COM M U NIT Y MAGA ZINE
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ALUMNI MAGAZINE Volume 4, No. 1 - Winter 2019 Cynthia Shore Editor Janine Pearson Graphic Designer Pat Lord Development and Marketing Director BOARD OF TRUSTEES Melissa Coleman, President Andy Smith, Vice President Janine Pearson, Secretary Cheryl Slover-Linett, Treasurer Danelle Aragon Adam Clark Pam Colgate Fletcher Lathrop Cita Riley Chris Taylor Ex-officio Gerson Perez, School Administrator Carole Cressman, Campus Manager Karl Johnson, Pedagogical Chair Thomas Keppel, Business Manager Pat Lord, Development and Marketing Director Jennifer Warren, Admissions Director The Santa Fe Waldorf School is an independent, nonprofit organization with accreditation through the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America (AWSNA) and the National Council for Private School Accreditation (NCPSA). Additionally, our school is a full member of the Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America (WECAN) and the New Mexico Athletics Association (NMAA). We welcome and serve students from a variety of social, economic, ethnic, cultural, and international backgrounds.
What a wonderful time of the year this is! As the days get shorter and the weather gets colder, our souls naturally turn to look inside and invite self-reflection. Following this impulse, our community has begun a school-wide exercise to define the school vision for the next five years. We started by acknowledging that envisioning our future is a conversation between us as individuals and the spiritual being of the school. Opening our minds and hearts to that Higher Will is opening the door for us to create a unified image of what we will manifest as a reality in the coming years. Establishing the vision of the school we want to create is the first step of a long-range plan that will include specific initiatives that we will then pursue in different areas. As we stand on the verge of a new century of Waldorf education, we are not only focusing our attention on the future, but are bravely addressing the challenges of our times. All of our more than two hundred students were born in the third millennium and confront a rapidly changing social environment. Aware that these changes bring new challenges in and outside the classroom, the school as a whole is actively working to promote a healthier social life, not only among the students but also among the adults in our community. We started this effort in November with the Healthy Social Life Symposium, a full week of activities for students, teachers, and parents that will be followed by similar initiatives throughout the rest of the year. Additional work is being done internally, reviewing the tools we use to address the children’s changing needs in terms of healthy social interaction, boundaries, and discipline. In between these important endeavors to address our present and future, the school is vibrantly moving forward with traditional celebrations such as Michaelmas, the Lantern Walk, and All Hallows’ Eve, all of which happen alongside the magic of learning, thanks to our devoted faculty and staff. There are so many exciting things happening in and around our school due to our dedicated community of students, teachers, staff members, board members, alumni, and friends that we decided to slightly reorient the scope of this publication to reflect every aspect of the active life of the school. For that reason, we are renaming this publication the Santa Fe Waldorf Community Magazine, which will now include new sections that explore our developmentally appropriate curriculum (see pages 6 and 14), as well as news about the Waldorf movement in our region and around the world (see page 3). We are living in an exciting time at our school, and we hope this publication motivates you to approach and get involved in our thriving community. Enjoy the winter season! Gratefully,
D
SFWS Summer Camp project
Gerson Pérez
Photo by Dham Khalsa Photography
Dear Alumni, Friends and Community Members:
SFWS TODAY: News Highlights IN THIS ISSUE
Athletics
With this issue of the newly-named Santa Fe Waldorf Community Magazine, we proudly offer a new publication with an expanded focus. The response to the first six issues of the magazine has been so positive, we knew it was time to reach out to more of our current and future friends. We will continue to report on the lives and successes of our amazing SFWS alumni, while also speaking to our entire Waldorf community. Therefore, our mission with this new magazine is to build and strengthen ties within and outside the SFWS community, spread the word about the common-sense effectiveness of the Waldorf curriculum in today’s global environment, and to highlight the achievements of our students as they go out into a world that, now more than ever, needs what they have to offer with their hearts, heads and hands.
ALUMNI PROFILES Brad Linch
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High School Class of 2010
Alice Milliken Grade 8 Class of 2004
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Gala Hoffman Samoskiezyn High School Class of 2010
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Elijah Andes High School Class of 2014
18
4 The Benefits of Handwork 6 Our Approach to Reading 14
TEACHER PROFILES Enrique Otero
Karleen Whitcomb
9 19
PARENT PERSPECTIVE
David Burling
13
SFWS TODAY
News Highlights Waldorf’s 100th Anniversary SFWS Students Perform in Korea Fundraising Events Save the Dates High School Creativity Alumni News
Volleyball The SFWS girls varsity volleyball team played strong all season facing tough division 2A and 3A opponents. Led by senior Co-Captains Colibri Yellowhorse and Nicoya Dant, the team won the District Championship. Nicoya Dant was voted District 7-A Player of the Year and Grade 9’s Sophia Carpenter was voted District 7-A Defensive Specialist of the Year. Joining them on the All-District First Team are Colibri Yellowhorse and freshman Nina Otero. Freshman Amiyah Dant made the All-District Second Team.
Waldorf Community SFWS to Mentor Lakota Waldorf The Santa Fe Waldorf School has agreed to be the Mentor School for the Lakota Waldorf School (LWS), a 26-year-old registered initiative on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. SFWS Grade 8 teacher Daisy Barnard also visited the school as our representative at the fall delegates meeting of the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America, held at LWS. The schools are excited about this new relationship and expect it will encourage inspiration, friendship and collaboration for both communities.
Curriculum
WALDORF CURRICULUM International Study Program
Soccer The SFWS varsity soccer team, covering grades 8-12, is joining the way of the school’s varsity basketball teams by forming a “WildWolves” coop team with Desert Academy for the next three years. The new team gamely weathered a change in coaches to finish at 4-11 in the season and 3-4 in the district.
Students Win Place in Honor Clinic Orchestra & All State Music Conference Seven SFWS students were chosen to participate in District 4’s Honor Clinic Orchestra. The group (pictured below) performed on October 18 at Los Alamos High School with students from New Mexico School for the Arts, St. Michael’s High School, Capital High School, Los Alamos High School, Mandela International School, Eldorado Community School, and Ortiz Middle School. And congratulations to Lily Clark (sophomore, violin) and Colibri Yellowhorse (senior, violin) for their acceptance to this year’s 76th All State Music Conference! Honor Clinic Students L to R: Indie Rain Russell (Gr. 11, viola), Dahlia Reyes-Newell (Gr. 7, violin), Madeline Blose (Gr. 7, violin), Ruby Stroope (Gr. 6, viola), Noa Schneiderman (Gr. 6, violin), Sophia Osmera (Gr. 7, viola), and Ida Rothschild (Gr. 8, violin).
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SFWS TODAY: News Highlights Community Members to Teach Electives in SFWS Pilot Middle School Program Santa Fe Waldorf School is initiating an exciting new pilot program in which interested parents, grandparents, siblings, and community members will teach elective courses drawn from their own expertise to students in Grades 7 and 8 on Friday afternoons for four- to five-week sessions. The first session offered the students a choice of a cooking course taught by SFWS teacher and parent Molly Mackinnon, a comic art workshop taught by parent Oisin Hughes, or a prayer-flag making workshop taught by SFWS teacher Leigh Patton. The aim is to bring more options to the middle school curriculum while also inviting more community participation.
