Waldorf News
Seattle Waldorf School: Room to Grow in a New Building
from the SEATTLE WALDORF SCHOOL, Seattle, Wash.
We did it! On September 16, after 100 days of construction and last minute finishing touches by students, parents and faculty, Seattle Waldorf School opened our newly renovated grade school campus doors. Our community was thrilled with our bigger, brighter lobby, clutter-free hallways, extra-spacious classrooms and updated outdoor playground. Our children have lots of room to grow, play, explore, and experience joyous learning.
We had classes of 25 to 30 energetic children in rooms that didn’t provide enough room for ideal learning. Therefore, we undertook an ambitious project to renovate the grade school building during this past summer.
Our new spaces now provide ample room for students to work at their desks and engage in small group activities with natural light, high ceilings, and plentiful storage. Outside, classroom learning is integrated into expanded garden areas, new play structures, and a larger hard-court site. For our families, there is a larger performance area and increased seating in Huckleberry Hall, an enlarged kitchen, and a covered gathering space for parents and children. By incorporating sustainable, local materials and green features into the design, the building has become an exciting teaching tool and a tangible demonstration of our commitment to sustainability.
We are deeply grateful to the Rudolf Steiner Foundation for their leadership support with a $2.5M loan, making our dreams a beautiful reality. We are also very thankful to community members who invested more than $900,000 through our Room to Grow, LLC and supporters at our spring Inspire! auction that raised $75,000. This was truly a project that needed everyone’s support, and we did it!
In the words of one of our alumni — “I like to think there is nothing I can’t do.’ Tyler Klansnic, Class of 2000.