Kimberton Waldorf School
Education That Matters
Last week 9th grade spent their week at Camphill Village Kimberton Hills as part of their Agriculture Practicum. Together they weeded, harvested, washed and packed vegetables for the CSA, and helped the villagers and staff in many other ways!
In the evenings the class gathered and slept in our garden building, bonding over the power of manual labor and their shared love of being outdoors. Thank you Camphill for having us! What a glorious week to spend in your community.
Each year, as our seniors step into their final year together, they make their way to Hermit Island in coastal Maine for a week of learning, exploration, connection, and adventure.
Joining 12th-grade students from Waldorf schools across the region, our seniors study the remarkable life of the Maine coast: from lobsters and barnacles to sea stars, clams, snails, squids, and countless other creatures. The students also capture some of the beauty in their watercolor sea-scape lab. In the poetry lab, the students create personal pieces of writing while reflecting on the beauty and emotions brought up in such a magical place.
And beyond the classroom, there are sandy beaches, warm September waters, cool nights around the campfire, new friendships, and the simple joy of being together in a beautiful place. Thank you Hermit Island! Here’s to an incredible year, class of 2027.
Photos by Jen Zahorchak from Lake Champlain Waldorf School and Celia Martin from KWS.
Article in the Reading Eagle written by KWS parent Courtney Diener-Stokes about KWS Woodworking teacher James Pierson
When people retire, many have bucket list items to check off on their list that involve travel and unique experiences, but there are some who simply choose to be more present and intentional within their everyday lives.
That includes time spent in the kitchen cooking and experimenting without time constraints smothering any joy that might be had there.
One’s financial situation can impact decisions made, regardless of whether it’s time spent on the golf course; going on a new adventure; when cooking or entertaining and deciding to buy ingredients for six to host a dinner party; or a cozy late summer alfresco meal for two with a glass of wine under the stars.
Your kitchen is most likely stocked with the tools and accessories you have accumulated that are needed to execute your culinary vision.
Many of those items and their quality were typically driven by your financial picture at the time and whether or not you were looking for something to simply do the job or an item of quality to add to your collection, such as a custom wooden spoon that takes ergonomics in mind, complementing your bodily motions because it was made to work with you instead of you having to adjust your grip or movement to work with something that was not thoughtfully designed.
When artist James Pierson spends time in his studio in Exton, Chester County, making handcrafted wooden utensils among other creations, there is more of a thought and design process involved than meets the eye.
The end result is a product that conforms to you, not one that you have to conform to, enabling it to work with you in a way that it is comfortable and beneficial for your everyday motions in the kitchen. That’s typically a more enjoyable experience because your body‘s natural motions are being taken into consideration. The thoughtfulness is more inclined to complement your dexterity, which declines as you age.
“I want the things I make to be both beautiful and genuinely useful,” Pierson said. “Within my craftsmanship, ergonomics starts with paying attention to the hand and to how a tool is actually used.”
Most of the time he doesn’t begin with a strict formula.
“I shape a piece, hold it, move it through the kinds of motions someone would use while cooking, and keep refining it until it feels natural,” he said. “I think about balance, weight, handle thickness, pressure points, leverage, and the transition between the handle and the working end of the utensil.”
He sometimes will design based more on aesthetics, for example when he uses the lathe to shape a handle, but even then his experience gives him knowledge as to what is likely comfortable and functional.
Pierson, who is also a woodworking and practical arts teacher at Kimberton Waldorf School in Chester County, uses many of the tools he makes in his own kitchen located on the same property as his studio.
“That gives me a chance to test them over time rather than simply imagining how they might work,” Pierson said. “I notice what feels comfortable, where something could be improved, and what I might change in the next version.
“In that sense, I’ve probably learned as much about designing kitchen tools at the stove as I have at the workbench.”
He said that every piece he makes teaches him something.
“On some of my longer spoons and spatulas, for example, I carve two shallow recessed areas, or grip coves, into the handle,” he said. “They create two natural holding positions — one allows the user to hold farther back on the utensil for reaching comfortably into a deeper pot. The other lets the user choke up closer to the spoon bowl or working end when more leverage and control are needed, such as when scooping or moving something heavier.
His goal is to let the tool adapt to the task and to the person rather than requiring the person’s wrist, hand, or arm to compensate for the tool.
He explained that those considerations can become even more important as grip strength and fine motor control change with age.
“A utensil that is well balanced, easy to grasp, comfortable in the hand, and doesn’t require excessive force, can make an everyday task easier and more enjoyable,” Pierson said. “At the same time, I think good ergonomic design benefits everyone, not only older adults.”
When he thinks about ease of use, his ideal is that the tool almost disappears into the experience.
“You shouldn’t have to keep thinking about how you’re holding the spoon or fighting with the utensil,” he said. “You should simply be able to cook. To me, good craftsmanship isn’t only about how an object looks when it’s finished. It’s also about how well it serves the person using it.”
For an older adult choosing kitchen utensils or other functional objects, he encourages them to physically pick the item up whenever possible and consider: does it feel secure without requiring a tight grip? Is the handle substantial enough to hold comfortably? Is the weight appropriate? Does it feel balanced and easy to control? Are there uncomfortable edges or pressure points?
“A beautiful object is wonderful, but if it’s meant to be used, it should make the task easier rather than demanding more from the person using it,” he said.
Dear KWS Community,
Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Karen Hite, and I am looking forward to returning to the school in a new capacity, after two years of retirement. For the 2026-2027 school year, we will be searching for a new Head of School for KWS, and I accepted an offer to serve as the Interim Head of School for the coming year.
Over the past 30 years, I have been a parent of two children who each spent 16 years at KWS, graduating in 2012 and 2014. I began working part-time in the Music and Eurythmy departments in 2002, and from 2012-2024 I worked as a class teacher. Serving as the class teacher to the graduating class of 2024, and teaching our current 11th grade during their middle school years were two of the most rewarding jobs I have held. It was especially rewarding to weave previous careers in physical therapy and music into my teaching. I bring experience and skills from previous administrative jobs to this position, as well as my love and appreciation for the school and its role in my children’s education. I am honored to provide continuity of leadership during this time, and wish Dr. Brad Kershner much success in his new endeavors.
Kimberton Waldorf School has benefited from its strong leadership both past and present. Our school is home to dedicated teachers and staff. There is great depth and breadth of teaching experience and all carry a love for the students they guide and instruct and support. Our school is additionally on strong financial footing. We are looking forward to a year that will seek to strengthen our understanding and practice of governance and teaching practices that best meet the needs of our community, a year that will see a culmination of our accreditation process that occurs every seven years, and a strengthening of our community as we continue to teach and guide our students from the youngest in Parent-Child Class to the Twelfth Graders who will be preparing to graduate in June 2027.
Kimberton Waldorf School provides an education that uniquely prepares our students to meet the world. Critical thinking skills are developed and nurtured through stories and the imagination, that blossom in the high school as analytical skills and the ability to synthesize material into new and creative ideas. A love and concern for others and the world – the brotherhood of man – is developed through stories and studies that inspire interest and curiosity outside of oneself.
These creative ideas and love for others is complimented by the development of the will and the ability to act in and for the world – beginning with chores to help in the nursery classrooms and culminating in the high school with such activities as service trips and projects, senior projects that stretch the thinking and develop new skills, and outdoor experiences that test the mettle of what our seniors are physically capable of accomplishing. Well-rounded, capable and competent are only a few of the adjectives that describe our graduates.