Faculty and Staff New & Departing Board Members We’re excited to announce that we have three new members on the SFWS Board of Trustees: Danelle Aragon is our current Handwork Teacher, a former member of the College of Teachers (as well as former Grades Section Chair), and has been with the school since 2001. Pam Colgate originally joined SFWS in 2001 and, after retiring in 2017, she re-joined us this year as College Guidance Counselor. Chris Taylor has been a parent at the school since 2017 and brings management experience to the Board. Additionally, we’d like to thank Roberto Aponte, who recently turned in his resignation, for his year of service to SFWS as a member of the Board. Waldorf Training and Continuing Education We are celebrating the multiple faculty members who completed training or continuing studies in Waldorf education with Antioch University New England this past summer. In Elementary Education, Arina Pittman (Early Childhood), Brenna Rothschild (Grade 3), and Karleen Whitcomb (Kindergarten Lead Teacher) were certified, as was SFWS parent and Board member Andy Smith in High School education with a focus in math. Jill McCormick and Thomas Baudhuin both were certified in Transdisciplinary Education as a Healing Art, a program for experienced teachers who are deepening their understanding of Waldorf education from a therapeutic perspective. McCormick also completed three years of work and study at the Tama-do, The Academy of Sound, Color, and Movement. 2
Development News New Buses! Thanks to Community Support After two years of successful campaigning for financial support to buy new vehicles for student field trips and sports events, SFWS bought two “gently used” buses in October to start replacing our small aging fleet. Although our plan originally focused on vans, the Board and staff did extensive research on the safest vehicles available and concluded that buses are best suited for both safety and gear transportation needs. The buses are already in use, and are clearly the most popular vehicles for sports and trips! We will keep one of the two retired buses for emergencies, which leaves one 14-passenger bus which needs a new engine and a new home. For the inventive mind, the cabin could be transformed. If you have any interest, please contact our business manager Thomas Keppel at tkeppel@santafewaldorf.org. Around the World in 100 Days This year marks Waldorf education’s 100th anniversary celebration (see page 3). To join in the global and year-long celebration, make a gift to the Annual Fund’s “Around the World in 100 Days”. Building on the “Million-fold Postcard Exchange” in which 1,200 Waldorf schools have participated, we have put up a large map of the world in the school parking lot. As the families from each class reach 100% Annual Fund participation, that class will have the opportunity to color in an ocean or continent. A single gift or recurring gift of $10 for 10 months will help us grow our wilderness program, a cornerstone of Rudolf Steiner’s educational philosophy. To donate towards our $196,300 goal, go to: santafewaldorf.org/donate. Development News continued on page 15
Awards
We are thrilled to share that SFWS is ranked as #1 in Best Private K-12 Schools in New Mexico for the second year in a row by Niche.com. Thank you to all our faculty, staff, students, and parents who help make SFWS a great school! Niche is a site that researches and compiles data on US colleges and schools.
OUR WISH LIST! Want to help Santa Fe Waldorf School in a tangible way? We would love assistance in purchasing a wide variety of items needed to enhance our programs! All items donated should be in excellent or new condition. We will be happy to provide donors with documentation for use in income tax preparation. We need:
● Picnic tables for throughout the campus (8 tables seating 6-8) ● Umbrellas for picnic tables (8) ● Window tinting - 6 large windows ● Window treatments throughout the school buildings ● Gravel for the parking lots ● Play structures for all sections of the school: climbing walls, slides, swings ● Wood chips for gardens
If you would like to help, please contact us at plord@santafewaldorf.org.
SFWS GLOBAL: Waldorf 100th Anniversary POSTCARDS, BEES, DANCE AND THEATER MARK THE GLOBAL CENTENNIAL On September 19, 2019, Waldorf education proudly marked its 100th anniversary. However, the global party will keep going through June 2020 as schools around the world celebrate with social and environmental impact projects. Designed to stimulate dialogue around positive human values and a revitalized relationship with our earth, these communal projects, from Japan, Namibia, Australia, Germany, the US and more, include videos about the current relevance of Waldorf education, dance performances, theater festivals, regional conferences, global fun runs, and concerts with music written by composers around the world specifically for the centennial.
SFWS Administrator Gerson Pérez stands with Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber holding the “Waldorf Education’s 100th Anniversary Day” proclamation.
Santa Fe Waldorf School has been doing its part starting with the “Bird’s Eye View” project in which school communities assemble for a drone video. As SFWS opened the school year with the Lily Ceremony, the community gathered and paused to wave upward (pictured left). SFWS Board Vice President Andy Smith, who operated the drone, writes about the moment and why it was the right gesture that honored both the past and the future: “It’s good to remember that we are part of a community of over 1,200 other Waldorf schools across the globe. As a matter of fact, there is only one time zone that doesn’t have a Waldorf school and it’s somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. After 100 years, Waldorf education is changing. Schools are beginning to incorporate their local culture into their own curriculum while still providing a developmentally appropriate and experiential education. The curriculum of a Waldorf school is something that is living, changing and evolving. It is not something that can be nailed down and disseminated to the masses. Our education is part of a community that is eternal, that which celebrates the moment with reverence. That is what we will contribute to a hundred years of work and will continue for the next hundred years and beyond.” The City of Santa Fe and the State of New Mexico also recognized Waldorf excellence. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Mayor Alan Webber both declared September 19, 2019, as “Waldorf Education’s 100th Anniversary Day”.
“ I T’S GOOD TO REMEMBER WE ARE PART OF A COMMUNITY OF OVER 1,200 WALDORF SCHOOLS ACROSS THE GLOBE”
Since the fall of 2018, as part of the “Million-fold Postcard Exchange,” SFWS students have written 1,200 postcards to all Waldorf schools around the globe and received hundreds in return, which were displayed on a colorful “postcard wall” at school events. SFWS has also embraced the centennial’s “Bees and Trees” project. Our current Grade 6 class went to local Earth Day 2019 events last spring, running a booth that demonstrated how to make bee “houses” out of old water bottles and newspaper. In conjunction with the Santa Fe Watershed Association, Waldorf High School students and Grade 6 have “adopted” sections of the Santa Fe River for 2018 and 2019 and collect trash along their specific stretch of river four times a year.
Santa Fe kids visiting the SFWS Earth Day booth. 3
CURRICULUM: International Study Program DISCOVERING NEW FAMILIES AND NEW CONTINENTS SFWS Renaissance Scholar and 11th grader Deedee Jansen (pictured left) spent July through September at the Samford Valley Steiner School in Brisbane, Australia, as part of our International Study Program. She then returned home in October with her exchange “host sister” Pearl Asher (pictured right), who will attend the high school until the December break. The two students record their impressions about the exchange:
Deedee writes:
ible. I loved ing and incred az am as w ge an one that I have Going on exch lture, especially cu r not he ot an t stralia, but I’m learning abou was born in Au d t da ha y w M e . or to pl n got to ex a connectio so I never really d en an tiz ds ci en n fri lia w ra an Aust meeting ne til now. I loved that meant un . es nc new experie having grand or cities. I lived visit three maj to t go ge I lia ra with my exchan While in Aust ounding area rr ops su st n its ai d tr an o e use was tw in Brisban ho s d’ da l’s ar aw Pe rs. a walk ay family, the Ashe om’s house was m r he d an , ty ci city and living away from the y living in a big az cr as ver w It h. riences I had ne from the beac were two expe t e ge es st Th ju h. ld ac ou be near the ornings I w m e th in es lik im met hat it was e had before. So d experience w an h, ac as be e th nt that there w up and walk to e big city mea th in g f el in ys liv m d d un by myself. An something I fo ansportation, self-reliant and e or m be great public tr to e m ed w lo al t. It using quite a bi om. ed fre e or m ve ha get a visa for went there to e W . ey the dn Sy sit e I got to visit I also got to vi and while ther S, U ea e th nc rie to e pe got to ex Pearl to com atown. I really in man Ch hu d as an g e in us opera ho tists perform ar et re st w a sa I re, so took different cultu city feeling. I al was such a bigit out parts d ab l an s al n ue ar at st We got to le . ne ts. ur bo el M by famous artis class trip to mous paintings fa e se d an ty of the ci e inspiring. It really was aw r two weeks. New Zealand fo ed sit vi I ip tr y I hadn’t seen At the end of m embers whom m ily m e fa e se rent experienc There I got to as a totally diffe w . It is rm Th fa e. a tim y town on for a long as living in a tin een w gr I w as ho lia d ra an st s from Au e the view se to st ju e, er th ico. was incredible than New Mex —so different everything was iss dn’t help but m n Under, I coul ow D d ve lo I And though ! the green chile
Pearl writes:
America is so ex citing and diffe rent, and while being half way not even through my st ay, I feel that I enced a lot. Like have experimost other Au stralians, I wou grown up wat ld say I have ching American television and everything “com so to see e to life” has be en truly fascin ating. I am greatly en joying meetin g the people of I find that each Santa Fe. and every one of them is so ki intelligent. Beca nd and use I live in the big city, everyt quite different hing here is from my life ba ck home. I live has an approx in a city that imate populatio n of 2.5 million coming here ha people, so s definitely be en a big change for me. Learning how to tip and how to do tax sepa restaurants] ha rately [at s been strange but enjoyable, out what season and finding s are has been very fun as wel Australia which l (unlike just has hot an d slightly hott would not have er). I also changed my ex change studen (or her family fo t, Deedee r that matter) for the world. positivity has be Her eternal en truly inspiri ng and I’m very we’ve become glad that such good frien ds. On the who loving being he le, I am re, not only be cause I am lear about America, ning more but because I am actually lear about Australia ning a lot by seeing the differences be countries. I can’ tween the two t wait to see w hat else Santa Fe has to offer .
