History
Like many Montessori schools, Quest, began through grassroots efforts fueled by the passion of parents who value the Montessori approach to education and child development.
In April 2001, a small group of parents from a Montessori Primary school, gathered to discuss the possibility of establishing a Montessori Elementary and Middle School in southern Rhode Island. The consensus from the parent group was a desire for a school, with reasonable tuition, that would focus on the development of the whole child (socially, emotionally, academically and physically). Using the Montessori approach, emphasis in the classroom would be on the process of “learning how to learn” rather than the traditional focus solely on academic achievement as measured by grades and standardized testing.
The group formed a Board of Directors and a non-profit corporation and launched the project to establish what has now become known as Quest Montessori School (“Quest”). The Board’s goal was to open the school for the 2002-2003 academic year. Remarkably, 17 months from its initial conception, on September 3, 2002, Quest Montessori School opened to 23 students in grades 3-5. Quest grew up (and down) over the next several years to welcome students as young as 18 months and as old as 8th grade. Quest remains the only Montessori school in Rhode Island to provide a continuous education for children from Toddler through Middle School.
Shortly after moving to it’s campus in beautiful Narragansett, just minutes from the University of Rhode Island Bay Campus, Quest launched a rigorous three-year self-study process to become accredited by both the American Montessori Association (AMS) and the Association of Independent Schools of New England (AISNE). In May 2018, Quest realized realized its vision of becoming the only accredited Montessori school in the state of Rhode Island.