Waldorf education is an Education that Matters.
Building a Constitutional Economy in a 10th Grade Waldorf Classroom
by Liz Barrett, English Teacher, Academic Support, Class Advisor
“What’s up CITIZEN-STUDENTS!” I beam, walking into the heart of our classroom. Over time I’ve worked out that this is how to best capture the attention of a group of energetic teens. Today marks class 12 of 22, and for the next 45 minutes we will practice the hard skills of notetaking and critical thinking alongside so-called soft ones – operating by consensus and classroom etiquette. Here, those are treated as hard skills, too. The room gets rowdy, and often, but it’s only the work of a pointed question or two to bring us back. Students in this room are building their own government, modeled on the U.S. Constitution. The process is messy, frustrating, intellectually painful, yet generative. Something larger is at stake: knowledge, and the budding citizens of our world. Rigor can be found in play. I give you, We, the People: The Game – an experimental classroom model for 10th grade U.S. Government.
At the core of my job is preparing students for the myriad paths they’ll walk after graduation. The seeds of what these students will carry into their futures are germinated in this classroom. The stated mission: teach U.S. government. The deeper one: teach these teens how to be students who are critical of how they know what they know. “Studenting” is an art best learned by degrees: assessing sources, refining papers, crafting arguments, and taking notes. None of those skills stick without urgency. So, we build an economy. To create the economy is to create the game.
This is a class on critical thinking and critical semantics. It’s a class on the importance of the fourth estate. It’s a class about American history, American laws, and American governance. I think—and perhaps I’m biased since I’m the teacher—all of these lessons are deeply important ones. Each citizen-student begins by choosing a keyword from a list of dozens—freedom, democracy, representation, equity, virtue—a term that captures what this country, in their view, should stand for. Then they commit. Week by week, as we learn how our government works, they probe their word’s boundaries. The Keyword: U.S.A. is theirs to defend.
The economy comes from Thoreau. Teaching Transcendentalist literature last year, I was struck by Thoreau’s economy in Walden. Every nail and every shingle was embedded with worth and accrued through a ledger. In concept and practice that ledger is our backbone. The knowledge we produce together is typed into a shared Doc called “Keeping Receipts,” (now well over 70,000 words), and is a coproduced commons they can all access, anytime,
Here’s how it works: Every comment or question a Citizen-Student offers is tracked by a BANKER, one of a small rotation who also share the duty of surveillance as well as bringing in something newsworthy, like a high school “show-and-tell.” Comments and questions pay 2 cents apiece, a system I dubbed “My 2 Cents.” Attendance varies by role: 5 cents for Citizen-Students, 25 for Bankers. The EXECUTIVE (that’s me) keeps meticulous track of the spreadsheet called “The Market.” The currency, coined by a creative citizen-student, is LizCoin.
What do they do with the money? Pay taxes! Each week, citizen-students owe at least 250 words on a homework prompt – civil asset forfeiture, keyword definitions, gerrymandering, questions from the text, even meditations on those 3 watershed moments from 1619. That is, they owe the writing or they owe the LizCoin. Set at a market rate, either way they’ll need to pay in labor or in the currency their labor has earned. Whether they pay or write it’s their calculus, drawn from decisions based on their personal ledgers. Penalties and bonuses are also in play. Almost without noticing, they are learning class-by-class how self-interest operates in a public economy.
The midterm challenge pushed them further. Citizen-students had to identify their 5 state and federal representatives, describe what those representatives do, and formulate one open question for one of them. No boilerplate. They had to look at what these people do for us and figure out how to ask them for help. The questions came back sharp:
These are not warm-up questions. These are the questions of constituents.
The game, of course, is more than its ledger. The Bankers are the judiciary, and issues we cannot decide in the room go to them. We have played out diplomatic immunity, file redaction for students on their exchange, critical source analysis, conflict of interest, and the term, “illegal alien.” When a Banker forgot to submit their news, an empathetic majority decided it was only negligence to be fined at the regular market rate, rather than a more gross negligence at double. We have studied demos and kratos, and the Athenian direct democracy that gave birth to these ideals. We have looked at amendment thresholds, conflict of interest, diplomatic immunity, Executive Orders, and who owns our news.
The data is revealing. Sixty percent of students rated the course “very engaging,” and 93% agreed that earning LizCoin helps them understand “how being active in government or a community can make a difference.” One student reflected: “Communities seem to always balance out in the way that the general whole quietly decide that this certain group of people will always ask the questions for them.” That is a heckuva sentence—one I would equally expect to hear in a graduate seminar.
The critiques are real, too. Some find the LizCoin distracting. Others want less typing and more lecture. One wants the “My Two Cents” system limited to the first part of class. These are legitimate objections, and coincidentally the exact concerns adult citizens raise about their own government. Too much spectacle. Not enough deliberation. Whose voice gets amplified, and at what cost? The game does not solve these problems. It surfaces them.
Rigor in a Waldorf classroom does not mean a heavier workload. It means empowering students to learn and be students and asking them to hold the concepts of structure and freedom all at once. We argue, we vote, we are taxed, and we are represented. We keep our own accounts. American democracy is an experiment, and so is the rigorous game at the heart of this class. The students who finish this trimester will not all become political scientists. They will, however, remember how to take notes under pressure, how to weigh a source, how to draft a question worth a representative’s time, and how to recognize when the system around them is asking something of them. It might be rigorous, but it is also practical. In our classroom we prepare for the world we live in. And that, for all of us as continuing Citizen-Students, is the game.
We celebrated the graduation of the Kimberton Waldorf School Class of 2026.
Over the years, these students have grown into thoughtful, capable, and compassionate young adults. We have watched them discover their strengths, find their voices, and leave their mark on our community.
Though it is bittersweet to say goodbye, we are filled with pride as they step confidently into the next chapter of their lives. Congratulations, Class of 2026; we can’t wait to see where your journeys lead.
Growing up, my race always felt like a very important part of my identity. And yet that importance always seemed to be projected onto me by outside forces, not born out of my own experience. My family culture feels like a thing on its own, disconnected from racial stereotype or assumed cultural identity. I felt I was being taught, through my community, that being biracial was supposed to mean something. But I could never place what that meaning was supposed to be.
Many people see me as white. This makes sense. I have light skin and hair. I don’t look like the “stereotypical” white person, but I certainly appear to be one. When I was little, being seen as white bugged me. I wanted my skin to be darker. I wanted it to be obvious; to take on my heritage as a kind of birthright, something that would make me stand out, that would let people see I was unique.
Some people see me as black, mostly people of color. I’m undeniably a person of color too. Ironically, calling me black follows the same logic the slave masters used, where “just one drop” turned you into the tragic mulatta of a minstrel play. Even so, I wanted to be seen as black. It connected me to a historical struggle. It made my existence feel like disobedience to racist ideology. We all long to be part of something bigger. I fell so deeply into that longing that I would become defensive whenever I felt “misidentified,” or when attention was drawn to the lightness of my skin.
Looking back, I can see that wanting to be read as black and resenting being read as white were really the same impulse: I was letting other people’s categories tell me who I was.
I’ve tried to put my struggles with racial identity behind me. And yet the questions still come up: Who are you? What are you?
