Where Would Waldorf Education Be Without Waldorf Teachers?
It takes many things to create a wonderful, beautiful, healthy Waldorf education for our children – but can you really have a Waldorf school without the teachers? There is a direct correlation between the quality of teacher preparation and the quality of the resulting education.
For 25 years, the Bay Area Center for Waldorf Teacher Training has been dedicated to educating those who want to do this amazing work. Over the past 12 years our training has grown stronger to provide more in-person contact hours, more depth of remedial work, and has broadened the understanding of the curriculum and how it can meet a diversity of communities.
Now more than ever, Waldorf teacher preparation needs to be an in-depth, transformative, artistic, and a life-affirming process, so new teachers have the creative forces and the sensitivity needed by today’s children.
Today, we launch BACWTT’s Annual Giving Campaign with an invitation to support those dedicating themselves to becoming the next generation of Waldorf teachers.
To bring this journey to life, we would like to share a reflection from Wing Choi, a member of our graduating Class of 2026.
Celebrating the Class of 2026
Small Beginnings, Reaching Far
There were Friday evenings and Saturdays during my three years at BACWTT when, after a full week of work and family life, I wondered how I would find the energy to attend. Yet I kept showing up, and so often left feeling renewed.
Through the arts, thoughtful study, and conversation, those weekends became something like a retreat for the soul. I found space to breathe, create, and return to daily life with greater clarity and care. That renewal came from the thoughtful preparation, generosity, and attention our faculty brought to us, week after week.
At graduation, I spoke about never underestimating small beginnings. Looking back, I see how those weekends, one after another, changed how I meet the world, as a parent, a colleague, and a human being.
Across child development, the arts and the sciences, our studies kept bringing us back to the person in front of us. We were learning to observe before judging, listen before speaking, and pause before trying to fix. We were learning to trust that each person unfolds in their own time. These lessons reach far beyond a classroom.
In a world that often encourages comparison and competition, we experienced collaboration, trust, and community. In a world increasingly shaped by speed, distraction, artificial intelligence, and constant noise, we practiced paying attention, making room for wonder, and meeting challenges with imagination and care. Waldorf education is often described as alternative. I wonder whether these qualities are becoming necessities, for children and adults alike.
Our fourteen graduates of 2026 now carry something of that care into our own communities, joining the many graduates who came before us. Our teachers may never know all the lives their work will touch. What they offered us continues through the children we care for, the relationships we nurture, and the work we choose to do.
For me, carrying this work forward also means helping sustain the place where it began. Giving back to BACWTT is a way to thank those who nurtured us and make this experience possible for others.
Each gift joins others, just as each weekend of learning became part of something life-changing.
What begins with a small contribution can reach further than we know.
Wing Choi
Graduate, Class of 2026
Help This Circle of Care Grow
As Wing’s reflection reminds us, the care invested in each student reaches far beyond BACWTT. Each of you helps that circle grow, by sharing our program to a friend, a parent, a teaching assistant or someone who is interested in education. Your generosity also helps make this work possible.
Every contribution helps sustain the thoughtful preparation of Waldorf teachers and the care they bring to children and communities.
Matching Gift from Our Board Community
This year, we have full participation from the Board along with seven former Board members who have offered a matching grant of $25,000 through December 31, 2026. Please consider giving early to help us make the most of this generous opportunity.
We are grateful for gifts of any size. If you have given before and are able to increase your contribution this year, your additional support would be deeply appreciated. A monthly gift is another meaningful way to provide steady support throughout the year.
Thank you for helping make this experience possible for the next generation of Waldorf teachers.
Teresa Ferrari
President, BACWTT Board of Directors
Together, we’re growing.
Every beginning holds possibility.
Our goal: $90,000
Help nurture the next generation of Waldorf teachers