To learn more about our International Study Program, visit
santafewaldorf.org/international-education 4
or contact Jen Warren at 505.467.6431 or jwarren@santafewaldorf.org.
SFWS TODAY: Music SFWS STUDENTS PERFORM IN KOREA WITH INTERNATIONAL ORCHESTRA In July, 10 high school students, including three from the Santa Fe Waldorf School, flew to Icheon, South Korea, to participate in a highly successful International Youth Orchestra Festival, sponsored by Sister Cities International. Grade 10’s Lily Clark and former SFWS students Gabriel Boston-Friedman and Rebecca Sciarretta were joined by seven other students from area high schools and led by Santa Fe Waldorf Orchestra Teacher Lee Harvey. Clark has been playing the violin for seven years, is an accomplished singer, and plays for the Santa Fe Waldorf School high school orchestra. The students were picked not just as musicians but as cultural ambassadors, notes Harvey. “This event isn’t about competition. This is about students who are willing to be ambassadors, be completely immersed in Korean culture and go on a crazy adventure to play music in another country,” she says. The group was joined by students from China, Japan, France, and Saudi Arabia to form one global youth orchestra. Each group brought music for the orchestra to perform that represented their city. The Santa Feans brought an arrangement of a Huapango, a Mexican folk dance. To see the orchestra’s performance, go to: youtube.com/watch?v=HAH15xDj7T0
Lilly Clark, Grade 10 “I was very excited to travel across the world to Icheon, South Korea to share my love for music with others and experience their culture. I am so glad that I got to share this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity with such incredible people. We came together to share one thing we all have in common, our love of music. Reaching out to unite by music is truly a beautiful thing that all communities should have a chance to experience, and I hope someday soon we can do it again. My goal in life is just to put myself out there to see the world. Ever since I can remember, I have been wanting to travel and see other countries and cultures besides my own. Our trip to Icheon has made my yearning for travel even stronger. I completely immersed myself in their culture and absorbed every last bit! The concert was spectacular. The thrill of being on stage with all of the people from different cultures was a feeling I will never forget. It was hard for me to believe that in just a short period of time we had come together to make a truly magnificent concert. I hope someday soon I will get another chance at this wonderful opportunity.”
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR COMMUNITY MAGAZINE! Print or Digital? We have reduced the number of printed magazines not only because of environmental concerns, and print and mailing costs, but we are finding that the digital version of this magazine allows us exciting flexibility with the content, which we will be exploring in future issues. However, there is no substitute to holding a publication in your hands and settling in for a good read. We are happy to offer a printed copy for the Summer and Winter 2020 editions for the low price of $15 a year. Please contact Pat Lord at plord@santafewaldorf.org for more information and payment details. To view a digital version of this and past issues of this magazine, visit issuu.com/santafewaldorfschool.
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CURRICULUM: Handwork HANDWORK LAYS THE FOUNDATION FOR ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
by Cynthia Marshall Shore
Waldorf is well known for the practice of teaching students to knit and sew well into middle school. What is less known is that Waldorf educators consider these skills to be an essential cornerstone of the entire curriculum. Why? “Handwork has always been really important for the development of the will,” notes SFWS Handwork Teacher Danelle Aragon. A child’s ability to focus and complete a project is considered an essential trait that Waldorf strengthens throughout the pedagogy. “The will is critical for any human being because we need to be able to follow through with our work,” she says. Handwork delivers these benefits by contributing to brain development in a fun and practical way. With knitting, for example, “when hands are working together in a rhythmic and consistent manner, the synapses are actually increasing between the left and right hemispheres of the brain,” says Aragon. Other more
Handwork Teacher Danelle Aragon mainstream curriculums do not focus on the physical development of the child as much, which means often only one side of the brain is stimulated, she notes. The handwork curriculum introduces children to projects of increasing difficulty over the grades, developing the skills of muscular coordination, concentration, artistic design, and understanding written and verbal instructions as they work on traditional crafts. Aragon also includes historically relevant regional skills like weaving with Navajo looms, moccasin making, pineneedle basketry and Colcha embroidery, which comes from the Spanish Colonial period in New Mexico. But she is finding that handwork also has a more modern and relevant application. Based on the idea of a sewing circle, Aragon allows students to talk together as they work. “This is so very important in our time right now, especially with the electronic age and the media, which actually disconnects us from one another,” she says. “Being able to have time to meet another human being and converse, lets children re-learn a lot of the social skills they have lost.” 6
In Grades 1 and 2, students focus on knitting. “After about age 6 or 7, students can physically bring their hands together and do the knitting. Bringing the right and left hands together is a great exercise for crossing the mid-line and making sure the two sides of the brain are actually speaking to each other,” she says. Students create practical items like flute bags and stuffed animals, and in Grade 2, they mirror their second-grade studies of remarkable historical figures by creating hand-puppet saints and their associated animals, such as a bird for St. Francis. Grade 3 has children moving on to crocheting clothing like hats and vests to mirror the “nine year change” when “everything is shifting and emotionally they need something different. They have to learn something new and fresh,” Aragon says. Embroidery is the core of Grade 4. “Out of the entire curriculum, this is the finest work they do because of how precise it is, and how necessary it is to be focused and be able to do continuous movement over and over,” she says. This age is when children are beginning to test their abilities to focus and participate. “All those things we hope for them in the classroom, we can practice really well in handwork,” Aragon adds.
The fifth-grade course is aligned around plant fibers to coordinate with the general curriculum focus of botany. Students start the year by dyeing all the yarn used by Grades 1 through 5 with natural sources like chamisa and the cochineal beetle. Students also soften yucca plant fibers to then create ropes, and collect pine needles for weaving pine-needle baskets. These more durable materials are chosen on purpose. They have the “strength we want to see in the Grade 5 student; an inner strength... where we want a person to be upright and strong for their own good,” she says.
“ W HEN HANDS ARE WORKING TOGETHER IN A RHYTHMIC MANNER, THE SYNAPSES ARE ACTUALLY INCREASING BETWEEN THE LEFT AND RIGHT HEMISPHERES OF THE BRAIN” Grade 6 is another turning point as students turn 12 and often start to experience difficult social change. “They need to work with leather,” says Aragon. “Leather takes so much strength to work—you are battling with it. It’s not just this tiny little sewing project...that struggle is what we really want them to have in a way that’s pushing their limits.”
FUNDRAISING EVENTS Santa Fe Waldorf Holiday Silent Auction November 26 through December 10 at 9pm Support our school by bidding on fabulous items, experiences and vacation packages just in time for the holidays! Among the many amazing items available, there will be:
• Remote Alaska getaway • Zulu Nyala African Safari • Luxury hotel stays • Santa Fe vacation rental home stays • A Private Cocktail Mixing session • Veestro Plant-Based Meal Delivery Service
Check out the SFWS Silent Auction website and get a jump on your holiday shopping! To view the full list of prizes and bid, visit
32auctions.com/sfws2019
Pillow Concert with SFWS Music Faculty January 23, 2020, 7-8pm Bring a pillow to sit on and enjoy an evening of beautiful music from our very own SFWS music faculty! Lee Harvey, Karina Wilson, and Jerry Weimer, along with their performance groups, will treat us to a variety of traditional, classical, and jazz pieces. A suggested donation of $5 - $10 per person will help support our music program and scholarships. Please join us!