The simplest answer is biracial. The term is accurate enough, but it doesn’t explain my experience as an individual; it doesn’t even specify which races. Mulatto is more specific, but it has, for good reason, fallen out of common speech. And again, it doesn’t really capture the way I experience the world. Why do I feel like I need a word to categorize myself in the first place? In a world with so many words to describe all the things a person can be, it sometimes feels like it isn’t enough to just be a person.
I like to think of my experience as “Schrödinger’s race.” In a famous thought experiment, a cat sealed in a box is imagined to be simultaneously alive and dead until someone opens the box to look, both states existing at once. Like the cat, I am both black and white, a kind of quantum superposition in human form. The box, in this metaphor, isn’t meant to be opened. And yet people keep trying. We long for the binary, for simple categories that can be easily explained. We long to understand one another, so we create an array of boxes to place ourselves in. And still we don’t understand. We just create smaller and smaller, ever more specific boxes, hoping we will one day be able to summarize all the perfect complexities of a human being.
Much of this comes from the dualism that runs through our society. We see things as one or the other — right or left, good or evil, black or white — and we deny the gray areas that are always there. We are slowly learning to escape these patterns, but their hold is hard to release. The issue lives not only in the systems we’ve built but in the way we interpret and express our reality. Most of us can’t pull ourselves out of our day-to-day perceptions long enough to see past them. And even when we glimpse a deeper truth, we struggle to put it into words.
I struggle with this often. The true feeling I’m experiencing doesn’t seem to conform to the words I know. So, I search for more words. I imagine some perfect term: a combination of sounds so self-evident that anyone hearing it would immediately understand. But even when it feels just on the tip of my tongue, the perfect word always reveals itself to be a perfect delusion. Only the feeling remains.
Maybe the feelings hardest to express are the truest ones we have. Maybe identity itself is supposed to be partly indescribable, because so many things shape who we are and how we see the world. Beyond every stereotype lie real experiences, but those experiences are never the whole story. Even people who share the same experience will process it differently, because they’re carrying different experiences of everything else. And deeper than that, there seem to be parts of each of us that don’t stem from any lived experience at all.
Through some combination of life experience and pure happenstance, I’ve found that as a queer woman of color, I don’t feel particularly connected to the identities of “queer” or “woman of color.” I feel more connected to my identity as a person, moving through space. An ever-changing human being who contains multitudes. An individual, just like everyone else. The boxes other people use to read me have never really told the truth about who I am.
When I let go of the imposed binaries, I can finally stop trying to fit myself into them. The individual pieces of an identity will never add up to the whole of a person. The cat in the box stays the cat in the box, regardless of what label gets attached. The surface things matter less than the living of an actual life. And a life, lived honestly, can never be summed up by a category.
The group hiked along the Appalachian Tail with full packs, carrying everything they needed on their backs. They cooked on backpacking stoves, sitting around a fire each night cooking their dinner, sleeping in tents. A beautiful and uplifting week for our strong and capable freshmen class!
On Monday, our school community had the profound honor of welcoming Arassari Pataxó for two unforgettable assemblies.
Born in the heart of the Amazon rainforest, Arassari shared what it means to live in deep relationship with the land – where every choice we make ripples outward into our bodies, our rivers, and the Earth itself. Through story, humor, and lived experience, he invited our students to think more consciously about what we consume, how we care for nature, and how we show up in the world.
He reminded us that protecting Mother Earth begins with something simple yet powerful: Attention. Focus. Presence. Through a playful but challenging concentration game, students experienced firsthand how awareness lives not just in the mind, but in the body.
As a chief, artist, and advocate, Arassari carries the voice of the forest into every space he enters, whether through his environmental work, planting tens of thousands of native trees and restoring rivers, or through his art, which speaks when words cannot.
Our 11th grade journeyed south to complete their Civil Rights main lesson block with Mrs. Tonya Rice – walking across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, visiting the Legacy Museum, and standing in places that hold both pain and profound courage.
Through shared experience, thoughtful discussion, and deep reflection, history became something not just studied, but truly felt.
As part of their Moby Dick block in 12th grade English, our seniors welcomed local knot expert Neal Collier to class for a hands-on exploration of the sailor’s craft woven throughout Herman Melville’s epic tale. In the novel, life aboard the Pequod depends on skill, cooperation, and an intimate knowledge of ropes – whether raising sails, lowering whaleboats, or navigating the unpredictable sea in pursuit of the great white whale.
Through tying and learning traditional knots themselves, students experienced a small piece of the maritime world Melville describes so vividly. This kind of experiential learning is central to Waldorf education: bringing literature off the page and into the hands, connecting intellect with practical skill, and deepening understanding through lived experience. A memorable afternoon of stories, rope, and a few well-tied knots for the Class of 2026.
There is a special kind of quiet in the studio these days. Our seniors are deep in concentration, working on their final self-portrait projects.
With mirror work and printed photos of themselves, they practice the art of truly seeing. This isn’t just about capturing likeness; it’s about reflection in every sense of the word. Each brushstroke asks for focus, patience, and dedication – the same qualities that have carried them through their Waldorf journey. To look at oneself honestly, to observe light and shadow, strength and subtlety, requires courage and presence.
In Waldorf education, the senior self-portrait is more than a culminating art project. It is a moment of pause before graduation, a chance to reflect inwardly while creating outwardly. As they prepare to step into the wider world, our students first take the time to meet themselves with attention, care, and intention. Thank you Ms. Oswald for guiding them!
Seniors have been receiving good news in their inboxes this winter! The following colleges have admitted our students already. A name in bold indicates one of our students will attend. A number of colleges will not make decisions until late March. We will keep you posted. Congratulations and good luck to our talented seniors from the College Guidance Department! -Anna Zay and Dr. Eva Goedhart
Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences
Boston Conservatory
Drexel University
Elon University
Evergreen State University
Fitchburg University
Gettysburg College
Hampshire College
Immaculata College
Ithaca College
Jefferson University
Lebanon Valley College
Muhlenberg College
Springfield College
Susquehanna University
Temple University (2)
Towson University
University of Buffalo
University Mass Amherst
University Mass Boston
University of Maine-Orono (3)
University of New England (2)
Warren Wilson (3)
Wilson College
Ursinus College (3)
University of Richmond
University of Roanoke
University of Scranton
Vermont State University
Handwork Teacher
Governing Team Member
Lower and Middle School Leader
“Learn to Change the World” was the motto for the Waldorf 100 celebrations, and it could not be more true.
As each school year ends at Kimberton, I reflect on the work accomplished by students, teachers, and families. Every year brings a clear rhythm of learning, growth, and shared experiences that shape our school community. Our curriculum combines academics with the arts, outdoor education, and hands-on, project-based learning. Class plays, field trips, seasonal festivals, and hands-on learning are central to how we teach, helping students connect what they learn to the world around them.
This past year was full of meaningful progress. We saw students grow in confidence and creativity. Each experience, whether major or small, added to a strong sense of purpose. As we look ahead to the new year, I feel inspired by the momentum we’ve built.
Our faculty is dedicated to supporting each student’s individual path. Many teachers stay with the same class over several years, allowing for consistency, tailored instruction, and a deep understanding of each child. Detailed narrative reports provide a comprehensive view of academic performance and personal growth. Students are encouraged to approach complex problems analytically, work effectively in groups, and take initiative in their learning.
