Sacramento Waldorf School

Established in 1959, the Sacramento Waldorf School is an American private school offering programs from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. It is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America.

Sacramento Waldorf School
Sacramento Waldorf School
Location
Fair Oaks
,
California

United States
Coordinates38°37′56″N 121°17′11″W
Information
School typePrivate (U.S.)
Religious affiliation(s)Nondenominational/Nonsectarian
Founded1959
GradesPre-K to 12
Enrollment473
Campus typeRural/Suburban
Color(s)Blue & Gold
MascotWaves

Sacramento Waldorf School is the largest Waldorf school in North America. The campus, which includes a stream and small working farm, is located on 22 acres (89,000 m2) in Fair Oaks, California, overlooking the American River.

History

The founding school started in 1959 with just a few kindergarten classrooms in a Carmichael home. With enrollment growing, the school moved to a rented church hall, and on to its present site in Fair Oaks a few years later. By the mid-1980s the campus had grown to accommodate approximately 350 students in grades kindergarten through 12, and included a working farm, library and several rustic buildings, including a former bunkhouse, now the Meristem building, which was lifted from its original foundations in Citrus Heights and moved to the Fair Oaks campus.

In 1985 the school completed construction on a geodesic dome building to house administrative offices and new, larger library. Just two days before the start of the new school year, the dome and most of the school's recently installed library collection were destroyed in an arson fire. With classes scheduled to resume in just a few days, the school received an outpouring of support from the neighboring community and other schools, including offers from the local San Juan Unified School District to help the school resupply books lost in the fire.[1][2] Within eight months of the loss, then estimated to value $350,000, construction was underway on a new $1.4 million administration building and library.[3][4]

In 1997 the school finished construction on Linden Hall, providing its first gymnasium, music and performing arts center, and movement room as well as several additional classrooms. The school also added new classes for preschool aged children. In 2006 the enrollment was 440, and new construction began on special purpose designed buildings with modern science and computer laboratories for the teaching of high school biology, chemistry, physics, computers and mathematics.[5]

Curriculum

The curriculum for the school follows a fairly typical Waldorf education academic program as well as including music, handwork, drama, and visual arts from kindergarten up through high school.

Extra curricular activities

The high school plays various sports as part of the CIF Division VI Central Valley California League. These include boys[6] and girls soccer and basketball,[7] boys baseball, and girls volleyball. Other sports offered have included a ski team, cross country, track and field, and mountain biking, all co-ed. The school's other extra curricular activities include student-led clubs, drama productions, and a speech and debate team.

Notes and references
  1. "Suspicious fire ravages school's library, offices", Sacramento Bee, Sep 1, 1985
  2. "Arson suspected at Waldorf School", The Sacramento Union, Sep 1 1985
  3. Danielle Starkey, "School rebounds from August blaze", The Sacramento Union, Apr 5 1986.
  4. "Building a Future", The Sacramento Union, Nov 21, 1986
  5. Chelsea Phua, Waldorf school builds on science, Sacramento Bee- April 5, 2007.
  6. "Central Valley California League Soccer (2018-19) Standings - MaxPreps".
  7. Waldorf Basketball Phenom Schwartz-Edmisten Pumps out Points Archived 2011-02-13 at the Wayback Machine
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