Joel Wilkinson

Joel Wilkinson is a Head Teacher for our Lower Elementary program. Before coming to teach Upper Elementary students at the Homestead School in 2010, he already had twenty years of experience teaching at other Montessori schools in Pennsylvania, including Penn-Mont Academy in Altoona and Wyoming Valley Montessori School in Kingston, PA, where he also held an administrative role as Curriculum Coordinator.

In addition to his school year position teaching students here at the Homestead, Joel has been training new Montessori teachers during the summers since 1995 as a faculty member with the Montessori Elementary Teacher Training Collaborative in Lexington, MA, and before that with the Center for Montessori Teacher Education in New York. Many of our elementary teachers here are graduates of these programs. Prior to becoming a Montessori teacher, Joel ran environmental education and camp programs for the National Wildlife Federation, the NJ School of Conservation, and the Princeton-Blairstown Center.

In addition to his enduring love of nature and the outdoor pursuits, he also has a passion for music and choral singing. He holds an M.A. in environmental education (Montclair State University/NJ), a B.S. in recreation (Pennsylvania State University) and an Elementary I-II 6-12 credential from the American Montessori Society.