We do more than prepare students for tests — we equip them to meet life’s challenges with clarity, resilience, and purpose. They are encouraged to think critically, act with empathy, and innovate with intention. Grounded in timeless values and empowered with a strong inner compass, Kimberton students are poised to shape the future in meaningful, impactful ways. They learn how to change the world. This is more than education — this is preparation for life.
This was originally written for Kimberton Waldorf School’s 2024-2025 Annual Report. Click here to see the full report.
Our Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day was a powerful and beautiful gathering of heart, voice, and community. 
The morning assembly featured moving performances, uplifting and emotional songs, and a keynote address by Dr. Selvi Kara, Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Bryn Mawr College, whose words invited deep reflection and inspiration. The assembly culminated with our Grades 5–12 chorus singing “When Dreams Take Flight,” filling the space with hope and purpose.
In the afternoon, students in Grades 8–12 continued the work through hands-on workshops rooted in the day’s theme, exploring poetry, dance, painting, music, and more. A day of art, reflection, and shared humanity—honoring Dr. King’s legacy through creativity, courage, and connection.
By Courtney Diener-Stokes for the Delco Daily Times (Original Article)
When Daniel Zebrowski, 17, of Chester County learned about an opportunity through his private high school to get educated beyond its walls through a three-and-a-half-month outdoor adventure experience, he jumped on it.
“Originally I signed up to go on the adventure of a lifetime, but once logistics shifted, my approach turned to one of an intention of self-growth,” said Zebrowski, the second-oldest of five children. “I wanted to learn as much as I possibly could about myself, and I wanted to see what kind of changes I would see in myself after three and a half months in the wilderness.”
Hosted by Kroka, a nonprofit wilderness school based in New Hampshire, the immersion experience offers a limited number of students from across the globe, ages 16-21, the opportunity to engage in accredited semester experiences.
Once Zebrowski went through the application process and was accepted into the program, he was given a list as to what he needed to do to prepare for the trip, including preparing food and training physically to enable him to acclimate to the daily physical demands, which included wearing a 70-pound backpack that contained everything he needed for the duration of the trip.
Zebrowski, a junior at Kimberton Waldorf School in Chester County, participated in Kroka’s fall program in Arizona and Utah for for their “Roaring Canyons Experience,” where he participated in backpacking, tent camping, whitewater paddling, rock climbing and more.
“I was in Utah for the expeditions and then spent three weeks in Arizona,” he said. “We camped each night there, and we spent most of our time on the move on expedition, and a few days were what we called layover days, where we would stay in one spot for a few days.”
On one of the layover periods, each student did a 44-hour solo.
“We spent our time alone with no tent — just a journal and water — fasting the whole way through,” he said. “The fast was optional, but most of us chose to do it.”
They took on many challenges and did a wide range of activities on their daily expeditions.
“We canoed, hiked, crossed rivers, rappelled down canyons, made our way through slot canyons, swam in rivers and went rock climbing at Cochise Stronghold in Arizona,” he said. “We also hiked the Grand Canyon, rim to rim.”
But beyond the physical challenges, there were many opportunities for learning. Zebrowski appreciated not having traditional daily homework, but valuted that they were still learning in the process of the excursion — just in a different way.
“Not having homework showed me what learning really is,” he said. “It allowed me to be completely present in the moment to take in the lessons and experiences.”
Since he didn’t have to worry about getting an assignment done by a certain date, he said that allowed him to truly live into what he was doing each day.
“Almost all the learning I did was different than what you would expect in a typical classroom,” he said. “I say this not simply because the material was different, but because of the way we learned.”
For example, they did a three-week study of the Mexican-American border crisis.
“It’s one thing to be in a classroom and look at pictures and discuss complicated topics such as this, and a whole other story to be there,” Zebrowski said. “It’s an entirely different thing to stand by that massive wall and look through it, seeing the houses and streets. To be there in the place of the thing you’re learning about — you see it, to breathe in the smells, to taste the air, provides you with a much deeper sense of the topic.”
When they learned about how flash floods create canyons, they stood in those canyons.
“We touched the rough sandstone walls, carved by thousands of years of water flowing there,” he said.
They learned practical skills for survival in the wilderness, such as how to read maps, plot coordinates, keep a constant sense of their cardinal directions and how to cook over fires, preparing meals such as a lentil and cheese dish over rice.
“We also learned the history of the places we were in, and how to process and handle our emotions,” he said, adding that he learned to live in a community, and how to be there for one another.
Zebrowski said he made lifelong friends through sharing the experience with his semester mates.
“All of this showed me that learning isn’t solely about numbers and facts, but that it is about a never-ending search for knowledge — a learning to live,” he said.
Zebrowski described a typical day when they would set up camp.
“The assigned cooks would begin to make dinner, and when camp was set up, we would journal about our day, write personal reflections and answer the prompt the instructors gave us,” he said. “When dinner was ready we would eat, then finish up our journaling and do dishes, then have what we called evening meeting.”
During their evening meeting they would read a group-assigned book, give appreciation to their peers, bring up concerns they had, have a class the instructors would lead, talk about the day and discuss the next day’s plans before going to bed around 8:30 p.m.
“We would be in charge of telling the group where we go and we would have to make sure everything was done right or someone could get hurt, and many other responsibilities,” Zebrowski said. “Through this knowing that we were capable of leading and taking care of ourselves, I found a confidence in me I hadn’t had before.”
He said he became more self-reliant because of the program.
“I gained a sense of being capable of taking care of myself and others,” he said. “The responsibilities we held with decision-making, prep and even being given the chance to do the risky things we did were just a few of the many things that contributed to a very strong sense of self reliance.”
Cooking over fires, navigating with maps and compasses, paddling whitewater and learning to rappel down canyons were all things he said he may never have learned how to do had he not particpated in the program.
“I was excited to go see the world, and that was my way to do just that,” he said. “It gained for me new perspectives on so many aspects of life.”
Daniel’s parents, Ania and Dominik, were supportive of his interest in the program and what he gained from it.
“What impressed me most about the Kroka program is its strong focus on learning through experience, teamwork and building independence in a supportive nature environment,” Ania said. “I felt that this practical approach was ideal for Daniel and helped him develop more self confidence, responsibility and self awareness. Daniel returned more self assured, resilient and proud of what he had accomplished.”
Daniel said he feels this is an experience that can make a student stand out to colleges.
“After spending three and a half months on an adventure like this, your character begins to stand out a bit in a good way,” he said. “The ways you think, your philosophies and all the experiences you have under your belt at such a young age, I believe, make you stand out to colleges as a mature young person, and they see it.”
Senior Night is one of those evenings that reminds us what community truly means. Each January, we gather on our home court to celebrate our seniors – their accomplishments, their dreams, and the journey that brought them here. Walking through walls of classmates alongside their families, shaking the hands of our administrators, and hearing their goals spoken aloud, our seniors are held by the whole school community. A beautiful night of gratitude, pride, and belonging.
Sculpting the human figure in an expressive, emotionally charged pose is one of the most challenging-and rewarding-artistic tasks. This project serves as the culmination of the 3-D sculptural curriculum, bringing together the techniques and artistic understanding students have developed over the years, including clay work, individual artistic “fingerprint,” and knowledge of human proportions.
