upper Elementary programs have a wait list, while our Secondary Program is expanding.  By maintaining a small classroom size and overall school population, our students, teachers and families develop a welcoming community that supports one another and works to help children reach their full potential.

How do we know that we are meeting our founder’s vision of becoming a premiere Montessori School? Through the faces and stories of our students and families, from alumni who return to work as staff, to graduates who are making a social impact in the world around them; Oak Farm Montessori School is today, yesterday and in the future, committed and passionate about the development of the individual child.