Sueanne Campbell

Kindergarten Teacher

Governance Council Member

Ms. Campbell’s love of children began at a young age. During her adolescent years, while growing up in the mountain and lake region of Saranac Lake, New York, she remembers a profound connection to the many young children in her life, as well as to the beauty of the natural world around her. She felt that one day she would combine the magic of nature with the wonders of the young child as a profession. That day arrived when she visited a Waldorf kindergarten in New Paltz, New York. Shortly thereafter, she found her way to the Lake Champlain Waldorf School and was hired as a kindergarten assistant. Seventeen years later, Ms. Campbell continues to teach one of the four kindergarten classes at our school. She received her Waldorf teacher training at the Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks, California. She and her partner Scot have two boys, Forest and Parker.

« less

JoAnne Dennee

Kindergarten Teacher

Ms. Dennee has been involved with LCWS since its inception in 1984, as a parent, and since 1992 as a kindergarten teacher. She previously taught preschool, kindergarten, and elementary science for seventeen years. During the summers, she has led backpacking trips for youth, and her own “Summer Magic” ecology, theatre and arts camps. Her teaching career began at SUNY-New Paltz, where she helped develop, and then served as administrator and head teacher for, an early childhood care center after completing her B.A. in Psychology and Education. Ms. Dennee has a special interest in nurturing young families and working out of indigenous agricultural traditions, foraging for medicinal herbs and natural dyes, biodynamic gardening, nutrition and cooking, wildlife tracking, and handwork of many kinds. She has published three books pertaining to these subjects. For the past seven years she has mentored the Q’ewar Project, traveling to Peru to support a doll-making initiative for women that provides a Waldorf education for their young children. Ms. Dennee was born in Manhattan but grew up on Long Island where she was inspired by the beauty of the ocean and natural environment. She loves to share this with her husband Larry and daughter Brooke.

« less

James Hillier

Kindergarten Teacher

Mr. Hillier, who has worked in Waldorf kindergartens for almost two decades, came to LCWS in September 2000. A graduate of the Grassroots program at Sterling College, he earned a B.A. from Norwich University, and attended both the Waldorf Institute and Rudolf Steiner College to get his Waldorf certification. Mr. Hillier’s many passions include woodworking, instrument making, gardening, model aviation, and ultra-light aviation. He is married to Shari Carlson, and they have three children: Willem, Julia, and Kai.

« less

Susan Sassaman

Infant/Toddler Teacher and Aftercare Teacher

Coming soon...

« less

Karen White

Kindergarten Teacher

After living in Europe for several years, Ms. White found herself at Emerson College in England where she spent two years doing a full time class teacher training. While there, she also met her husband, Christopher. After her training, Ms. White returned to her home country of Canada and spent one year as a kindergarten at the Ottawa Waldorf School, and then another year as a kindergarten assistant at the Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School. Ms. White and her husband moved to Vermont in 1989 and began teaching at LCWS. After working for five years, she became a stay at home mother and spent several years at home with her three daughters. When her youngest entered first grade, Ms. White returned to the kindergarten.

When asked about the work she does in the kindergarten, Ms. White says:"I love the honesty and openness of the young child. How many jobs get to begin the day with hugs?? I also love the parent work, supporting parents in their striving to be the best they can for their own children."

.

« less

Meredith Markow

1st Grade Class Teacher

Ms. Markow joined the LCWS faculty in 1993, and recently completed her second cycle of being a Class Teacher. Ms. Markow previously taught English as a foreign language at a Waldorf school in Nurnberg, Germany and at a university in Slovakia. She was also a first grade teacher at a public school in her native St. Louis. She became involved in education because she wanted to make a positive difference in the world, and was attracted to the Waldorf approach because it serves the whole child. She loves witnessing the children unfolding and is nourished by the partnerships that form in the school community with colleagues and parents. Ms. Markow received her B.A. in psychology from the University of Michigan and M.A. in education from Washington University in St. Louis. She received Waldorf training while in Nurnberg, Germany. She is married to LCWS teacher Stephan Vdoviak and they have two children, Emma and Madeline.