In this block, students studied human-figure sculptures by several artists, focusing especially on Ernst Barlach (1870–1938), a German sculptor known for his powerful emotional forms, and Edgar Degas (1834–1917), a French Impressionist whose work includes dynamic studies of movement and the human body. Students observed how these artists conveyed emotion, gesture, and movement, as well as the practical solutions they used to create balanced and stable sculptures.
Students practiced quick gesture drawings and completed a series of short clay studies in various poses exploring movement and emotional expression. Each student then created two original concept sketches for a human-figure sculpture, each expressing a strong feeling or inner gesture through form and posture. From these, they selected one concept to develop into their final piece.
Throughout the process, students focused on body position, posture, and movement, body proportions, the use of negative space, planning and constructing a balanced sculpture, clay sculpting techniques, including additive and reductive methods and creating surface textures that support and complete the expressive quality of the work.
CHAMPIONS! Huge congratulations to our Varsity Girls Volleyball Team on an incredible win over a tough squad at Community Academy of Philadelphia in the Final round!
This group has battled through every high and low of a truly historic season, showing heart, resilience, and determination every step of the way. We couldn’t be more proud of everything they’ve accomplished and the way they represent our school and community. Congratulations Girls Varsity Volleyball!
-Director of Athletics Anwar Abernathy
Photos by Brian Canniff
CHAMPIONS! Huge congratulations to our amazing Girls Cross Country team for winning the PJAA CHAMPIONSHIP yesterday! 
And to the entire XC team for a season of hard work, incredible PRs, and inspiring teamwork and camaraderie.
Their grit, heart, and teamwork were on full display from start to finish – proving that age is just a number when you have determination and passion! 
We couldn’t be prouder of our XC team; your hard work and commitment have paid off in the biggest way! 
Tenth grade returned from their epic Odyssey voyage – a weeklong trip canoeing down the James River, hiking and camping along the Appalachian trail, and discussing Homer’s The Odyssey over campfire. The conclusion of their Odyssey Main Lesson, this trip brings Homer’s teachings to life, amplifying the themes from the book and bonding the class through their inspiring adventures.
In ninth grade, students engage deeply with their 20th Century History block through a black-and-white portrait project that brings historical figures vividly to life. Each student chooses an influential person from the era, studies their biography and historical context, and creates a black-and-white painting of their face. Working without color challenges students to focus on proportion, light and shadow, expression, and character—learning how a face is structured and how subtle contrasts can convey mood and meaning. The project culminates in a living history experience: students dress as their chosen figure, embody their voice and perspective, and present to their classmates, transforming research into a dynamic, memorable encounter with history.
This artistic work also plays an important role in the long arc of the high school curriculum. The black-and-white portrait lays a technical and developmental foundation for later artistic growth, teaching students how to truly see a face before adding the complexity of color. Three years later, students return to portraiture with a full-color self-portrait, rendered in vivid detail and personal expression. By revisiting and expanding these skills over time, students experience how patience, practice, and self-reflection lead to mastery—mirroring both their artistic development and their growing sense of self.
The annual trip to Hermit Island was beautiful yet again! For a week every September, our senior class joins 100+ other Waldorf students on the coast of Maine as part of their Zoology Main Lesson block. Highlights include studying tide pools, camping under the stars, and cooking their own food (including lobster!).
This epic voyage is a coveted trip, and always a great success in community building, hands-on learning, and making memories that will last a lifetime. Until next year, Hermit Island!
Congratulations to the Class of 2025 at Kimberton Waldorf School! Our seniors have been accepted to a wide range of colleges and universities—reflecting their individuality, creativity, and dedication. We are so proud of each student and the unique path they are forging ahead. Your journey continues, and the world is lucky to have you!
Adelphi Univ.(2)
Bard College (2)
Clark University
Connecticut College
Delaware Valley University
Drexel University (3)
Franklin and Marshall
Ithaca College (6)
Kalamazoo College (2)
Keene State College
Lawrence University
LaSalle Univ. (2)
Lasell Univ.
Lewis and Clark College
Long Island University
Lycoming College
Missouri Institute of Science and Technology
Penn State(2)
Penn State-Abington
Quinnipiac University
Roger Williams University
Springfield College (2)
Stonehill College
Thomas Jefferson University
Temple Univ. (2)
Union College
UMass Amherst (2)
UMass Boston
Univ. of Vermont (2)
Ursinus College (3)
West Chester University
Wilson College
“Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” -Aristotle 🎨
In the Waldorf curriculum, the self-portrait is more than an artistic exercise – it is a moment of reflection, self-discovery, and inner development. For our seniors, this final self-portrait marks a significant threshold: a chance to look inward, acknowledge their growth, and honor who they have become before stepping into the world beyond High School.
With deep reverence, we share these portraits – each one a quiet testament to the unfolding of individuality, creativity, and courage.
Our ninth grade ventured into the brisk rainy weather this week on their epic backpacking trip as part of their Environmental Studies class. The trip started with a visit to Indian Echo Caverns in Hummelstown, PA, and waterfalls in Catoctin State Park, in Maryland, camping in a campground nearby. The class then hiked 24 miles of the Appalachian Trail in Maryland over the course of four days, camping near the shelters, carrying all of their food, gear and personal equipment for four days. Wow!
It is a cold drizzly day. The 9th grade is anticipating the long-held tradition of hiking a 24 mile portion of the Appalachian trail over the next five days. Mr. Dan Smith (who will be bringing them Geology) and I are going along for guidance and support. However, there is a feeling of apprehension in the air as the weather that lies ahead looks to be the coldest, most windy and rainy that it has been on this trip for more than 7 years… perhaps longer. They have been well prepared by their teacher and Outdoor Program leader, Jake Strevig. No matter the weather, Mr. Strevig simultaneously models how to be rationally grounded and buoyantly optimistic. “We may not have everything,” he says as we begin our trip, “but we’ve got a lot, and for the rest, we can help each other out.”
It is a very cold morning. My water has frozen. I awake to a few voices. Upon looking out of the tent, I see that a few lads have risen early, and takenthe initiative to collect wood and build a fire for everyone. Are these the same boys who, earlier this year, had to be reminded that if they wanted ketchup on their sandwiches they should go look in the refrigerator themselves?
It is a beautiful sunny day. “I am noticing that everyone has been working together and becoming more kind to each other” I say to one of the students. “Yeah, that is how our class works. We need a challenge to come around—a common enemy if you will. Even if that ‘enemy’ is just the elements of cold and rain.”
There is rain ahead. “It is easy to feel happy on a sunny day” Mr. Strevig says. “It is not so easy on a cloudy, rainy day. But can we be someone’s sunshine? That is my challenge for you, who can you be sunshine for today?”
“I love this food! This is the best thing I have ever eaten!” Exclaimed one of our 9th graders at dinner. Multiple peers concurred that this was true! Was it a fresh, seasonal, organic, gourmet meal? No, it was a simple bowl of ramen they made over a camp stove after our longest hike.
Boys and girls are mixing and mingling on the hike, and seeming to have fun and deep conversations. All year up to this point, our lads and lasses would not, on their own, cross the great gender divide. Despite encouragement and trying to mix things up, like oil and water, they would always separate themselves out again. BUT NOW, they are running up to one another, joking, laughing, sharing stories and appreciating one another’s company!
And this all could have been missed.