Music on the Rio
In Grades 7 and 8, students start using sewing machines, which Aragon says is timely in today’s world because it teaches students how to have control over a machine, rather than a machine, such as their electronic devices, having control over them. “If you’re able to really meet this machine and find that balance, I find it’s a helpful stepping stone into working with the media, which is coming earlier and earlier,” she observes. In conjunction with the anatomy and physiology blocks in their academic classes, students create simple projects like pajama pants and go on to more complex tasks like creating clothing for the marionettes they are constructing in woodworking. Students finally end up with complex quilting projects that she says even the boys like. These projects help develop precision and ever-deepening focus. The point here, says Aragon, is to seriously push the students at this age. “If I have a challenging project, they’re totally with me. If not, they’re somewhere else.” In the high school, students move onto a different handwork curriculum that is integrated into their regular classwork. But the high school years are where the benefits of the grades curriculum can really be seen. By developing both sides of the brain, students grow in critical thinking and creativity. “Their conceptual thinking is so different. You can see the difference between a Waldorf student in high school and one in public high school. That’s when you really notice the gifts,” Aragon says.
Summer 2020 SFWS will again look toward the possibility of hosting an outfitter’s Chama River expedition. Guests will be treated to three nights and two days of rafting and beautiful scenery while enjoying music performed by students and music program director Lee Harvey at each night’s campsites. The dates will be announced in May after the BLM has completed its permit lottery. Contact Pat Lord at 505-467-6426 or plord@santafewaldorf.org for details.
Help Our School Thrive! The Santa Fe Waldorf School, like all non-profit independent schools, relies on a combination of both tuition and fundraising to support its everyday operations. Generous donations to our Annual Fund and supporting our events are very important to build a bridge between our income and expenses. With your help, together we can help our school grow and flourish year after year. Visit santafewaldorf.org/donate-now. 7
ALUMNI PROFILE
BRINGING A WALDORF PERSPECTIVE TO THE FORTUNE 1000 How was your academic experience after leaving Waldorf, both personally and academically? Academics after Waldorf were different for a couple reasons. For one, the change of scenery was a bit of a shock to the system. Going from 300 days of sunshine a year to 300 days of clouds a year really makes you appreciate sunlight. Even for a pale redhead like myself! I didn’t do much research on Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) before attending. It was by far the best school that accepted me, so it seemed a waste of time and money to visit. Secondly, I went from a school that focused on arts with a graduating class of 13 to a school that focused on technology with a graduating class of 4,000. Despite the stark difference being daunting at the time, it really didn’t end up that way. RIT and Waldorf have similar characteristics despite their front covers looking different. RIT is huge on innovation and collaboration. These might not be direct core values of Waldorf, but Waldorf’s focus on critical thinking and inclusion made the transition an easy one.
Brad Linch
High School Class of 2010
Academics after Waldorf was a great time. I studied abroad in Barcelona. I was part of a summer incubator where we received funding to work on a business. I made lifelong friends, and I took courses ranging from philosophy to computer science.
How did you choose your profession? BS Magna Cum Laude, Management Information Systems, Rochester Institute of Technology, 2014 CURRENT WORK: Enterprise Systems Engineer at Veeam Software
“I LOOK BACK ON WALDORF ALL THE TIME. IT MADE ME THINK DIFFERENTLY AND LEARN DIFFERENTLY.”
Despite being raised by an artist and going to a school focused on art and music, I was never able to activate that side of my brain. I appreciate all the teachers that tried and tried, but I can barely draw a stick figure to this day. When it came time to choose a major as a freshman in college, marketing seemed like the logical choice. I enjoy talking to people, public speaking (something I thank Waldorf for), and working with others. I did an internship the summer after my freshman year at Kodak (yes it still exists). I quickly realized marketing wasn’t for me though. I grew up around talented people that had tangible skills with an instrument or with a paintbrush, and I wanted the same for myself. Therefore, I chose Management Information Systems which can be described as the middle ground between business and computer science. It was the best of both worlds. Not only did I take courses in economics, finance, and organizational behavior, but I also learned tangible skills in coding and programming courses.
Where have you worked and what is your current work today? The best thing about RIT is they require twelve months of paid working experience before you can graduate. I spent a full year working at TurboTax as a Project Manager before having a degree. This made job hunting after college less stressful, since you have a year of experience and the competition has zero.
Linch at Macchu Pichu in Peru 8
When I graduated college, I was choosing between a banking job in New York City, or a 24-month Engineering Rotational Program at the company EMC, which later got acquired by Dell Technologies. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do, so I chose the rotational program which allowed me to rotate from engineering to product management to sales. This led me to where I am today, which I am grateful for. My occupation is an Enterprise Systems Engineer for Veeam Software in Boulder, CO. I cover forty Fortune 1000 companies, and I consult with them on how to optimize their data centers in ways that are cost effective, resilient from inside and outside attacks, and highly available so that end users are never waiting for their webpage or app to load.
My first memory at Waldorf was taking the Mad Minute math test in 4th grade after moving to Santa Fe from a public school in Atlanta. I remember finishing the test in the back row and raising my hand that I was done, since we were being timed. The whole class stopped and looked back at me like I was from Mars. Little do they know, I was just as in awe of them when it came to their art and music creations. That moment though made me think I was not cut out to be a Waldorf student. I thought my brain and personality maybe just didn’t fit, but I was wrong. I look back on Waldorf all the time. It made me think differently and learn differently. You couldn’t pay me any amount of money in the world today to do Eurythmy, but when you are a teenager, it’s important to learn how to pretend to like something you don’t like. That is a valuable skill in both work and personal life. I look back on the plays and acting we did every year. In public school, I wanted to be the bush in the back with one line. My first play at Waldorf was in 4th grade, and I had to play Thor and dress as a girl to get my hammer back. To this day, I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous. Now, I enjoy public speaking and do it on a weekly basis in my job. I look back on the river trips and hiking trips we did. My family wasn’t an outdoors family. Today, I enjoy the outdoors almost every weekend living in Colorado. I can’t imagine not having Waldorf open up that world to me. The outdoors is where all my favorite hobbies live.
Please describe your daily life. I travel almost every week for work. Most of the travel is domestic, but about two to four times a year I travel internationally. I spend the work day with clients providing guidance or giving presentations at conferences. When I am home, my girlfriend Logan and I will usually do an evening hike or bike ride and then cook dinner. My favorite is when we make sushi!
TEACHER PROFILE Enrique Otero High School History & Arts Teacher High School Class Sponsor Soccer and Basketball Coach
Photo by Dham Khalsa Photography
Looking back, how does your Waldorf education benefit your life today?
As a Peruvian transplant to the United States, Enrique Otero had dreams of being a journalist. However, after life intervened and guided him to Waldorf education, he can look back and see clearly that everything worked out as it should. “I love being a teacher, so my Plan B became my life plan,” Otero says with a smile. He grew up in Lima, Peru, and came to the US to study journalism and international relations at San Francisco State University. After college, Otero freelanced as a journalist in the Bay area until his son Liam (SFWS HS 2019, currently a freshman at Concordia College in Chicago), was born. Now a new parent faced with providing his family a steady income and—most importantly at that time—health insurance, Otero went to Plan B: teaching. He notes with a grin that in the good old days of 2004, he had to start looking for positions “the old fashioned way without the internet”. Noticing an ad for a Spanish teacher for grades 1 to 10 at the East Bay Waldorf School in El Sobrante, CA, the native Spanish speaker realized he had nothing to lose by applying for the job. Otero did a little research on Waldorf before the interview and practice classes, and “miraculously, I landed the position,” he says. With no experience other than being a teaching assistant in college, Otero jumped in at the deep end and...found it very hard. Teaching a foreign language to all those grades “taught me a lot—it was terrific training. It pushed me at all levels and very challenging,” he notes. But something else also happened. “Once I was exposed to Waldorf, I realized not only that I liked it but that it was the right way of teaching. The pedagogy really resonated with me. I was hooked, so I went for the Waldorf teacher training,” says Otero.