« less

Katherine Verman

3rd Grade Class Teacher

Governance Council Member

Ms. Verman came to LCWS in 1990, after teaching in a public elementary school and YMCA preschool. She always wanted to be a teacher, like her mother, and in addition to her classroom experience she was an early childhood developmentalist for a few years. Because Waldorf education embraces beauty, reverence, community, and love, Ms. Verman felt she did not have to split her career and spiritual life. She grew up in Larchmont, New York, attended George Washington University, and received degrees in Arts & Sciences, elementary education and human development and family studies from UVM. She is married to Howard Verman, who is also an educator and has two sons, Stephen and William, as well as a cat and chickens.

« less

Elizabeth Dealing

4th Grade Class Teacher

Coming soon...

« less

Gregory Foster

5th Grade Class Teacher

Band Teacher

Mr. Foster joined the LCWS faculty in 1995 and is currently in his second cycle of being a Class Teacher. Previously he taught fourth grade at the Highgate, Vermont, Elementary School and was also a special education teacher and substitute at several schools in northwestern Vermont. He says that for him teaching is a vocation, not a job. He loves the anthroposophical light on the developing human being, working with children, and cultivating the art of teaching. Originally from Rochester, New Hampshire, Mr. Foster moved to the Burlington area when he was eight and has never left. He studied arts and crafts, as well as education, at Trinity College and graduated Magna Cum Laude. He holds certificates in elementary and special education. He enjoys sports, racquetball, playing guitar, writing music, and most of all, fathering—he is the father of LCWS students Emily and Sophia.

« less

Anne Shapiro

6th Grade Class Teacher

Coming soon....

« less

Christopher Diehl-Noble

7th Grade Class Teacher

Orchestra Director

Grade School Coordinator

Mr. Diehl-Noble joined the LCWS faculty in 1995, after teaching music at a public elementary school in Maine and at Michael Hall Rudolf Steiner School in England. His parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles were teachers, and he too felt called to this vocation. He was initially drawn to Waldorf education by the high value placed on the arts and the deep dedication he experienced in the teachers he first observed. Mr. Diehl-Noble grew up in Castleton, Vermont, the oldest in a close-knit family of five children. His parents are professional musicians as well as teachers, and played in the Vermont Symphony, taking their children around the state on weekends. Mr. Diehl-Noble received a Bachelor of Music degree from Boston University, then received elementary education certification from the University of Southern Maine. While in England he completed Waldorf teacher training at Emerson College. He and his wife, LCWS teacher Abigail Diehl-Noble, have two children, Benedict and Flora.

« less

Malisa Garlieb

8th Grade Class Teacher

Ms. Garlieb joined the LCWS faculty in 2003, after teaching at the Urban Waldorf School in Milwaukee, the nation’s first public Waldorf school, for four years. It was her interest in social justice and a desire to provide balance to inequalities, as well as a sense of responsibility to the earth, that led her to a career in education. Waldorf education appealed to her because of the empathy she saw in the community among students, faculty and parents, as well as its emphasis on arts and movement and the sense of health and vitality she noticed in students. A native of West Allis, Wisconsin (a working class suburb of Milwaukee), Ms. Garlieb majored in elementary education and English at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and then received her masters in Waldorf education from Antioch New England Graduate School. Ms. Garlieb lives with her partner, Ita, and their son, Keenan.

« less

Steve Crimy

Humanities

High School Coordinator

Mr. Crimy joined the faculty in 2006; previously he taught high school history and English at the Summerfield Waldorf School for seven years. Mr. Crimy enjoys ancient history, baseball (“I still collect baseball cards”), books and reading (“British murder mysteries”), English grammar, and “useless trivia.”

« less

Pamela Sonn

Math and Geology

Learning Needs Coordinator

Ms. Sonn joined the LCWS faculty in 2008; previously she taught Geology, Geography, photography, painting, and drawing at the Summerfield Waldorf School in California, and worked in Educational Support at South Burlington High School. Ms. Sonn teaches Geology and math, and is the Learning Needs Coordinator at the High School. Ms. Sonn enjoys spinning, knitting, painting, frequenting library book sales, and hiking up mountains.

« less

Mary Louise Collins

Humanities

Ms. Collins joines the LCWS high school faculty in 2001. She received her B.A. in English with minors in history and philosophy from Marquette University and her M.A. in Literature from the University of Virginia. She continued to pursue her interest in 18th and 20th century literature towards a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa focusing on mothering and feminism. Prior to teaching at LCWS she taught at the high school level at the Edinburgh Rudolph Steiner School in Edinburgh, Scotland as well as nine years at the University of Iowa. Although Ms. Collins was born in Dublin, Ireland, she grew up in a small town in northern Wisconsin, among the bluffs and valleys surrounding the Mississippi River. She enjoys nature immensely, noting Wales as her favorite destination. Mary lives with husband Dan, sons Brendan and Aidan, and daughter Mairead Ann.

