A non-profit civil organization born from the commitment of a group of people convinced that child malnutrition has a solution—if action is taken in time, with method and perseverance.
They are not words on a wall. They are the criteria we use to make every decision, from how we support families to how we report to donors.
The milestones that shaped our path from the first center to today.
On March 12, 2025, after months of construction and preparation, the Faro Nursery School opened its doors at the San Isidro Center. It's the first Montessori space for children aged 0 to 3 in the neighborhood, and it marks a turning point in ACER's history: for the first time, we're intervening during the first 1,000 days of life — the most critical window for preventing the irreversible damage caused by malnutrition.
The nursery school operates under the PIM Program — Early Childhood Montessori, with classrooms equipped with materials designed to stimulate sensory, motor, and cognitive development from birth. It's not an ordinary nursery school: it's a comprehensive intervention that combines nutrition, stimulation, and family support.
The Board of Directors and the staff who make the day-to-day work at the two centers possible.
A group of women volunteers who organize monthly fairs at the ACER San Isidro headquarters, providing a service to the families in the program and to the neighborhood in general.
Each center works Monday through Friday with families from its neighborhood. Same methodology, same commitment, different contexts.
Our founding center. 19 years of work with families from the Las Flores neighborhood.
Home base of the international volunteer program
Opened in 2011, it serves the communities of La Cava and Villa Uruguay. It was the first to incorporate the Jardín Maternal Faro and the community organic garden.
We believe that those who support our work have the right to know exactly how funds are used. That's why we publish our complete, audited financial records.
Every person who joins — as a donor, volunteer, or corporate partner — writes the next chapter of ACER.
My name is Estefanía Gallo and I'm 31 years old. I finished secondary school at 17, and at 20 I became a mother for the first time. Like many women, I set aside work and study plans to devote myself fully to motherhood. At 22 I had my second daughter, and at 25, my third child.
I came to ACER through a proposal from the kindergarten my children attended, to get to know the Montessori environment up close. The first time I walked in, I fell in love with the environment and the way of working. I began to learn more about the method, and that's how I discovered the Fundación Argentina María Montessori, where I decided to train as an Assistant.
ACER's board and staff, to whom I'll always be grateful, gave me the opportunity to work with them right away.
After three years came the long-awaited scholarship, granted by the Montessori Foundation and ACER, to train as a Montessori Guide. I took it on with pride, enthusiasm and responsibility.
In August 2019, with a great deal of effort and sacrifice, I earned my internationally recognized certification. It's hard to put my happiness into words, let alone the pride I felt seeing my children at the diploma ceremony.
Working at ACER fills me with joy: it lets me help the families who come here, planting a small seed in the stimulation and upbringing of their children, and showing that it's possible to move forward. I delight in the children's joy at finding an environment that lets them unlock their full potential.
I hope my experience inspires many mothers —at this center and so many others— to move forward and grow, professionally and personally, cultivating great values so that, together, we can make a better world.
Romi and Isa have several things in common: both had three children, both sew skillfully, and both work hard to get ahead and improve their quality of life.
They met several years ago, thanks to their children being friends at school. Isa (50) decided to invite Romi (41) to the ACER center in Vicente López. And once Romi arrived, she never left.
Through the workshops, and not without some fears, they learned sewing, knitting, embroidery, manicure, dance, cooking and jewelry-making, discovering talents they never suspected they had. With great courage they decided to launch their own venture of sustainable fabric bags, based on the techniques learned at ACER and the support of the center's staff.
An unimaginable dream: for Romi, who always considered herself clumsy at embroidery and discovered she is quite the opposite; and for Isa, who after a hard personal and family story found a career path that motivates and sustains her.
They started small: with the old sewing machine of one of their grandmothers, a WhatsApp group, and the help of Sergio, Isa's husband, whom they call "The Cutter" for his millimetric precision measuring and cutting the fabric.
Today, together with two other mothers they met at the center, they lead @madrazasbsas: they make fabric bags for different businesses and work with steady dedication and joy so the project grows with every step.
"Hi, my name is Susana, and I'm the mother of two children who come to ACER. We love coming here, and we feel truly supported — both financially and emotionally. I'm deeply grateful for everything it has meant for my children's development."
"Hi, my name is Lidia, and I'm an ACER–CONIN mom. I joined because of my children: my youngest was underweight, and thanks to the pediatricians' help and my own efforts, we got him to a healthy weight. I'm more than grateful, and I don't have words to thank all the specialists here who helped me."
"I'm a former ACER–CONIN mom, now a volunteer in the sewing workshop. It makes me so happy to give back my small grain of sand after everything you shared with me. It's a real milestone to help other moms learn to sew and do alterations. I hope to keep contributing, and I thank everyone working behind the scenes — the support they give is truly wonderful."