What do you do for fun? Logan and I either bike, hike, ski, or camp when we are in Colorado. Occasionally, we do a race in an attempt to stay motivated to workout. We enjoy visiting friends though on weekends in different parts of the country, and we try to take an international trip about once a year. The last couple trips were Brazil and Japan. Next up is Greece! Contact Brad at 505-920-0339.
After two years as a Spanish teacher, he transitioned to teaching history, which he thought he might like better; “The material is more intellectual, which I prefer”. Unfortunately, after one year, the East Bay Waldorf High School closed. He then landed a position at the Santa Fe Waldorf School and moved to Santa Fe in 2008, where Liam started second grade, and daughter Nina, now in Grade 9, started preschool. Otero now teaches both history and art, has sponsored two high school classes through to graduation, and will finish his third in June of 2020. He also coached soccer and basketball for seven years. Since he fell into Waldorf as a teacher without really trying, has he even been tempted to try other educational systems? “As I said, I’m hooked,” notes Otero. “Waldorf truly prepares our students to be citizens of this very challenging world.”
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SFWS TODAY: Festivals, Events and Trips Pet Parade
Michaelmas
Halloween
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Photos by Genevieve Russell
Photos by Susanna Green
Photos by Koray Gates and Perihan Sheard
Fall 2019 Class Trips Grade 2 at Reunity Farm
Grade 4 at Chaco Canyon
Grade 6 at Carlsbad Caverns
Grade 8 at Jack’s Creek in Pecos
Grades 9-12 at Vallecitos Wilderness Retreat
Photos by Erin O’Neill
Photos by Andrea Feigel
Photos by Jennifer Medley
Grade 3 at Green Tractor Farm
Photos by Devon Corbet
Grade 5 at Valle Caldera
Grade 7 at the United World College
Photos by Carole Cressman
Photos by Serenity Fuentes
Photos by Koray Gates and Elliot Ryan
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ALUMNI PROFILE Alice Milliken
Grade 8, 2004
Santa Fe Prep, 2008 BA, Modern History and German, University of Michigan, 2015 MA, Journalism, City, University of London, UK, 2017 CURRENT WORK: Digital Video Intern, CNN International Visiting Lecturer, City, University of London Editor, The Tip Off podcast
A JOURNALIST HELPING PEOPLE BETTER UNDERSTAND WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE WORLD How was your academic experience after leaving Waldorf, both personally and academically? I left Waldorf after eighth grade when I was 15 and attended Santa Fe Preparatory School. I was ready to move to a different setting, as I had been in the same cohort since preschool. Moving to Prep was certainly an adjustment, but the teachers there were encouraging and many shared that the students they had taught from Waldorf were some of the most creative thinkers that they had the pleasure of teaching. This would be a consistent reaction from teachers and colleagues throughout my studies and working life. Waldorf is known to encourage students to think for themselves, explore their imaginations and forge their own way in the world. Prep allowed me to define myself within a new social group. It also gave me the opportunity to explore my love for theater and singing that would not have been possible at Waldorf at the time. I excelled academically and struggled personally, as any teenager does. I dabbled in the arts at Bard College for two years before taking a break from my studies. In 2012, I transferred to the University of Michigan and chose to study modern history and German (an influence from elementary school). I went on to complete a Master’s in journalism at City, University of London in the UK.
How did you choose your profession? I have always been interested in people’s stories. I chose to study history because it gave me a chance to study the context of events that shaped the world I grew up and lived in. Journalism for me is like writing about history in real time, often uncovering uncomfortable and unpalatable truths about the world. Much of the work I do involves a lot of research and fact-checking information in order to tell more complete and accurate stories that will help people better understand what is happening in the world around them. Bringing information and stories to the public is why I became a journalist.
Where have you worked and what is your current work today?
“THE WAY WALDORF TAUGHT ME TO THINK FOR MYSELF, BE CURIOUS AND CREATIVE, HAS BEEN INVALUABLE TO MY EDUCATION AND MY LIFE.” 12
After completing my MA in 2017, I worked at the Bureau of Investigative Journalism in London. I have spent the last few years in and out of the US and UK freelancing with various projects including Coda Story, The Tip Off podcast and the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma. Much of this involved research, editing, and production support. I am currently working at CNN International as a digital video intern and am a visiting lecturer at City, University of London where I teach Reporting Conflict to undergraduate students. I also continue to edit The Tip Off podcast and am copy-editing and fact-checking book manuscripts.
Looking back, how does your Waldorf education benefit your life today? I have always been very proud of my Waldorf education. It shaped the way I view the world in so many ways and continues to inspire me to help other students love learning the way I did. The way Waldorf taught me to think for myself, to be curious and creative, has been invaluable to my education and my life. Waldorf’s ‘liberal arts’ approach to teaching a variety of subjects in main lesson blocks has really served me in my journalism. I have a lot of scattered knowledge on a wide variety of topics, which is useful when working on a news desk.
PARENT PERSPECTIVE
SANTA FE WALDORF SCHOOL CHARMED US FROM THE FIRST VISIT By David Burling
We were taken by the beautiful campus on our first visit, but were even more delighted by the kindergarten classrooms with all natural toys—no plastics!—and the hand-made school books with drawings of Botticelli-like scenes and figures. We were also impressed by the emphasis on the relationship between the teacher and students, and the school’s lack of early pressure to learn academic skills in the preschool/kindergarten environment. Finally, we liked how the school prioritized creativity and handwork, so that activities like knitting and playing musical instruments became significant.
Alice Milliken and her husband Ronan at their 2019 wedding
Please describe your daily life. My daily life for the last two years has been very inconsistent. Life as a freelancer is an ebb and flow of projects, unemployment and scrabbling to put another body of research together for a pitch. I also spent some of this time applying for a visa to enter the UK that would allow me to get married and work, as well as planning my wedding. Now that I have a full-time gig at CNN, I work 8:30 - 5:30 Monday to Friday, teaching in the afternoon on Tuesdays, and squeezing in some exercise before coming home to cook and spend the evening with my husband.
What is the best part of what you do now? The parts of journalism I like best are the little details. I am fanatical about clean sound and video edits, and I particularly enjoy digging into research and fact-checking.
My son started in the preschool and graduated from the high school in 2011, attending Berklee College of Music thereafter, well prepared by the curriculum and teachers, and its focus on music. My daughter attended from preschool through eighth grade. As our kids progressed through the grades, we found the emphasis on critical thinking, practical applications such as handwork, art, and music, and outdoor exploration a welcome change from other local schools and a significant contributor to their growth as fully developed humans. The small size and continuity of teacher staff allowed each child to learn on his/her individual level with a feeling of family. The focus on the natural world and imagination, while attempting to minimize the forces of media during the early years, is a powerful and laudable emphasis on child development. The campus is lovely, the sports programs strong, parental and community involvement open and embracing, and our whole family greatly benefited from the education we all received. David Burling was on the SFWS Board of Trustees from 2000-2006, and 2011-2015, serving as Board President from 2002 to 2005. He currently serves on the school Strategic Planning Committee. His son Tony, HS Class 2011, attended Berklee College of Music and later taught music at SFWS. He plays in local Santa Fe bands, is on the Santa Fe Ski ski patrol, and is now working toward his EMT certification. Daughter Sophia, Grade 8, Class of 2009, attended Susquehanna University and recently moved to Philadelphia.
What do you do for fun? I read a lot of non-fiction, with the odd fantasy thrown in there. My husband and I go to a lot of concerts, to the theater in London and regularly check out shows at art museums. I love taking ‘city hikes,’ where we explore an area of London on foot to get a sense of geography and soak up the history. I also continue to spend a good amount of time knitting, crocheting, embroidering, and weaving, often while watching a television program at home.