« less

Danielle Drogalis

Math and Science

Ms. Drogalis came to LCWS after teaching for three years at St. Johnsbury Academy, in her home town, and one year at Spaulding High School. She earned a B.S. from McGill University in Montreal, having majored in anatomy and cell biology. Ms. Drogalis lives with her husband, Tom, and their son, Dominic.

« less

Andy Homan

German and Humanities

High School Core Group Member

After reading novels that he found on his grandfather's bookshelves, Andrew Homan was inspired to reconnect with his Austro-Hungarian roots by attending a year of high school in Graz, Austria. He pursued the study of German and Humanities at the Johns Hopkins University, and deepened his knowledge of history and philosophy as a Fulbright Scholar in Vienna. At Columbia University, he received his M.A. and M.Phil. in German literature, focussing his studies on modern literature and theories of culture and society. While teaching German language courses as well as Columbia's core curriculum, Andrew decided to dedicate his work to teaching. He joined the LCWS high school faculty in 2004. Andrew's pastimes include working at the Intervale Community farm, playing the button accordion, and building wooden furniture with hand tools. He lives in Burlington with his wife, Caroline, and children, Nikolas and Linnea.

« less

Elizabeth (Bet) Dews

Math and Science

Coming Soon

« less

Alice Lissarrague

French

Born and raised in Shelburne, Alice graduated from Smith College where she minored in French literature. She then spent several years in Manhattan working as a commercial actor, before graduating from Columbia University with a Masters in Education. Alice and her French husband Christophe then moved to Japan, where Alice taught English for two years at Konan Women's University in Kobe. Following their return to Vermont, Alice and Christophe opened a French restaurant which they ran for 13 years. Alice and Christophe live in Shelburne with their three bilingual children, all students at LCWS.

« less

Donald Griswald

Physics

Mr. Griswald joined the high school faculty in the Fall of 2009. He has a Ph.D. in physics and is licensed for secondary teaching by the state of Vermont. Mr. Griswald spent the first phase of his career designing nuclear weapons, and then spent many years designing ways to disarm them in the second phase of his career at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. Mr. Griswold enjoys the give and take between students and teacher and the look on the face of a student when they begin to glimpse the deep mysteries inherent in both mathematics and science.

« less

Felicia Far

Educational Support

Ms. Far came to LCWS in 2002, after 13 years of prior experience as a public school elementary school teacher, most recently at the Shelburne Community School. Her roles at LCWS have included tutor, substitute teacher, kindergarten aftercare teacher, and third grade reading teacher. It is Waldorf education’s fundamental understanding and honoring of the growing child that has drawn Ms. Far to our school.

« less

Abigail Diehl-Noble

College Guidance

Middle School English

Ms. Diehl-Noble joined the LCWS faculty in 2003. She believes that the arts, social relevance, and connection to practical life are vital to education, and so she was drawn to Waldorf education by its ability to transform intellectual concepts into a reality that makes a difference in students’ lives. Ms. Diehl-Noble grew up in a small town in northern Indiana with a large extended family and many large dogs. After receiving a B.A. in English from Macalester College in Minnesota she was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and studied at Oxford University in England. While there she earned a B.A. and then a Masters in English Literature.

« less

Melendy Comey

Handwork

Grade School and High School

After working for sixteen years in the restaurant business, Ms. Comey turned her lifelong interest in textile arts into a new career in teaching. She has been at LCWS since 2002, after teaching handwork at the Green Mountain Waldorf School for four years. She is also a potter and as a once-professional chef, she still loves cooking for pleasure, especially Mexican food. Though her family roots are in the Boston area, Ms. Comey’s father was a Naval officer and the family moved from coast to coast every two years. She has been through 42 states and has many wonderful memories from traveling across country. She studied fine arts and art history at the University of Southern Connecticut and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Ms. Comey and her husband, Joe Unser, live with their son, Adrian '08 (LCWS graduate). She has two daughters living in Texas, Nicole and Leandra.

« less

Wendy Coughlan

Handwork

Grade School

Coming soon...