~
Many children in America meet a synthetic version of the world, curated for them by the adults in their lives. This is usually motivated by love and the wish for their children to have a positive life experience. Why would we not want our children to experience a kinder, gentler world? However, in this effort it can be easy to remove too many obstacles and create an environment that is too protected, and thus inadvertently do our growing children a disservice. We can, out of love, fear, care or concern, eliminate important challenges for the young person in our life.
How can we, in small ways and in big ways, allow for that right amount of lack, challenge and even a little safe suffering that supports a deepening in our children? Real life is humbling.
I am so grateful to be a part of a school community that thinks about this important question. Long ago, young people, coming of age, used to meet some intentional rite of passage, a challenge usually involving some kind of emotional and physical discomfort and calling forth their faculties to reason for themselves through the given challenge. Our modern teenager still needs these rites of passage. They need to come to the edge of their self-perceived abilities, to stretch, and see that they can indeed do more. Traditional coming of age experiences are harder and harder to find. It is for this reason that Kimberton Waldorf School has built into its curriculum these trips that pedagogically offer the right challenges at the right times under the guidance of knowledgeable teachers that know and love the students. Out of these conditions, the young people can come to know themselves.
Our class of 2028 demonstrated great courage, strength, trust, hope, initiative, kindness, and growing maturity. My beloved colleagues, Dan Smith and Jake Strevig showed warm and compassionate guidance for the students and kept them laughing. I am grateful to our 9th grade parents who had to practice great trust in us and in the process, to allow their children to experience discomforts and challenging circumstances and allow them to grow. To quote one of our 9th graders, “If we can do this…we can do anything!”
Our eleventh-grade class recently spent an entire week in Alabama as a conclusion to their Civil Rights main lesson block with Mrs. Tonya Rice. Their educational itinerary included important sites such as: Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, Rosa Parks Museum, Maya Lin Civil Rights Memorial, the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration, a walk across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, and more.
On Monday, April 7, we embarked on our Civil Rights Trip to Alabama. We travelled around a few cities: Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma, and Tuskegee, studying the Civil Rights Movement. During our time there, we visited many museums, including the Rosa Parks Museum and the Legacy Museum. We also visited institutes, universities, monuments, and parks. Through these experiences, we delved deeper into subjects and events we had learned about in class and about significant historical figures. We talked to people who lived through and even participated in protests and marches, as well as others whose parents were strong activists in the movement. We stood on land where people were killed, walked across a bridge where approximately 600 people marched for voting rights, set foot in a baseball field where black people used to have their own league, and saw art that was inspired by all the fighting and courage that took place to get to where we are today.
During our down time we played card games and shared many great laughs with our chaperones. One evening, we watched the movie Selma, which told the story of Bloody Sunday and other occurrences related to civil rights in Selma, Alabama. It was a very moving film that broadened our understanding of the march and connected us to the people who were involved in it in a new way.
It was very emotionally hard to see the number of people that were lost during the period of slavery and throughout the Civil Rights Movement, seeing it in person made it all the more real and impactful. We learned of things that are very heavy to think about, that give you a pit in your stomach that you cannot get rid of, yet it is what made the experience so memorable. The Civil Rights Trip is one that we will never forget, one that will stay vividly in our memory for years to come.
If you were in the audience for one of our three performances last weekend of Once Upon a Mattress, you were swept away into a world of laughter, love, and happily-ever-agreed! Our talented cast of amazing High Schoolers brought this play to life with enchanting music, impressive choreography, and plenty of royal fun. Congratulations to the hard-working cast, crew, Directors, orchestra, lights team, and everyone who worked so hard to make this production an incredible success. Wow!
📸 by Brian Canniff. Thank you Brian!
More about the play: Once Upon a Mattress reimagines “The Princess and the Pea.” An unconventional princess shakes up a kingdom ruled by an overbearing queen, while Prince Dauntless finds his courage and true love.
This past Sunday I had the privilege of accompanying the senior class on a day trip to Washington DC as part of their Modern World 2 History Block. We spent much of our time in the Holocaust Museum, where students were able to explore at their own pace after being prepared at school leading up to the visit.
Afterwards, we spent time studying at the World War II Memorial, which stands in a grand circle directly between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. We then scuffled across the ice on the reflecting pool to study the Korean War Memorial and concluded with the Vietnam War Memorial.
Throughout our day, Mrs. Zay encouraged the students to really look and take in the stories being told and asked exploratory and leading questions that engaged the students’ interest, and mine! I am grateful to have shared a little slice of the experience, knowledge, and feeling that our students and my children get to have as a part of their education.
by Ona Wetherall O’Hara and Anna Zay
On Thursday January 16th, in between two impressive basketball games played by our Varsity Girls and Varsity Boys team, we honored our entire class of 2025 and their accomplishments the last 3.5 years. Class Advisors Frau Elisabeth Burgess and Hezi Haut, alongside High School Leader Deb Merroth-Ahola spoke to and congratulated the seniors on their accomplishments. Seniors walked through a wall of supportive and loving classmates alongside their parents and siblings, and shook hands with Athletic Director Anwar Abernathy and Varsity Boys Basketball Coach RJ Nixon.
We are so proud of our seniors and all of their athletic and academic accomplishments. It was an emotional and beautiful ceremony attended by our school community. The lobby of our gym was filled with posters made by senior parents, adorned with pictures from throughout their time at KWS. Congratulations class of 2025! We love you!
Photos by Melissa Kelly Photography
The journey of the Class of 2024 has been nothing short of extraordinary, as they have been greeted with an abundance of exciting college acceptances and scholarship offers in recent months!
As we reflect on their remarkable accomplishments, we can’t help but feel an immense sense of pride. The college admissions landscape this year has been particularly eventful, marked by the delay of the federal student aid form (FAFSA). Despite this unusual circumstance, the total merit awards extended to our students have surpassed an impressive $1,926,372, a testament to their hard work and dedication.
We are thrilled to share a list of the acceptances received to date, and those to which our students have chosen to attend are highlighted in bold.
Join us in extending heartfelt congratulations to our accomplished seniors!
Submitted by Anwar Abernathy, Director of Athletics and Games
KWS is proud to share the news of many victories for high school athletes who were honored this spring for their achievements on the field and court.
Interested in following our teams’ journeys each season? Follow KWS on MaxPreps to keep up with scores and player achievements. Go bulls!!!
Admission is free — tickets available at the door
Step into the world of timeless Russian drama with Kimberton Waldorf School’s senior class production of “Three Sisters” by Anton Chekhov. Join us for an evening of captivating storytelling and poignant performances as our students bring to life the timeless tale of three sisters yearning for a better life amidst the backdrop of a changing world. Don’t miss this opportunity to witness the depth of emotion and the power of human connection in Chekhov’s masterpiece.
“Three Sisters” by Anton Chekhov is a poignant portrayal of the Prozorov family, particularly the three sisters—Olga, Masha, and Irina—who yearn for a more fulfilling life beyond their dreary provincial existence. Set against the backdrop of a changing world, the play delves into the sisters’ aspirations, social aspirations, and the disillusionment they experience as they long for a return to urban Moscow. The characters are outstanding examples of Chekhovian boredom, longing, and listlessness, serving as emblems of Russian middle-class pretensions and despair.
The play unfolds with themes of dissatisfaction, frustration, and the search for meaning in the modern world, portraying the decay of the privileged class in Russia. It captures the sisters’ refined and cultured upbringing in Moscow, juxtaposed with their current existence in a provincial town, symbolizing their constant yearning for a return to the city.
