
Board Secretary, Family Association Liaison and Parent Trustee
The warmth of soup on the stove, singing, and beeswax crayons on a Day in the Kindergarten drew Katie and her family to the Santa Cruz Waldorf School, and the pedagogy, curriculum, faculty and staff, and school community keep them there. Katie earned a BA at Pacific Lutheran University, an MS in ecology at Iowa State University, and a PhD in environmental studies at UC Santa Cruz. She has been teaching at UCSC since 2008, engaging students through hands-on learning, critical analysis, awe and wonder of the natural environment, and compassion and gratitude for the human community. Her class topics include freshwater ecology, agroecology and sustainable food systems, and climate change, and she strives to be inclusive of and collaborative with students. Katie loves spending time outside and is an avid reader and handwork enthusiast. She and her husband Forest have two daughters, one at SCWS and one an alumna of SCWS. Katie is a perennial handwork assistant and highly recommends volunteering at school festivals.