L to R: Tony Burling as St. George, Sophia Burling in first grade, Tony as a new first grader under the flower arch after the Rose Ceremony with his sister Sophia. 13
CURRICULUM: Waldorf’s Approach to Reading TEACHING A CHILD TO READ BY ENCHANTING THE IMAGINATION
by Cynthia Marshall Shore
Waldorf education recognizes that reading is most effectively learned from a rich base of oral learning and meaning. Therefore our curriculum intentionally lays the foundations for early literacy through storytelling, singing, and movement games. By exploring how the alphabet came about, and letting the children discover each letter through words and story, writing comes out of the children’s art, and their capacity to read evolves as a natural, and often effortless, part of their overall mastery of language. The main reason for this approach, says SFWS Grade 2 Teacher Micayla Durán, is that from a Waldorf perspective, children before Grade 1 are still in a purely physical stage of their overall development. In terms of academics, “they need to really be in their bodies before going into their minds,” she notes. A key outward sign that a child is ready for reading is the arrival of their adult teeth around age 7. That is when a child goes from imitating their environment to expressing their individuality with interests Grade 1 Teacher Peter Sciarretta’s chalk In Grade 1, students associate sounds with and preferences. At this point, students are drawing of a goose reveals the letter “G”. words and pictures, like “M” for mountain. generally more attracted to reading and a teacher can make use of that. “A huge part sight words, so that by the end of Grade 2, they are comfortable of learning comes from the interests of the child,” Durán notes. with reading a basic reader on their own,” says Durán. She notes Waldorf starts the reading curriculum with vivid archetypal that one of her students who came from another school system stories that build their vocabulary. Then they start to write. “We that taught by memorization can read but not decode unknown want them to learn reading through writing,” says Durán. A words. “She’ll guess before she sounds it out, and I have to keep teacher will tell a story about an object that starts with the letter reminding her to use her sounds,” says Durán. being introduced, such as a mountain, or a goose, and draws the With the expectation that our students in third grade are genobject on the board, incorporating the letter, in this case, an M erally at a reading level with their peers in other educational or a G. The children then draw their own mountains or geese in systems, Waldorf continues in the next grades by using stories their main lesson books, and “start to link the letters to sound; and writing to focus on comprehension. “If you really want your ‘Mountain, that’s M, it sounds like mmmmm’,” notes Durán. kid to read early, they can—our brains are amazing—but we “They discover the letter in the image that comes from the story.” want them to be able to understand. [In Waldorf], children listen In Grade 2, students start writing sentences and stories. Durán uses verses from the songs her class already knows, and weekly, the class does “Kid Writing,” in which the children write their own stories from a prompt—spelling mistakes and all—and read them to her. She then writes out their stories with corrections, and the children copy them into their writing journals with accompanying pictures. “Children continue to learn through phonetics and decoding words, with some memorization of
“ A HUGE PART OF LEARNING COMES FROM THE INTERESTS OF THE CHILD”
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to or read stories and then write their own versions of it. It’s a way to see what’s really coming from them and is a creative way to work with writing, memory, and grammar.” she says.
She adds, “To me, that’s a huge benefit of Waldorf education. Much of it is looking at the children in front of you as a teacher and really trying to meet them where they are.”
Durán feels that starting reading at a later age is important. “You can’t rush learning. We can introduce things earlier, but they’re not going to stick in the same way as when part of the interest is coming from the student.” She notes that her son, Tau, Grade 6, absolutely refused to read when at another school in kindergarten. “He didn’t have a desire to learn to read and refused because it was being pushed on him to read and read fast.” Because Waldorf is more adaptive to an individual student’s pace, Tau’s desire to read came in Grade 2, and “the urge was so strong, we couldn’t keep enough books in the house,” Durán says.
This year, SFWS teachers from the first three grades are using a new book, Roadmap to Literacy, written by veteran Waldorf teachers Janet Langley and Jennifer Militzer-Kopperl. The authors studied a wide range of approaches by different Waldorf schools and put forward the best practices they discovered. Durán is excited about the new approach. “We are always assessing—especially because of the 100th Anniversary—what we are doing right and what we need to work on because Waldorf education is meant to grow, change, evolve. It is not a stagnant pedagogy,” she says.
Students practice their letter sounds and words in Grade 2
Development News (continued from Page 2) Successful Golf Tourney The 3rd Annual Summer Breeze tournament exceeded previous years’ records! With 72 players (on a full 18-hole course with several repeating teams) and some new sponsors, the day netted $10,500 to help with financial assistance for eligible families. Next year, we are considering expanding our efforts by including disk golf (aka frisbee golf). The exact date is in discussion for an early August Monday event—possibly a twilight event at that! If you are interested in lending your talents to the planning committee, please email plord@santafewaldorf.org. Wolf Pack Trail Run Our Trail Run has become a fall classic in Santa Fe! This year we had 89 participants in the 10K, 5K and Fun Run events, and raised $4,000 to support our athletic programs. The funds go to athletic scholarships, uniforms, equipment, coach stipends and more. Support SFWS Family Businesses! As part of our expanded mission to support the entire Waldorf community, we are unveiling a new feature: The SFWS Family Business Listings so that Waldorf supporters can easily find and patronize the wide range of businesses owned by school families. Learn more by visiting santafewaldorf.org/community-business. 15
ALUMNI PROFILE FINDING A HOME IN HOSPITALITY Gala Hoffman Samokieszyn High School Class of 2010
BS Resort Hospitality Management, Honors Program, Dean’s List, President’s List Florida Gulf Coast University, 2014 CURRENT WORK: Meeting and Event Planner, Gym Launch
What and how was your academic experience after leaving Waldorf, both personally and academically? For college I went to Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, FL, to study hospitality. I knew that was what I wanted to study, and the two big hospitality places in the US are Florida and Las Vegas. Because I was nervous about going from a class of 13 to a huge environment, and because I had family in Florida, I went there. I liked FGCU because it prides itself on small class sizes. I was privileged to go into even smaller classes there because I got into the honors program. I was the only hospitality student in the honors program in my graduating class. I absolutely loved FGCU. I was required to work, so I learned to balance school work with three different 500-hour internships. Definitely the most notable internship was the Disney College Program. Between my sophomore and junior year I moved to Orlando, and worked for six months and it was the best six months of my life to date. Actually in terms of the trajectory for my career, Disney was always in the cards. I had always wanted to work there and when I did my internship, it solidified that Disney was where I belonged.
How did you choose your profession? I was in third grade at Rio Grande School and had a teacher who thought I had some type of learning disorder who suggested that I get involved in numbers. (Note: Samokieszyn attended SFWS from Grade 5 through high school). My parents bought me a baking book where you had to write down all the recipes as part of the project. What we got out of that is that I loved to bake, and quickly got obsessed with the restaurant industry and famous chefs and all that. My family went to Las Vegas often and I loved the hotels, so I realized I also loved the art of service. When it came time to choose a major...I realized I could study this, and I was interested in mega-resorts.
Where have you worked and what is your current work today? Three days after college, I moved to Las Vegas because I was accepted into the management program for MGM Resorts International. I worked at the Aria Resort and Casino, a 4,004-room, five-star hotel. I completed my one-year training which looked extremely fancy on my resume, but after completion, I realized I wanted to go back to Disney. So I became a restaurant manager at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa in Orlando. That was amazing, and during those years, I met my now-husband, Mikey Samokieszyn, who works in the health-care industry. Mikey was working an 8-to-5 job, and I was working the 2 pm to 2 am shift, so that needed to change. I transitioned into a role as an event planner for hotel employees and realized that event planning was my path. I pursued event management and became an event services manager at Disney Yacht and Beach Club Resort, where I planned conventions and events throughout Walt Disney World.
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“[OUR CLASS] HAD SUCH STRONG CONNECTIONS AND WE WERE ALL SO CLOSE, I KNOW IF I EVER NEEDED THEM, THEY WOULD JUMP THROUGH HOOPS FOR ME.”
Table at Gala Samokiezyn’s February, 2019, backyard wedding in Windermere, FL.
I got married in February 2019, in my own backyard in Windermere, FL. And of course I planned my own wedding! Soon after, I had a serious talk with my husband and realized that there is more to life than corporate life and fancy things on my resume. After securing a remote event planning position at Gym Launch, I left my job at Disney so we could pursue our dream of living in North Carolina. We moved to Raleigh this year and now I plan meetings and events all over the country. I absolutely love my job and I love it here. I have time to focus on personal things.
