FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Boulder, CO, Aug. 8, 2024 — Shining Mountain Waldorf School (SMWS) is thrilled to announce Meg Gardner as the Interim School Director, a position she stepped into earlier this summer. Meg’s appointment comes at a critical time, just after SMWS cut the ribbon on a state-of-the-art high school building. The new, modern campus marks a significant milestone in the school’s long North Boulder history.
Meg Gardner is regarded as a Waldorf pedagogical innovator. She earned her BA in Philosophy and Religious Studies at Indiana University and her MSEd in Waldorf Education at Sunbridge College. Meg taught as a class teacher for eight years at the Waldorf School of the Roaring Fork, where she also founded Polaris Homeschool Group, guiding high school students through the Waldorf curriculum in a homeschool setting. She joined Shining Mountain in 2013 and served as a middle school class teacher for ten years.
During her tenure, Meg was involved in a range of committees and leadership roles, including a three-year term as Chair of the school’s Governance Council. Last year, Meg served as High School Director, overseeing the transition into our new building. Now, as interim school director, Meg will lead SMWS into the future as we mark 40 years of preK-12 Waldorf education in Boulder.
“I am thrilled to step into the role of interim school director,” Gardner said. “I look forward to continuing my work at Shining Mountain in this new role and leading our school into a bright future. This summer has been a time of collaboration with our board of trustees, faculty, and leadership as we create a unified vision and strategy to lead Shining Mountain into the future.”
At the recent high school grand opening, Meg, referring to a large sculpture of a tree within the new high school building, offered this image for our school: the tree’s deep and wide roots symbolize the strong foundation of Waldorf education, while its branches, reaching towards the sky, represent the growth and potential of the students.
“Together, we will draw from our roots of Waldorf education and our unique biography as Shining Mountain, as we envision and manifest a progressive, dynamic Waldorf education that nurtures healthy achievement in our students, preparing them for life,” Meg said.
About Shining Mountain Waldorf School: Shining Mountain Waldorf School (SMWS) is an independent pre-K through grade 12 independent school located in North Boulder. SMWS is an accredited member of the Association of Waldorf Schools of North America and the Association of Colorado Independent Schools. Shining Mountain’s purpose is to unleash the capacities of young people to imagine and create a better world. Our mission is to cultivate intellectually curious students with a strong sense of self, compassion for others, and the tenacity to live to their fullest human potential. Admissions: https://shiningmountainwaldorf.org/admissions/
At Shining Mountain Waldorf School, our curriculum is thoughtfully crafted to align with the developmental stages of each child. By integrating the arts into academic lessons, we create a deeper, more enriching educational experience in an environment that nurtures each student’s unique nature. Our students are encouraged to take risks, think imaginatively, and embrace new opportunities with initiative, creativity, and resilience. As a result, our graduates emerge with a strong sense of purpose, the ability to solve complex problems, and the courage to meet the world head-on.
About Waldorf Education: Based on the education philosophy initiated by Rudolf Steiner in 1919, Waldorf education is a culturally rich, age-appropriate curriculum that educates the body, mind, and spirit of the child. Since the founding of the first school, Waldorf education has become a global independent school movement with more than 1,000 schools worldwide in over 60 countries.
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CONTACT:
Shining Mountain Waldorf School
Meg Gardner, Interim School Director, mgardner@smwaldorf.org
Christie Acton, Marketing Director, cacton@smwaldorf.org
999 Violet Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80304
303-444-7697