During their years in India, Ernest Wood and his wife Hilda had become familiar with the pioneering educational work of Dr. Maria Montessori. In 1939, Maria Montessori was persona non grata with the fascist government of Mussolini for refusing to do its bidding. The Theosophical Society extended an invitation to her to come to Adyar, India. She accepted it and lived there from 1939 to 1948, During those years, many Montessori schools were founded in India. Hilda, Ernest and Maria Montessori were vital forces in their founding. It is reasonable to assume that, being in the same vicinity and working toward the same goals for some seven years, there must have been considerable interaction among the three.