Looking back, how does your Waldorf education benefit your life today? I think the biggest benefit I still see is that I just think differently and question things more. My circle of friends that didn’t go to Waldorf say, “What do you mean? Why do you ask that?” and I realize it’s just different schooling. We had such a small class, and even though we don’t talk often, when we see each other, it’s as if we had never left (Waldorf). We have such strong connections and we were all so close, I know if I ever needed them, they would jump through hoops for me.
SAVE THE DATES 33rd Annual Holiday Faire December 7, 2019, 10 am-3 pm Rudolph’s Diner, the Sweet and Savory Café, the Wonder Shoppe, children’s games, the Artisan Market and magical performances and more await visitors, friends and alumni. We hope to see you there!
Mayfaire May 1, 2020, 10:45 am-2 pm Welcome spring at our traditional Mayfaire celebration, complete with maypoles, flower crowns, and the ever-popular cake walk.
Grade 8 Promotion Ceremony June 4, 2020, 5:30 pm-6:30 pm Come cheer as our 8th Graders leave middle school and look forward to their high school years!
Rose Ceremony and High School Commencement June 5, 2020 Help celebrate and send off the High School Class of 2020 with the Rose Ceremony in the morning from 8:45 am to 9:45 am in the Hooper Hall Meadow, and commencement exercises from 5:30 pm to 7 pm at Christ Church in Santa Fe.
Fundraising Events Support our school programs by attending our fundraising events throughout the year. See a select listing on page 7 or, for our complete calendar of events, please visit
santafewaldorf.org/events
Please describe your daily life. I live in North Carolina with my husband, my dog and my cat. We just bought a house so I work on my house, and plan events, while also studying for my Certified Meeting Planner certification.
What is the best part of what you do now? I really love my job. I’m the fun person—I never give anyone bad news. Everyone is excited when I’m involved because it means a party gathering; always a sense of community. The level of intricacy and detail of what I do is what gets me excited.
What do you do for fun? Right now, I love being outside in weather that doesn’t want to kill me! I go outside every chance we get and go on nature trails. And I still love to bake—I’m not going to lie! Last year was a big transition. All I used to want was a fancy title and I did it! But now I realize I can have the fancy title and also find personal happiness.
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ALUMNI PROFILE Elijah Andes High School Class of 2014
BA Magna Cum Laude, English Austin College, 2018 CURRENT WORK: Freelance Writer
“WITHOUT THE TEACHERS AND EDUCATION I RECEIVED AT WALDORF, THERE’S NO DOUBT IN MY MIND THAT I WOULDN’T HAVE THE PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL SUCCESS I AM EXPERIENCING TODAY. ”
TURNING A LOVE OF ENGLISH INTO A THRIVING WRITING CAREER How was your academic experience after leaving Waldorf, both personally and academically? After graduating from Waldorf, I attended Austin College (AC)—a small liberal arts school outside of Dallas, Texas. My academic and personal experiences at AC were terrific. I chose to major in English with an emphasis on creative writing, and minored in Education and Art. My journey at AC eventually concluded with a thesis on the intersection between Victorian Poetry and Darwinian Evolution, which allowed me to graduate magna cum laude with honors in English. The professors at AC are very focused on working closely with students—for example, my thesis was a one-on-one project with a professor that chose to partner with me personally and took an entire year, which was great for me. Knowing that my professors had my back and believed in me really allowed me to experiment with my writing, and grow as a learner and thinker. The liberal-arts approach at AC allowed me to develop my critical thinking abilities in disciplines ranging from the anthropology of sex and gender, to post-modern poetry, to the philosophy of faith and reason, which was hugely formative for my beliefs and personal development.
How did you choose your profession? I sort of fell into freelance content and copy writing. One of my professors in my senior year wouldn’t stop asking me to pursue freelance writing, so I did. There definitely wasn’t a four-year lead-up or anything, and it certainly wasn’t planned. I was actually going to teach English—I’m about 95% done with a Master’s degree in Education—but all of a sudden, my writing took off and I decided to follow it. I started shooting out pieces I had written to various organizations, and got picked up by several to work on digital copy writing and content writing campaigns. I also got picked up by a freelance talent agency, which was sort of the push I needed to help me pursue freelance writing full-time. Everything from there on is history. I really enjoyed working with businesses and individuals to sort of identify their brand and tell their story, so I kept on pursuing it and now it’s what I do full-time.
Where have you worked and what is your current work today? I currently work as a freelance content and copy writer (you can check out my website—ecawrites.com—to see some of my work). I’ve worked with dozens of organizations. Some of my current clients include: The International Justice and Public Safety Network, Flourish Advertising, PayByPhone, HJR Global, Trilio, Internet Contrasts, and Spatial Business Solutions. I write ad campaigns, blogs, journal articles, whitepapers, and eBooks for my clients. I’m definitely a ‘jack of all trades’ in the industry, which is probably why I’ve been able to find success in a relatively cut-throat market. I’m shortly moving to New York City to live in an overpriced studio apartment as large as I am tall and pursue some writing opportunities there, so we’ll see how that works out.
Looking back, how does your Waldorf education benefit your life today? I’d say the critical thinking abilities Waldorf helped me develop were probably the most formative part of my high school education. Since I work in a creative 18
TEACHER PROFILE industry, having well-developed critical thinking abilities is a huge benefit. Of course, the teachers I had at Waldorf played a massive role in my personal development. Without the teachers and education I received at Waldorf, there’s no doubt in my mind that I wouldn’t have the personal and professional success I am experiencing today.
Please describe your daily life. My day-to-day life is pretty simple. I wake up (hopefully at around 9 am) and write for about five hours for my clients. After that, I typically spend some time on personal writing (I’m a fan of short stories and poetry), and exercise. I also do all the other things (eat, sleep, breath) that I need to do to live. Managing my time is definitely the most challenging part of freelancing. It’s very easy for me to overwork myself, so I monitor how much I work reasonably stringently. I generally try and lead a relatively simple life. I find that the less I feel I "need," the happier I am.
What is the best part of what you do now? Honestly, just being able to write for a living is pretty incredible. It’s definitely the art form I feel most "gifted" at, for whatever that’s worth. I’ve always loved writing, so being able to write for a living is a reward in and of itself. I also love the freedom and variety that freelancing gives me. I don’t suspect I’ll be freelancing much longer, but I’ve certainly enjoyed it. As I mentioned earlier, I enjoy working with people to help them tell their stories. That’s how I see my writing and being able to do that for a living is pretty amazing.
What do you do for fun? The writing I do in my personal time brings a lot of joy to my life. Lifting weights, running and hiking are probably my favorite non-writing related activities—I spend so much time staring at screens every day that being able to get outside to a gym or a scenic spot and move my body is essential for my sanity. Other than that, I really enjoy playing music (I play the guitar, viola and piano). I also try and read as much as possible, though finding the time is difficult. Ongoingness: The End of a Diary by Sarah Manguso and On Looking by Lia Purpura are two phenomenal books I find myself going back to often. I’d highly recommend them to anyone who’s like me and enjoys literature that makes your brain hurt a bit. Contact Elijah at ecawrites.com
Karleen Whitcomb Lead Kindergarten Teacher Growing up in Santa Fe, Karleen Whitcomb didn’t attend SFWS, but her neighbor did. It turns out that neighbor and now long-time friend, Devin Kleiner (profiled in the Summer 2019 issue of this magazine) was just one of many people who gently kept Waldorf in Whitcomb’s life until she came to teach here.
