ACEI Book Collection
The Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) is an organization of teachers, parents, and other adults interested in promoting good educational practices for children from infancy through adolescence. The association was formed in 1892, in Saratoga Springs, New York, as the International Kindergarten Union. In 1931 it merged with the National Council for Primary Education (established in 1916), and formed the Association for Childhood Education. The Association added "International" to its name in 1946 as an indication of its concern for children throughout the world. ACEI publishes a variety of materials, including books, pamphlets, bibliographies of children's literature, the ACEI Exchange monthly, Childhood Education six times a year, and the Journal of Research in Childhood Education biennially. ACEI is the oldest professional association of its type in the United States.
The ACEI Book Collection contains 704 volumes. Of special interest is a box of miniature books and a post card album. The collection also includes works of German educator Friedrich Froebel (1792-1852), who was the father of the kindergarten concept in the 1820s and 1830s. The collection was deposited by the Association for Childhood Education International at the University of Maryland in 1987. A printed inventory of the collection is available at the Maryland Room (view pdf version).
The records of the Association for Childhood Education International can be found in the holdings of the Archives & Manuscripts Department at the University of Maryland (ARCV 87-190).
Items in the ACEI Book Collection are non-circulating. Researchers may view the collection in the Maryland Room on the first floor of Hornbake Library, Monday-Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The telephone number is (301) 405-9212. For Saturday usage of this collection, all materials must be reserved by 3:00 p.m. on Friday.
