Vicenta Ferrera

A Cuban educator and abolitionist who pioneered modern pedagogy in Latin America

Vicenta Ferrera (1890–1973) was a Cuban educator whose innovative teaching methods transformed education across Latin America. Born in Camagüey to a family of educators, she founded the Centro de Educación Infantil Vicenta Ferrera in 1919, the first institution in Cuba to implement Montessori principles. Her 1930 book El Método de Educación Integral introduced child-centered learning strategies still used today. During the 1933 Revolution, she became Director of Public Education, expanding rural schools and teacher training programs. Ferrera's 1940s UNESCO collaboration led to the Latin American Education Charter, establishing standardized curricula across 18 countries. Her Cuban Pedagogical Institute (1950) trained over 50,000 teachers, including Fidel Castro's education ministers. Despite opposition from Batista's regime, she maintained her schools as centers of anti-colonial resistance. Her legacy is honored through the Vicenta Ferrera National Teacher's Award, awarded annually since 1975.