The sisters’ individual struggles and desires are intricately woven into the narrative, reflecting the broader themes of societal aspirations, disillusionment, and the complexities of human emotions. The play offers a timeless exploration of human longing, the impact of societal expectations, and the pursuit of a more meaningful existence.
As the senior class of Kimberton Waldorf School presents this masterful work, they not only bring to life the timeless themes of the play, but a reflection of their own experiences and aspirations as they prepare to graduate and embark on their next journeys.
The show is appropriate for students in grades 7 and above. Questions? Contact Angie Foster, afoster@kimberton.org.
Dr. Brad Kershner offers reflections on the metacrisis and shares an in-depth summary of the book Stolen Focus by Johann Hari. He makes connections between the themes of this book, the larger constellation of social and cultural problems we are all facing, and the principles and practices of Waldorf education – an approach to learning in community that offers timely and relevant values and practices to address our deepest educational questions and dilemmas.
This lecture was offered to parents at Kimberton Waldorf School – October 11, 2023
Guest post by Ciara O’Hara, class of 2025, a rising junior who recently returned from being an exchange student in Germany. This past year, Ciara was a leading scorer on the varsity girls’ basketball team, performed a lead part in Mary Poppins, and worked part-time. She has been a Waldorf student all her life.
Playing a sport at KWS has brought me some of my best school memories. One of my favorites was our varsity girls’ basketball team going undefeated this past season and becoming champions in our division. I have never seen a group of girls work so hard as they did throughout the season, and we got to do what we set out to as a team and as a family.
Our team travels throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey to play, and I think being able to travel with your team helps build relationships and brings the team closer every time. If you play high school basketball at KWS (or even if you don’t), once a year you get to experience an amazing weekend called the Waldorf tournament. Waldorf teams from all over come to our school for a three-day basketball tournament. Every year this tournament brings so much happiness and fun to our school and I couldn’t be more grateful that we have it. I have made some amazing friends at this tournament and have gotten to spend time with some of the best people.
As soon as you join a sports team at KWS you become part of a family and with that, there are responsibilities for each member. We work together as a team by showing up to practices, being there for our teammates, and always cheering them on no matter what the circumstance. We are a team, a whole, and I have never seen that so clearly as I do at KWS.
As you grow and start playing sports in high school not only does it begin to impact you physically, but I have found that it also can help impact how you deal with things. I have learned how to manage schoolwork and a social life and playing sports all at once, and my teammates and coaches have done nothing but help and support me and everyone around me. Managing your time is so important if you intend to play a sport; it can all add up very quickly but there is definitely enough time for everything at KWS.
Something that I have found to be so important in managing all of these things in high school is to be never afraid to ask or feel embarrassed because you need some help, whether that be from a friend and teacher or a coach. I am working on enjoying every moment and always putting my physical and mental health first!
If you are thinking about playing a sport, whatever it may be, I highly recommend it, no matter if you haven’t played before or are not sure how good you’ll be. Either way, you will come out being better and look back at some of the best memories you will make in school.
Saturday, June 10, 2023
Todd Stong studied art and creative writing at Brown University, graduating in 2014 magna cum laude, with honors, and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 2016, he started teaching at Kimberton in the painting room with grades 7 through 12 and as math support faculty, working with Tonya Rice in the 9th grade classroom – what he considered a daily masterclass in teaching. It also helped that Mrs. Rice was his own math teacher back in 2008 at Perkiomen Valley High School – he knew he was in good hands. Couple that with thoughtful, careful mentorship from Anna Zay, and he had soon expanded his teaching to include History through Art, Algebra I and II, Geometry, 7th Grade Perspective, 8th Grade Platonic Solids, Comedy and Tragedy Mask-Making, US Government, and Yearbook Advising. You all had him busy! In 2019, he decided it was time to return to his own artistic practice and applied to the Tyler School of Art and Architecture, where he received his MFA at their Rome Campus with a full academic scholarship and teaching stipend. Now back in Philadelphia, he teaches printmaking and design at West Chester University, and works assisting the artist Odili Odita in his studio, while pursuing his own art career through exhibitions and publication. Next fall he will be an artist-in-residence at Yaddo, joining the ranks of past fellows such as Michael Tilson Thomas, Langston Hughes, Philip Guston, Flannery O’Conner, and James Baldwin, among many others.
“A few weeks ago, I had the absolute pleasure of returning to Kimberton to meet with this wonderful group on stage behind me and do something that for them was completely natural: draw. We did a classic exercise: taking a line for a walk. Meaning, we all picked up chalk, committed it to the board, and let our minds unspool across the dark stretch without lifting a hand and breaking the line. Another rule: no going over the lines. Come to a dead end and, sorry, find your way back out of it, think your way through the maze that you’ve just created.
Because drawing is really just that – it’s a kind of thought. It doesn’t feel like thinking in the way we are used to thinking about thinking – a monologue only audible in our own heads. It is a way of negotiating the space and the stuff of the world, internalizing then physicalizing it, like dance but recorded flat. And at the end, you understand differently. You might not be able to put words to it, because, well, that’s the point — it’s drawing.
When the board was chock full, I presented a set of brushes taped to the ends of four-foot long dowels and, holding them from the far end, we dipped them into buckets of water and began drawing again, directly on top of our first attempt. Then, with that practice down, we tried out ink on a long scroll of newsprint.
It was so much fun. What I love about Kimberton students is their willingness to do. Their unblockable, indefatigable, iron-core will. Their fearlessness. Present a four foot long paint brush to any Joe Schmoe and tell him to paint, and he’ll have a panic attack. Give it to a Waldorf student and they’ll try to make you a twelve-division circle without you even having to ask.
I was so proud of the drawings we made together and of the joy we had being in something of an art class one more time. But I wanted them to think about something, something in switching from chalk to extended brush. So I asked them, “what was that like?” “Well, it was easier to control the chalk, easier to get out exactly what I wanted,” said one student. “The chalk is closer to the body. But it was maybe more exciting to use the brush, more free, more expansive”, said another. A flick of the wrist multiplies into a wild gesture.
Though roughly the same principle – using this instrument to put our spatial thoughts outside of ourselves – the body was altered in radically different ways from tool to tool, and so the kinds of thoughts that could come out of ourselves changed with them.
A tool, of course, is meant to help us do things our bodies can’t do on their own. It can be a bit awkward at first. But with practice, a well-designed tool becomes an extension of the body. The hammer, after hitting many nails, is a kind of fist; you swing it and you can see, know, and feel where it will come down, and how deep the nail will sink. The shock of impact rattles through the handle and up your arm; you understand what the hammer has felt.
A piano makes your fingers into vocal chords; the longer you practice it, the more seamlessly you alone sing as a choir. And anyone who has hit a perfectly composed chord in perfect time will tell you that you feel that in your chest. As much as you allow your body to flow into your tools, they flow back into you – don’t forget that – altering you in ways you’re not always conscious of. Think the chalk and the chalkboard, those tools that let us map out our minds, and in so doing change them.
This might all seem a little out there, or maybe totally a given, nothing new. But I’m bringing all this tool talk up for a reason. There are, I imagine, a diverse group of possibilities on each of your horizons, whether that’s more school next year or more school later, whether finding gainful employment, a trade, going into business with family or for yourselves. Whatever the possibilities are, you will have choices ahead about the tools you use. And those are going to be choices distinctly different than any generation that came before you. Because the tools are becoming different.