Photo by Dham Khalsa Photography
Whitcomb went to Santa Fe High School, after which she attended the University of Northern Colorado for an interdisciplinary bachelor’s degree in music (marching band and trombone) and art, focusing on art history and cultural art rather than studio art. Once back in New Mexico after graduation, Whitcomb realized she missed doing studio art. When Kleiner told her about a watercolor class he was taking, she gladly joined him. The class, taught by former SFWS art teacher Marianna Caloury, had an anthroposophical perspective. “I painted with her for 12 years,” notes Whitcomb, along with former Board Member Mickey Leach and SFWS founders Ruth and Fletcher Lathrop. “We had all these anthroposophists in the room and I had no idea that’s what I was doing,” she says with a chuckle. More exposure to anthroposophy came after Whitcomb married and moved to a farm in Ribera, NM. Her fellow art-class attendees suggested biodynamic farming, which Whitcomb tried and found effective. When pregnant with her second child, son Teo Biderman, now in Grade 5, Whitcomb enrolled her daughter Sophie Biderman, (who attends the New Mexico School for the Arts for dance), in the Lavender Lane Home Daycare, a Waldorf-inspired school run by painter Susan West in Las Vegas, NM. Inspired by West’s approach to education, Whitcomb began to substitute. In 2012, Whitcomb’s neighbor in Ribera, SFWS parent and current school Campus Manager Carole Cressman, called and asked her to substitute at SFWS. For two years, Whitcomb subbed mostly in early childhood, so when the call came in 2014 to ask her to take over a first-grade class, she realized she had taught all the students who would be in the group. “It was scary. But I sat with it and realized I had a personal connection with these children, so I said yes,” Whitcomb says. Leaping into being a grades teacher was “terrifying and fascinating, but when I got into the class, I knew this is what I wanted to do.” Whitcomb taught her class through Grade 2, and then returned to Early Childhood. This year, she is the new lead kindergarten teacher. Whitcomb is grateful that she was led to teach the Waldorf curriculum. She notes, “I feel in this day and age, it is more important than ever to have a curriculum that focuses on the whole human and that 19 brings humanity into everything we do.”
SFWS TODAY: High School Creativity SELECTIONS FROM TALIESIN
The SFWS High School Annual Literary & Art Magazine
Lost but Found Eva Crocker, Grade 11 She looks up at the sky Wonders and wanders throughout the starlit sky How can someone be found but be so lost Like a seeing eye person but blind to the world Like a rose still alive in the winter Or the last leaf on the tree waiting to fall Her eyes tired from seeing the world as a terrible place Like school shootings, and broken hearts, global warming The end of the world as we know it. Her skin is cracked and pouring out honeydew She’s lost her innocence. The girl once short but mighty Is now just short and scared. She is a not a girl but is not yet a woman The girl wants to be with nature for nature seems to care So she runs to the forest. There she stays with nature Soon she is a nymph never to be seen again But with closed eyes and a generous heart Maybe you can see the one who was lost If you see her, her eyes no longer tired She now glows and she is content.
Painting by Story Coleman, Grade 12
Self Portrait of Becoming a New Mexican Indie Russell, Grade 11 Flames dance, yellow and orange As I gaze through partly drawn curtains Snow capped peaks Rising out of the purple tinted earth Water bubbling out like acid Burning the frozen ground and my aching soul The scorching sun melts freshly fallen snow Evaporating, where in summer it withers The burning sagebrush, lit by fire from within Illuminated, reflecting the star’s twinkle The scent of fry bread carried on the wind, Whispers of a forgotten time remembered Smoke wisps from an abandoned horno Celestial, like an angel’s breath The winding river, searing a crack through us Dividing brown from white, tradition from change. Photographs by Will Smith, Grade 11 20
ALUMNI NEWS: Class Notes Tara Kohn, Grade 8 1997, left her job as a lecturer at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ, this summer and moved to Ithaca, NY, for her new job as an assistant professor in art history at Wells College in Aurora, NY.
Alexandra Burke and Kyle Siler-Evans, both Grade 8 1997, were married on January 28, 2018, in Santa Fe, NM. Burke writes, “We were thrilled to share the joyous day with friends, family and our teacher, Mr. Lathrop, in attendance!”
Annie Kohn Mullins, Grade 7 1999, announced the birth of her son Sage Isaac Mullins on August 28. Mullins, her son and her husband, artist Matthew Troy Mullins, live in Santa Fe, NM.
Jeremy Burke, Grade 6 2000, co-founder of Aretian Urban Analytics, based in Cambridge, MA, is one of the designers tapped by the city of Santa Fe for proposals for the old midtown campus of the Santa Fe University of Art and Design. His firm created the online guide, “The Atlas of Innovations Districts,” which gives an overview on how to create an innovation district that can revitalize an urban area. In a recent interview with The Santa Fe New Mexican, Burke notes that he hopes the area “can be another center to Santa Fe’s economic prosperity.”
Frances Milliken, Grade 8 2001, married Nicholas Platt on August 24 in Northeast Harbor, Mount Desert Island, ME, in a very Waldorf wedding. Alice Milliken, Grade 8 2004, (see page 12), Erin Rayburn, Grade 8 2000, and former SFWS student Carolina Portago served as bridesmaids. SFWS alumna Margaret Andersen designed the invitations and other graphic design elements of the wedding. The couple now live in Baltimore, MD.
Arizona Muse, Grade 10 2005, an international fashion model and environmental activist who has fronted campaigns for some of the world’s biggest brands, has become a passionate advocate for sustainability and environmental regeneration. She has been engaged as a sustainability consultant for major fashion labels who wish to lower their environmental impact and recently gave a presentation at the 2019 Biodynamic Association conference in Lake George, NY on branding and public perception. Arizona sits on the board of The Sustainable Angle, a non-profit organization that initiates and supports projects that minimize the environmental impact of the fashion industry, and contributes to Fashion Revolution, a team of business leaders, policymakers and brands who work together towards radically changing the way clothes are sourced, produced and consumed. Muse was interviewed for the May 2019 UK Town and Country magazine cover article about her career and her growing activism on behalf of biodynamic farming. She lives in London with her husband and two children.
Hunter Riley, HS Class of 2007, reports that she has been promoted to Director of Education & Outreach at Self Serve Toys in Albuquerque, NM. She writes, “I help manage a feminist sexuality resource center in Albuquerque going on nine years. I’m also the person who schedules and coordinates all of our educational events, helping people learn about more effective communication, healthy relationships and more.”
Dustin Johnson, HS Class of 2009, writes that in August, he started a PhD in Peace and Development Research in the School of Global Studies at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. Johnson was formerly a senior research officer at the Romeo Dallaire Child Soldiers Initiative in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Elliot Hammans, HS Class of 2011, was a featured performer this past summer in Hubbard Street Dance’s production of Crystal Pite’s A Picture of You Falling. Hammans said in an interview on the Hubbard Street blog that the production required him and fellow performer Jacqueline Burnett to evoke emotions from the audience. “It’s important for those feelings to be real and honest because that’s what makes the piece so effective,” he noted.
Addison Nace, HS Class of 2013, worked this past summer at SITE Santa Fe as an education assistant and venue rentals coordinator. In August, she moved to Madison, WI, to start her PhD in Design Studies at the University of Wisconsin.
Keifer Nace, HS Class of 2015, graduated in May from Whitman College with a degree in environmental studies and geology, cum laude with honors, and is now serving in the Peace Corps in central Mexico in the state of Tlaxcala. Keifer Nace at Peace Corps Swearing In She writes: “My project is environmental education. I will be teaching in the elementary, middle, and high school about general environmental topics, as well as working with school clubs to make gardens and compost. In the community, I also will likely help the municipal government improve their trash collection system and create community clean up events.”
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Mythology illustrations by Mr. Ryan's 9th grade students. From left, Nina Otero (also volcano on far right), Sophia Carpenter, and Alia Caserta.
The cover photo’s joyful jumper under a vast, blue, New Mexican sky reflects the spirit of our new magazine and the limitless possibilities of Waldorf education. Taken by Grade 11 student Will Smith, this photo expresses our core inspiration as stated by Rudolf Steiner:
“OUR HIGHEST ENDEAVOR MUST BE TO DEVELOP FREE HUMAN BEINGS WHO ARE ABLE OF THEMSELVES TO IMPART PURPOSE AND DIRECTION TO THEIR LIVES.” santafewaldorf.org | 505.983.9727 |
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