« less

Nicandra Galper

Handwork Assistant

Grade School

Ms. Galper joined the faculty in 2000. She has taught handwork to adults as well, and is fond of sharing the excitement and love she has for handwork and seeing the children’s joy when they master the skills. She came to Waldorf education because it values the arts as a part of all areas of life. Ms. Galper grew up in Philadelphia and southern New Jersey. She attended Wilson College and received an M.S.W. from Temple University. She has also studied art history and chemistry for art conservation at UVM and Trinity College. Her daughter, Sarah '08, is a LCWS graduate and a counselor at our summer camp.

« less

Mashobane Moruthane

Gym & Competitive Sports, Grade and High School

Mr. Moruthane joined the LCWS faculty in 2001, after working at Waldorf schools in Denver and Buffalo. Growing up under apartheid in South Africa, he chose a career in education because he wanted to have a positive influence on youth by providing them a healthy, meaningful education. He came to Waldorf education because of its inherent belief in spirituality and flexible style of teaching; he also appreciates the philosophy of Anthroposophy. Mr. Moruthane is from Phaahla, in the countryside in the northern section of South Africa. He lived with his grandmother and many cousins in a mud hut with no electricity, running water, or paved roads. He attended Baobob College and, after coming to the United States, received Waldorf teacher training at Sunbridge College. He practices African drumming and is interested in acting, sports, and travel. Mr. Moruthane lives with his daughter, Thabitha.

« less

Aaron Heyerdahl

Woodwork

Upper Grades Teacher

Coming soon...

« less

Steve Olson

Music Director

Coming soon...

« less

Stephan Vdoviak

Eurythmy

Stephan Vdoviak has been teaching Eurythmy at LCWS for over 15 years and is presently teaching at three of the four VT Waldorf Schools. Mr. Vdoviak has also served on the Board of Trustees of the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America.

« less

Victor Gould

Accompanist

Coming soon...

« less

Emily Laird

Fine Arts, High School

Coming soon...

« less

Carol Reed

French, Grade School

Being a teacher allows Madame Reed to share her love of languages and cultures, knowing how these studies can enrich lives. After teaching French in grades four to eight for six years in public schools, she came to LCWS in 1996. “I enjoy the enthusiasm of the children in my classes here,” she says, “and the dedication of our school community.” She earned a B.A. in French from Middlebury College, an M.Ed. from Castleton State College, and Waldorf certification from Antioch New England. While growing up in Stamford, Connecticut, Mme. Reed spent her sixth-grade year in Lausanne, Switzerland. Her family includes husband Richard, children Louis and Sonia, stepchildren Julia and John, grandson Jordan, and Daisy the cat. She performs traditional French and Québecois music with her band Va-et-Vient. She is very active in theater, ballet and tango, and travels whenever possible. During the summer she likes to visit family in Michigan and work in her garden.

« less

Joseph Powers

Architecture and Woodworking

High School

Mr. Powers joined the LCWS faculty in 2008 after four years as a custom furniture maker. The last two years were spent as artist-in-residence at the Shelburne Art Center where he taught furniture design and construction. The Lake Champlain Waldorf School offered an excellent opportunity to teach woodworking in an environment that recognized and supported the role of hand skills in educational development. Mr. Powers received his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame in 2004 where he majored in the Great Books Program and followed with an apprenticeship in Windsor chair-making under Timothy Clark and extended study under Lars Larsen. Mr. Powers’ family resides in Long Island.

« less

Michele Starr

Upper Grades Teacher and College Core Group Member

Ms. Starr has taught in Waldorf schools for over 25 years, in Seattle and Vermont. She joined LCWS in its second year and pioneered its first First Grade; she is now completing her third cycle as a Grade School teacher. As an “idealistic” elementary education major at UVM, she thought that working with children was one of the most important things one could do in helping to make the world a better place, and she still believes that. Once Ms. Starr found Waldorf education, she knew she’d found what she was looking for. She completed her B.A. in education from Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks, California. Ms. Starr grew up in upstate New York and moved to Burlington during high school; she lives in the neighborhood where she spent her teen years and has known some of her neighbors since that time. Ms. Starr and her husband, Bill Warnock, have two daughters, Ruby '05 (a LCWS graduate), and Veronica, who was in LCWS’s pioneering class and is now studying law. Ms. Starr is also the Regional Coordinator of the Northeast-Quebec region of the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America.

