Birthwise was founded in 1994 in a rented space in downtown Bridgton, Maine. At this time there was a small group of women in the area, many who had homebirths themselves, who were interested in taking classes with the hope of becoming midwives.  The intention was to provide classes to apprentice midwives who wanted some structure or benefits of group-learning for the academic component of their midwifery training. 

We changed facilities in 1998, after Heidi Fillmore-Patrick, founder of BIrthwise, noticed that a beautiful 175 year-old brick farmhouse in walking distance to town was up for auction. Heidi saw a perfect setting for the growing midwifery school and leapt at the opportunity and put in her bid. The school moved into the new facility in time for the fall 1998 semester. It has a homey feeling, high ceilings, and a sense of history-- we are sure there were many babies born in this house.

At about the same time, the Midwifery education Accreditation Council (MEAC) was creating a process of accreditation for midwifery schools and provided the needed guidance in developing the Birthwise program further. It has since transformed into a comprehensive, three-year direct-entry midwifery program that attracts students from every region of the country as well as Canada. Birthwise became pre-accredited by MEAC in 1999 and fully accredited in 2002. We became eligible to receive Federal Student Aid (Title IV funds) in 2002, and since 2004 ave been able to accept foreign students. 

This summer, Birthwise has torn down the falling-down back portion of the house that connected to the barn and is building more student rooms and expanding the midwifery practice to include an on-site birth center.   We hope this birth center will provide another option for birthing women in the area as well as provide experience for Birthwise students.