WENDY GITTLEMAN
SCHOOL ADMINISTRATOR

Wendy began her Waldorf journey in California in 2001. She has served in several areas of Waldorf education throughout her 19 years of experience, her most recent position was as Operations Manager at Sacramento Waldorf School. With a Bachelor’s in Organizational Leadership and experience in Waldorf Education, Wendy has been hired as our new administrator and is excited to nurture, grow, and serve the Waldorf School of Palm Beach.

JENNIFER SARRIA
BUSINESS MANAGER

Jennifer is the Business Manager at Waldorf School of Palm Beach. She was born in Peru and lived in Virginia for over 20 years before she and her family moved to Florida about 2 years ago. Jennifer has over 20 years of experience in office administration, health-care, customer service, and bookkeeping; she is also a certified medical and legal Spanish interpreter and has had the opportunity to work with people from all walks of life and age. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys reading, going to the beach, cooking, and spending time with her daughter and husband.

CONNIE GRANJA
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS

Connie Granja has a degree in Mass Communications from Florida International University where she specialized in Marketing and Graphic Design. She has almost 20 years of experience in this field working on brand development and strategy, creating promotional material and designing websites. Over the past 8 years, she also managed her own photography business that she started from the ground up.

CHARISSA JOHNSON

Charissa has a deep appreciation for Waldorf Education and the unique experience it provides children. Having grown up in a Waldorf community, attending Waldorf School from Kindergarten through Grade 12, Charissa felt well-prepared to go on to attend Bennington College in VT. She graduated with a BA in Music/Songwriting & Voice in 2001, and then went on to receive her degree in Waldorf Early Childhood Education from Sunbridge Institute in NY. Charissa has been involved in teaching at The Waldorf School of Palm Beach since 2009 and is the lead teacher of our Rosebud Nursery Class. Both of her children currently attend the Waldorf School of Palm Beach.

ANDREA DENcKER

Andrea was born and raised in Colombia. She holds a Doctor’s Degree in Dental Medicine from Javeriana University in Bogota, where she practiced for almost 10 years before moving to South Florida. It was after having her daughter that she learned about Waldorf Education, and her interest and fascination for it motivated her to change her career path to that of teaching young children.

Andrea is the Apple Blossom Nursery teacher and she also leads our Parent and Child program. After completing the Foundation Studies in Anthroposophy, Andrea continued her dedication to the Waldorf pedagogy by starting her teacher training and is now in her third year. Her children currently attend the Waldorf School of Palm Beach.

MINDY WECKER

Mindy has been involved in Waldorf Education and study since 1992, both at Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks, CA and Antioch University in New Hampshire. She has been an early childhood educator in settings inspired by Waldorf education since 1999. Mindy holds a BS in Art History and Fine Arts from Brooklyn College, and a Master’s in Education from Antioch New England. Mindy has taught dance and movement for over 30 years and she brings her love of creativity and beauty to all that she does. Mindy is our Buttercup Nursery/Kindergarten teacher and the Director of our Early Childhood program.

LILA CLEVELAND
1st GRADE

Lila Cleveland loves working with children, teaching Waldorf principles and making her lessons creative and fun. Lila’s parents were both university art professors who encouraged her to practice yoga and meditation from childhood. She began higher education studying the Vedas (Ancient Indian texts) and Ayurveda (natural Eastern health care). She recently graduated as a Waldorf teacher from Antioch University, New England. Lila is the mother of two teenage boys who spent their early years being raised and educated according to Waldorf principles.

Bonnie Wilner
2nd & 4th GRADE

Jamie Hawk
3rd Grade

Jamie received her Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Elementary Education from Florida Atlantic University and has held a state of Florida teaching license since 2007. Jamie is a mother of four children and a trained community herbalist. Inspired by her love for children, education, and nature, she began teaching gardening classes at the Waldorf School of Palm Beach in 2014. From there she also taught practical arts, and other diverse classes in the elementary grades before moving into the classroom as a grades lead teacher. While Jamie has enjoyed her training in Biodynamic beekeeping and grades level teacher training, she is looking forward to completing her full Waldorf teacher training certification.

Joan Hourican
6th GRADE

Joan holds a Master’s Degree in Elementary Education with a Waldorf Elementary Certification from Antioch University in New Hampshire. After serving as Program Coordinator at Pine Jog Environmental Education Center of Florida Atlantic University for 18 years, Joan is pleased to bring her love of nature and experiential learning to our school. She finds that Waldorf education meets and nurtures the souls of her students.

BRITTNeY BOWES
7th GRADE

Brittney Bowes is a trained historian and archaeologist with a Master's degree specializing in Early American history from the University of Lynchburg in Lynchburg, Virginia. Born and raised in Melbourne, Florida, Brittney now lives in Delray Beach with her husband and their two dogs. Deeply inspired by the pedagogy and ideals of the Waldorf curriculum, Brittney began her class teacher training at Sunbridge University.

OLGA DOMOKOS
8th GRADE

Ms. Domokos is the Eighth grade teacher at the Waldorf School of Palm Beach. She holds a Master’s degree in Business Management and started her career in Marketing for high-tech companies. After her children were born, she developed a keen interest in education, especially alternative education. After returning to her native country Hungary, Olga taught English as a Second Language and soon became the director of a growing language school. Olga’s two older sons have graduated from a Blue Valley Waldorf School in Hungary.

YELETZY GARZON
Spanish TEACHER

Yeletzy is from Colombia. She holds a Bachelor Degree of Arts in Foreign Languages (Spanish and French) from La Salle University in Colombia. After finishing her studies, she worked for two years as a Spanish Teacher Assistant in Rennes, France. Yeletzy also has eight years of experience as a Spanish and French teacher for elementary, middle, and high school. She’s been teaching Spanish at the Waldorf School of Palm Beach since April 2013.

Natalia Fischer
GERMAN & MUSIC TEACHER

Natalia holds a Master’s Degree in Music and Art History from the Pedagogical University in Minsk, Belarus. She continued her professional development at the Waldorf School of Palm Beach teachers training seminar in Stuttgart, Germany.

After finishing her studies she worked for more then 10 years in Germany at the Waldorf School with elementary, middle and high school children. She taught music and language, and brought her love and enthusiasm into the classroom.

Natalia also has over 15 years of experience as a piano teacher and as choral director for the South German Choir Association with a variety of age groups.