« less

Andrea Bayer

Administrative Director

Andrea Bayer was a practicing litigation attorney when she joined the LCWS Board of Trustees in 1998. She served on the Board for six years and was the Board Chair the last three of those years. During that time, she was also a member of the Finance, Tuition Scholarship and Enrollment committees. Andrea's three children, currently ages 24, 20 and 15, all attended LCWS. Andrea and husband were parents at the school from 1988 through 2008. She was delighted to join the LCWS Faculty Staff as Administrator in 2006. This position offers the opportunity for her to use her skills and training to support the outstanding education that LCWS offers.

« less

Terri Borden

Finance Director & Athletics Director

Coming soon...

« less

Mike Doran

Maintenance

Coming soon...

« less

Lisa Espenshade

Director of Development

Lisa joined our parent community when her daughter, Eva, started kindergarten, and has worked at LCWS since 2001 as as the school’s Development Director. Lisa brought over 15 years of non-profit management experience to her job. She feels that Waldorf is the perfect education for her two daughters, Eva and Lily. “I will never forget when I was a prospective parent and first observed a kindergarten class; I was so moved I started to cry.”
A third generation New Yorker, Lisa was born in Brooklyn and went to summer camps in Vermont and knew that one day she would settle in the Burlington area. Her Brooklyn accent rarely can be heard, except for words such as “worder (water)” or “dala (dollar).” She graduated from Vassar College with a degree in Medieval History and did post graduate work at the Centre for Medieval Studies in Toronto. Lisa loves to knit and design knitwear and is a fiber enthusiast. She likes to explore Lake Champlain with her daughters and her husband, Peter, and go to Montreal for dim sum.

« less

Pam Graham

Admissions Director

Pam has been part of the LCWS community for over 20 years, since her oldest daughter Lindsay entered kindergarten in 1987. “Completely inspired” by Waldorf education, she began working for the school as a part-time bookkeeper, and in subsequent years, in addition to bookkeeping, has handled general administration, public relations, and admissions. Pam is moved by the soul and spiritual components of Waldorf education, its sense of reverence and wonder in the classroom, and she enjoys introducing it to prospective families — especially those who end up becoming similarly inspired.
Pam grew up in Connecticut, and earned a B.S. degree from the University of Bridgeport. She spent many summers attending camps in the Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts. She enjoys knitting, cross-country and downhill skiing, gardening, jogging, yoga, and travel.
Contact Pam Graham.

« less

Addie Hall

Front Office, Shelburne Campus

Addie and her family were drawn to Waldorf Education because of the year to year continuity offered by having the teacher remain with the class, and the emphasis on cultivating a balance of intellectual, artistic, and physical capacities in children. Since 2000 she has run the busy front office of the Shelburne campus. “I wear many hats and love them all (well, maybe not the plumber’s cap!). I work with a brilliant faculty and I have a view of the grade school that allows me to see the children both when they are at their best (birthday celebrations, class plays, singing in the foyer, festivals, etc.) and when they are below par for some reason.” Addie appreciates how the hectic pace of the front office is balanced by those quieter moments when a sick child needs tending or a child needs to be guided back to being his or her best. Prior to working at LCWS, she spent 15 “high corporate” years in new product development and marketing research at Fingerhut Corp. and General Mills, both in Minneapolis. She also worked at Action Research here in Vermont. Along with her husband Harry, she has three Waldorf educated children: Emily ('05), David and Eric. Other than parenting, Ms. Hall’s hobbies include scrap-booking, gardening, home improvement projects, reading and skiing. She feels that working in the front office is a great fit for this self-described “organized and extroverted” Waldorf mom!

« less

Laura Slesar

Front Office, Charlotte Campus

Laura came to Vermont to attend the University of Vermont, where she received a BA in French. She worked and lived for 10 years at Rock Point School in Burlington, where she was the director of the residential program. There she learned to juggle many tasks at once in the midst of chaos! Laura joined our school community in 2003, when her daughter entered the kindergarten. She began working in our Development Office the following year and has put her task-juggling to good use here ever since. She is now the Front Office Administrator at our high school on the Charlotte campus. Laura is also the director of Kidpower Vermont, teaching "people safety" skills to children, teens, and adults. Laura lives in Monkton with her husband, Chris, their children, LCWS students Clara and Julian, and their cats, Jimmy and Timmy.

« less