Alabama Waldorf School finds new home at old site

With its recent move, the Alabama Waldorf School in Birmingham is in a better position to educate children with its holistic approach.

“Waldorf education is all about nurturing the whole child — body, mind and spirit,” said Cassia Kesler, marketing director for the Alabama Waldorf School in Birmingham. “We want to cultivate a natural, warm, beautiful atmosphere.”

That goal became much more attainable in early October, when the school’s 125 students and 20 teachers and staffers moved into a renovated facility in the 5900 block of Crestwood Boulevard after 17 years in the old Comer School building.

One of the main advantages of the new school — located on a wooded, four-acre lot — is “being able to decorate it and lay it out the way we want and renovate with an eye toward Waldorf education,” Kesler said.

The new campus for AWS, which was founded in 1987, features two buildings with offices, classrooms, a community hall and playgrounds. There are plans for sustainable permaculture gardens. School officials said hundreds of parents, staff members, alumni and other volunteers helped open the new facility.

Waldorf Schools — most of which are in the Northeast and on the West Coast — use art, music and movement in academic subjects to encourage students’ creative thinking and emotional intelligence, Kesler said. “It’s experiential and holistic,” she said. “The kids actually enjoy being in the classroom and learning.”

Classes range from a nursery program (beginning at age 18 months) through eighth grade.

AWS recently was accredited by the Southeastern Association of Independent Schools and the Association of Waldorf Schools in North America.