When it’s getting dark out and you’re just finishing up your German homework and still have a math problem set and a world lit response, or maybe a painting to design, and you get a text from a buddy that there’s a party everyone’s going to in an hour – you’ll have ChatGPT and Midjourney and a host of other generative artificial intelligence tools at your disposal.
When you need to find the right words to convince someone to hire you, or when you need to sell your service to a client, you’ll have these tools available. And it will be your choice entirely whether you use them. I won’t lie to you: if you use them savvily, you’ll probably get the grade or the response you wanted and save yourself a lot of time. It might feel great.
You know, as an artist and a writer, I’ve been thinking a lot about these technologies. In some ways, they seem like a miracle – why not use them in my studio, when I can’t afford to a hire a model? Why not have ChatGPT write that grant application? I’m tempted too, I won’t lie!
So, let’s look under the hood. This is technology built on statistical analysis of inputs culled from human production. Meaning, in essence, that it’s been fed libraries and museums, outputs of the minds of thousands and thousands who used much humbler tools to make their contributions. Give it a prompt, and it’ll simply predict what you want to read or see based on what it deems from its data set to be most likely to follow the given words. It’s a mind eater, chewing hunks and crumbs of thought and vision left for it by thinkers past, and mashing it all together into a paste that can reassemble into whatever is asked of it, by predicting the likeliest outcome.
Do you click a button and let a cloud of probabilities select your thoughts for you? Or do you drudge through your own mind, weeding it and watering it, pulling up ideas from its soil, and planting them onto a page or a canvas. It will certainly take longer to do the latter.
What you choose to do, what resources you decide to cherish most – your time or your mind – those are your decisions. That’s what it means to be a graduate. I will only say this: the reward of making is rarely the execution of a fully preconceived idea, seen in the mind’s eye and brought into reality as an exercise of technique. It is in the starting and getting turned around, looking down at the page and realizing that you understand something in your own thoughts that you hadn’t before. Pausing, leaving, returning, and rearranging. Learning from what you’ve done and thinking deeply, in a way that is far more organized, more crystalline than what you can concoct in your head alone. My biggest revelations in the studio never came from sitting around thinking; they came from doing, which is, actually, just another way of thinking. Are you going to let a machine take away that possibility?
And then there’s this: that the machine will always know exactly what it needs to say, and it will simply say it. But you, you will struggle, and out will come the rough drafts with big plot holes that you find yourself patching with webs of imagination, or perhaps leaving gaps of mystery. The best works of art are ones that don’t tie up neatly in a bow. The best writing takes the writer’s own mind for a walk and sometimes leaves them deep in the forest or far out to sea.
And of course, that’s what is so rich about life, too. I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up; but this journey, this wandering, this is the real stuff of life. We live in a culture that tells us that we’re wasting our time if we’re lost, that we need to find a career and settle down and be productive members of society. But let me tell you this: a machine can’t get lost. Only a human can. And that is maybe the most magic we can wish for. That is key.
One of my favorite classes to teach at Kimberton was History through Art. The graduates on this stage were the last crew I taught, luckily scheduled October 2019 when we could be all together in a room plastered with posters of masterpieces. There is nothing quite like the panoramic of a classroom, as our following year of screen time sorely demonstrated.
Yet in the midst of these many artworks, the very first thing I taught them was not actually a piece of art, as many of us would define it – something made by the hands of an artist. Instead, it was a small jasperite pebble with two little holes – like eyes – carved over many thousands of years by two repeating drops of water, and a small crevice right under them – a mouth. Every feature made geologically, no hands or tools involved. Dubbed the Makapansgat Pebble, for its discovery in the Makapan Valley of South Africa, it was discovered three miles from any other piece of jasperite it might have broken off from, and close to the bones of one Austrolopithicus Africanus, a distant human relative.
It is not a giant leap to the conclusion that this great ape had found this pebble and seen a vision of itself in the two little eyes and mouth, a vision it saw fit to pick up and carry home to a dolomite cave. Of course, and this is something I made clear to my ninth graders, a key tenet of such ancient history is that we will never really know what actually happened; Occum’s razor, the simplest explanation being the most likely, must reign.
No matter what, it’s a great story, maybe one of the most important stories, because at approximately 3 million BC, it would be the first known evidence of symbolic thinking and aesthetic sense of any living creature in the record. A moment when the world presented one if its living with an idea of itself. And that that was a comfort. That that great ape took that rock and carried it away, despite its seeming uselessness.
I like to think that the world was giving our ancestors a hint. It was saying, “you don’t have to keep your mind inside of you. I’m here; there’s space to breathe.” And so, the history of art is born. Entranced by the world around us, we slowly began to hold a mirror up to it, to take our ideas of the mysteries of life and put them out there for everyone else to see. In so doing, we shaped how one another saw the world, and began a chain reaction of thought that provided a foundation for civilization.
Generations moved through the caves of Lascaux, recording the animals they had encountered, perhaps hunted or been hunted by. Generations – many, many generations, hundreds of them – left hand prints in the caves of Borneo. “Here I was, in this world,” they say, “with these five fingers, where all of my people were before me, with theirs.”
What a punch to the gut. If we’re to say that a tool is an object used to extend the possibilities of the body to do work, then the whole world becomes a tool, a place where we let our brains, that most important anatomy, unfurl; to leave clues, give advice, offer respite, puff ourselves up, place ourselves amidst our relations, mark ourselves in time. All these things that would just stink to keep cooped up in our skulls. And instead, we can make the world alive with us. You might say it even wanted us to.
This is not to say that I want you all to grab your cans of spray paint and go out and tag the side of a mountain (I mean, you’re Waldorf students – at least break out a hammer and a chisel). No, but I do want you to keep yourself in this world: you, yourself. What you are matters. I don’t mean that in terms of what profession you choose or what talents you hone. I mean it as this: what thoughts do you nurture? What love? For whom? How will you tell the world?
Will you tell the world? Or will you let something else do that for you?
When we were done with our drawing exercise and had cleaned up our brushes, the seniors took me to see their portraits. Six stellar, sophisticated paintings hanging in the senior hallway, each a marker of themselves. I could tell they were so proud, and for very good reason. When you look at those paintings, know that they are siphons, sieves, dream catchers, pebbles catching water drops – those paintings sift through a miasma of calibrated sight and motion, mind-body-tool-surface. Every mark a culmination of events, begun so many years earlier, nurtured here in this incredible school. Every choice – pose, poise, color, texture – a revelation as much as an inevitability.
When we look at those portraits, it’s not just about the young person in the painting. It’s about us, too: our seeing ourselves, in a collection of marks. Our reaching out to them, and them to us, a chain reaction of empathetic understanding, mixed with awe.
Now I know that as much as I try to be the hype man of everyone’s innate painter, the hurdle that must be jumped to take pride in our artwork is sometimes too high; the often thoughtless messaging of what’s good and what’s bad too ever-present and too ingrained.
Then there’s this: that every letter, number, symbol, that you string together, can do just the same work, whipping up an electric wind, activating worlds in everyone who reads them that deepen into trenches and shoot into the solar system, often without our even noticing. That’s the magic of being human: how we, at our best, electrify one another with maybe just bundle of hairs tied to a handle or maybe just a stick of chalk.”
