The History of Casa di Mir

The vision of Casa di Mir began at the 1988 Kindergarten Thanksgiving celebration at Casa Maria Preschool. Casa Maria, closed in 1999, was a well loved Montessori preschool in Los Gatos for 29 years. A committee of interested parents and friends formed to create an elementary program to continue the nurturing of their children’s love of learning in a multi-cultural Montessori environment with a strong sense of community.

Support and guidance were provided by the founding parents as well as the administration of Casa Maria, and in 1989, a home school was established by Wanda Whitehead (now Head of School at Casa di Mir) to provide an educational setting for the first five students.

Casa di Mir Montessori School officially incorporated in 1991 as a non-profit organization with a Board of Directors made up of parents. From 1991-99, the school leased classroom space in a variety of settings including Casa Maria in Los Gatos, and public school facilities at Bucknall School in San Jose and Mirassou School in Los Gatos.

After a three-year site search, in the summer of 1999, the school secured a 20-year lease of the old Campbell post office on Latimer Avenue, a 9,000 square foot building. Significant investment was made in renovation of the building and installation of a new playground to create a long-term site for the school. The Primary class was added in 1999, allowing the school to serve ages 3 through 12. A second Primary class was added in 2004.

Casa di Mir: House of Peace

"Casa," meaning "home," is a traditional Montessori school name which is taken from Maria Montessori's original "casa dei Bambini" school, meaning "House of Children." "di" is the Italian word for "of." The name "Mir" was chosen because it is a Russian word for peace, as well as a root for the word "miracle."