The Montessori School of Douglas County was established by a group of Douglas County parents in 1976. In 1980, Lupe Villegas became the school's director. The school accepts children 18 months to ten years old. The school has one toddler class, two primary classes and one lower-level elementary class. Working parents find the school's hours flexible with both before and after school care options. The Montessori School system is named after Dr. Maria Montessori, Italy's first female doctor and has existed since 1907. Her educational philosophy was that children develop character and intelligence from birth to age six. Montessori schools use age appropriate manipulative learning equipment to teach children at their own pace with a philosophy of learning by doing.