August 2025
Dear Students and Parents,
Please read below for important back-to-school information.
SCHOOL OFFICE
We do not yet have phone or internet service in the new school, so Ms. Shaffer, Office Manager, and I are working from home. You may email us at office@berkshirewaldorf.com. We’ll let you know when services have been installed.
NEW TEACHERS! And gratitude for departing teachers!
Please welcome Susan Bilodeau Hutchins, who will teach math and physical science; Michael Cobb, Spanish; and Geneve Brossard, art.
Ms. Hutchins taught at our school from 2017-2022 and returns after a hiatus as a math teacher at Monument Mountain Regional High School. Dr. Brossard returns after a one-year sabbatical. You can read more about our new teachers, and our other teachers, on our website.
The arrival of new teachers means that some experienced teachers are leaving.
With sadness and utmost gratitude, we announce that Julia Nunez will not return in the fall. Julia was a member of the group that founded the school in 2002. She was also a founder of our international visiting and exchange program, which started in 2004. From 2008 to 2016, Julia moved to San Diego, where she was the lead and founding teacher of the San Diego Waldorf High School, and where she taught French and Spanish, Latin dance, community service in the immigrant community, History of Music, History of the Ancient Civilizations of the Americas, and History of Latin America. She traveled with students to Peru, Guatemala, and Costa Rica for service trips. Since her return to our school in 2017, “Profe” has taught Spanish and History of Music and, once again, led Spanish language trips abroad. We thank her profusely for her many years of teaching, traveling, and devotion to our school. We are pleased to announce that she will mentor our new Spanish teacher, Michael Cobb, this year, and she will continue to serve as a member of the school’s Board of Trustees. Although she will miss her students, Julia is looking forward to having time to take care of herself as she deals with Stage IV metastatic cancer and a brain tumor.
We also say farewell to Robert Andenmatten, who taught math and physics for the past three years, and who inculcated a love of chess in many of our students. We thank Mr. Andenmatten for his teaching, his cheerful good-nature, his omnivorous intelligence, and the many stories of his life.
NEW SCHEDULE!
We are expanding from a 4-day school week by adding a “Flexible Friday.” Friday will include seminar, elective or study hall, and some afternoon activities. Families will choose among three options: 1.) to attend on Friday. 2.) to attend seminar remotely. Or 3.) not to attend but to complete independent work for seminar. Watch your email for exact schedules and links, coming soon. Ms. Shaffer will be in touch in the next couple of weeks about your choices.
NEW BUILDING!
We are thrilled to welcome you all to our new building, 6 Main Street, Stockbridge, MA 01262. Please note: We will begin the year with furniture borrowed from our supplier because much of our new furniture will not be delivered until a bit later in the fall. This mild discomfort will be more than offset by our gracious new surroundings.
Lockers
Each student will be assigned a locker for the year. Please keep it clean! Note that in keeping with our community ethos, lockers do not have locks on them. We trust that students will respect one another’s belongings.
Parking
Teachers will park along the building. Students should park facing away from the building. Parents and visitors may park wherever you can find a spot—for a nice change, there’s plenty of parking available! We ask that you enter and exit from the parking lot through the door on the west side of the building, the door that faces the Congregational Church.
SCHOOL CALENDAR
Opening Assembly and first day of school
Wed., Sept. 3
Academic half-day. Students should arrive at school no later than 8:15 a.m. in assembly dress—see the Handbook for details. Opening Assembly starts at 8:30 a.m. and lasts about 30 minutes. Parents invited! Please note: This is a school day and students will have a first seminar class; they should be prepared for this with required books and school supplies. Students will have time at school to change out of assembly dress before heading to Camp Hi-Rock for our annual Orientation.
Orientation at Camp Hi-Rock
Wed., Sept. 3 through Fri., Sept. 5
We will leave for Camp Hi-Rock at 1 p.m. on September 3, following a lunch break after morning classes, and we will return to the high school by 2 p.m. on Friday, September 5. More information coming soon in a separate message.
Current calendar information for 2025-2026 is posted on our online calendar, or click on the “Calendar” tab in the upper right corner of our home page. Check your email and the website calendar for up-to-date information throughout the year.
INFORMATION, BOOKS, SUPPLIES
Back-to-school information, including this letter, may also be found under the “Current Families” tab in the upper left corner of our home page.
Student Book List. Required books for the coming year. Please support your local bookstores! You can buy your books at The Bookloft in Great Barrington or The Bookstore in Lenox.
New York State residents only: Please note that most of these books will be provided via the Questar program if you request them. Once you have the book list, follow this link to get started.
School Supply List. Required items for the start of school and every day after that. Students may keep supplies in their lockers or cubbies at the school so they are available when needed.
Student & Parent Handbook. This document contains lots of information for all members of our school community. If 2025-2026 is your first year at our school, please read to ensure a smooth transition.
TRANSPORTATION
Students who ride the BRTA to and from Great Barrington (the route number is 21) and other towns, may find the schedule here. Please note that the morning route was not available last year due to ongoing cuts, and it is likely that it will not be reinstated by fall.
Families who would like help arranging carpools should contact Kendell Shaffer in the office starting Monday, August 18. You may reach her at office@berkshirewaldorf.com.
(Each year, a few families inquire about a van from the elementary Berkshire Waldorf School to the high school and back. The current cost for a van, assuming we could find 10-14 students to ride it, at around $2000 per student, is prohibitive. This cost includes additional mileage, maintenance, insurance, and a driver.)
STUDENT ENROLLMENT & INFORMATION FORMS
If you haven’t yet done so, please complete all the required information in your TADS portal.
ADDITIONAL ITEMS
We will announce a new soccer coach and dates for soccer practice next week.
We generally have a back-to-school pot-luck supper the week before Labor Day. We will schedule this as soon as possible—please hold the evenings of Thursday, August 28, and Friday, August 29, open, if possible. We’ll let you know as soon as we have a plan; we are working with furniture suppliers and building inspectors to make it possible!
Apologies for the delay in getting this letter to you. Our goal is to have it to you by August 1 each summer, but the work of opening the new building has slowed things a bit. Thanks for your patience and understanding.
Please email if you have questions about this letter or anything else, and enjoy the rest of the summer.
Sincerely,
Stephen Sagarin, PhD
Executive Director & Faculty Chair