If you couldn't attend, please take a few extra minutes to get acquainted with the information you missed
One of the gifts of being a parent in a Waldorf school is the inclusion into a community of people with the same drive: we are making a conscious and intentional decision for our children's education. If you attended the All Community Meeting this past week, you undoubtedly received the message that we are not the first people to have decided that the status quo is not up to our standards.
 The tone of the meeting was set with stories from Stan Padilla, a founding member of our school, and as Barbara Wauters would say, one of our guardian angels. He took us through the creation of this school - from the beginning rumblings of a shared dream, to purchasing land, to building decks and the voluntary shared debt many families put on the line. There were many notable take-aways. One recurring theme was that we are all here for a reason, on purpose, and we all have a gift for this place. Our gifts and needs do not differ greatly from the time when the school was a seed, to now, as a growing and tall tree. Some people are able to support monetarily, others sew, crochet, drive carpool, pull weeds, organize field trips, take notes and on and on. The point he was making is that our gifts are our own, and they are all a necessary part of the bigger whole. The bigger picture that transcends the individual and makes the school complete. We are the definition of homegrown, a "working class pioneer school".
Another ask from Stan was that we consider connecting back with the land. That we walk on it, sit quietly with it, that we take care of it so it can take care of us. This land is ours, in the way that land can be anyone's. It was lived upon by the Nisenan people for many generations before we came to find ourselves educating our children on it. "Nisenan" means, "we're from here". We're all from here. This is us, ours, and we are invited to care for it with that intention.
As result of Stan's sharing was an ask from Tony: what is our dream for the school? As parents, what is it that we would like from this place? This experience? The beginning steps are to know these things about ourselves, so that we can create the steps to get there together.
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During this portion of the meeting, Kristen invited the group to join her in a singing activity. Everyone learned a short song and sang beautifully, in rounds. It was a grounding and unifying experience. She then helped us understand the job of the College of Teachers: to provide the pedagogical leadership and guidance of the school.
She also shared the guiding principles of the college:
- Strengthen the whole organism
- To complete pedagogical studies (land stewardship, child studies, festivals)
- To be in touch with the will of the group
- Efficiency within the group to accomplish their goals
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