Amy Kirkham is a Montessori teacher trainer from Melbourne. She has been involved in the Early Childhood Education sector since 1988. Amy has worked with young children in a variety of different settings including early childhood centres, Montessori Children's Houses, services for children with hearing impairment and in the Haematology/Oncology ward at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne, Australia. Amy is actively involved in the provision of professional development for Montessori staff as well as parent and community education. She is a 3-6 AMI teacher trainer for the Australian Montessori Teacher Education Foundation (AMTEF). In 2008 Amy is the Director of Training for AMTEF in Melbourne. Amy is a board member of several Montessori organisations and is also a member of the Australian Quality Assurance Working Party. The MANZ 2010 Conference will be Amy's third trip to New Zealand.

Joen Bettmann is a Montessori primary trainer, examiner and consultant with Association Montessori Internationale and has nearly 30 years of Montessori experience. She is director of training for the Ohio Montessori Training Institute and the Montessori Institute of Atlanta in the USA. Joen is also Adjunct Professor at Loyola College in Maryland and has had training responsibilities at the Midwest Montessori Institute in Wisconsin, the Montessori Institute Northwest in Oregon, the Maria Montessori Training Organisation in London and Computer Associates Corporate Childcare in New York. Joen has a BA in sociology and a MA in Montessori education. She has had extensive classroom experience in both private and public Montessori schools, especially in central city locations and frequently speaks at international Montessori conferences. She has published articles in AMI Communications and The North American Montessori Teachers Association Journal. Joen was director of training for a three-summer course for Montessori 3-6 teachers in Sydney, Australia in 2004-2005.

Donna Bryant Goertz founded Austin Montessori School in Austin, Texas, in 1967.  She directed the school and taught there for thirty-four years.  While continuing to direct the school, Donna is now head of parent education, staff development, and new programmes initiation.  Educators, professors, and students from all over the world have studied Austin Montessori School’s continuum of service to families of children from 14 months through 15 years to learn more about the philosophy of Montessori education and the particular school culture.   Donna has received her Montessori Elementary diploma from the Fondazione Centro Internazionale Studi Montessoriani in Bergamo, Italy, and her Assistants to Infancy diploma from The Montessori Institute of Denver, Colorado.  She is a founding member of Educateurs sans Frontiers, a select group of 26 Montessorians from 16 countries dedicated to applying Montessori principles beyond the school walls.  She has been published in several well known educational journals and has spoken at conferences throughout both North America and the rest of the world.  Donna and her husband, Don, are the parents of 7 children and grandparents of 15.

Nicola is a Senior Lecturer at Auckland University of Technology where she coordinates the Montessori programme for teacher education at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. She is currently undertaking research for her PhD in Montessori education. She is currently assisting with a research project for the Montessori Foundation in Cape York and Torres Strait Islands, Australia. Nicola has been involved in the New Zealand Montessori movement for 25 years, undertaking a wide range of roles as teacher, writer, administrator, parent and long-term volunteer for Montessori Aotearoa New Zealand.