Jessie ElliotFounder & Administrative Director, She/Her
A Bay Area native, Jessie attended New York University, studied abroad in Europe, and settled into a production job at a magazine publishing company in Manhattan. Jessie graduated from Rudolf Steiner College in 2011 and founded GBS in 2013 with Abbie Coburn and Justine Costerouse. Her daughter attends Golden Bridges and her son attends San Francisco Waldorf School. Erica ArenSenior Administrator & Handwork Support, She/Her
A mid-westerner at heart, but Bay Area proud since 2003, Erica has spent her career leading educational programs and social justice initiatives, working particularly within youth leadership and the Jewish community. Erica’s undergraduate in psychology, and graduate studies in Education and Jewish service-learning allowed her to examine experiential education through the lens of equity and social justice. Erica began working at GBS in 2020, joining two of her children. She has a third future student at home. |
Heather FieldsFaculty Chair, She/Her
Heather was born and raised on the East Coast and attended Tulane University in New Orleans. Over the last twenty years, Heather has taught a wide array of students ranging from preschoolers to adults in both private and public schools both in the US and abroad. Since completing her MA in Waldorf Education in 2009, Heather has taught in Waldorf schools in California, England, and Hawaii. |
Adam MarquartDirector of Operations, He/Him
Originally from Portland, Oregon, and later moving to the Bay Area, Adam ended up spending much of his life in Seattle, Washington, before returning to his chosen home city, San Francisco, over a decade ago. Leveraging years of experience developing and growing teams at the forefront of the business and technology sectors, Adam is energized to be a part of the Golden Bridges staff, as we grow our school. Adam's daughter attends Golden Bridges. |
Jess BuslachPreschool Teacher, She/Her
Coming soon... |
Lanie AllpressPreschool Teacher, She/Her
Lainie was born in Annapolis, MD. And grew up in Newport RI. She attended Rhode Island College for her Early Childhood training. While there, she also taught preschool at a Waldorf-inspired school before moving to San Francisco seven years ago. She then was a nanny in the Bay Area for four years. Lainie graduated in 2019 from the Bay Area Center for Waldorf Teacher Training which she did alongside working in the nursery at SF Waldorf for the past three years. Lainie, who joined GBS in 2019, is thrilled to be a part of this amazing community! |
Melanie KiddKindergarten Teacher, She/Her
Though Melanie was born in the Bay Area, she enjoyed a childhood spent in the Rocky Mountains of Idaho. She studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco for five years honing her skills in fine art painting and sculpture, while dabbling in welding, bronze casting and print making. She brings to Golden Bridges a love of working with young children. Melanie has been a kindergarten teacher at GBS since 2018. |
Lauren CescaKindergarten Teacher, She/Her
Lauren is from the Sacramento Valley of California and attended Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo for her B.S. degree in printing management and graphic design. Wanting a change of career that felt service-oriented and creative, she found Waldorf education and fell in love with early childhood. After graduating from Rudolf Steiner College in 2011, Lauren taught in both New Mexico and Iowa before returning to California. She has been a kindergarten teacher at GBS since 2014 and welcomed her first child in 2018. |
Lesley MacDonaldKindergarten Teacher, She/Her
Lesley grew up near Yosemite National Park and attended the University of California Santa Cruz, majoring in Theatre. After college, Lesley came upon Waldorf education and received her grades training certificate at Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks. From there, Lesley taught at the Davis Waldorf School, taking her class from 1st-4th grade. Life brought Lesley to San Francisco where she found GBS and has taught in both aftercare and Kindergarten since 2017. |
Nicholas BarterKindergarten Teacher, He/Him
Nicholas was born and raised in the Mojave Desert of Southern California where he traveled extensively with his family of educators and artists. After graduating from Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks where he studied Early Childhood Education, Consciousness Studies and Biodynamic Agricultural, he went on to teach at Waldorf schools throughout California, Hawaii and England. Nicholas brings a passion for nature, art, craft and gardening to his dedication of the healthy growth and development of each child. |
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Ali WellsGrades Teacher, She/Her
Ali was born and raised in Oakland and attended a small liberal arts college in upstate New York where she got to spend a lot of time outdoors. There she discovered her passions for gardening, teaching, traveling, and learning about other cultures' way of life. After graduating with a B.A. in Psychology and a Masters in General and Special Education she found herself moving to Oaxaca, Mexico to teach English and experience a new culture. She joined our faculty as a grades teacher in 2019. |
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Katherine DelafkaranGrades Teacher, She/Her
Katherine grew up in Orange County and is a Waldorf graduate herself. After attending SF State and earning a degree in viola performance, Katherine received her teacher training in Grades at the Rudolf Steiner College in San Francisco in 2015. Katherine joined GBS in 2015 as a Grades teacher and she also leads the Grades program and faculty in music and singing. |
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Mel BuslachCamp Director & Farmer, They/Them
Born and raised in Seattle, Mel studied publishing arts and photography in college. They left Seattle and eventually put down roots in California after three years traveling the globe. Mel lived and worked on a farm in Northern California and it was here their passion for botany and farm life deepened. After three years on the farm they moved to Oakland and began teaching elementary, middle and high school gardening classes, as well as climate change education in several SFUSD schools. Mel began working at Golden Bridges in 2019. As a queer, nonbinary, white person and as an educator, Mel has made it their personal responsibility to unlearn white supremacy, to center People Of Color, to practice anti-racism, and work to dismantle interlocking systems of domination and oppression. When they don’t have their hands in the dirt, Mel enjoys spending time in queer community and eating delicious vegan food. |
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Clare SimmonsMusic Teacher, She/Her
Clare grew up in Oxford, studied music at university and moved to the United States in 2001. She has taught music in public and private schools in the UK and US, and was the middle school music teacher at the Waldorf School of the Peninsula before having children. Clare's two sons attend Golden Bridges. Her family enjoys music, camping, morris dancing and riding our bikes. Jon FerrerSchool Chef & Hike Support, He/Him
Jon was born and raised in San Francisco, a graduate of Junipero Serra High School, and the California Culinary Academy. For over a decade he honed his skills throughout many kitchens in the Bay Area, and for the last several years ran his own catering company after putting the business on hiatus to travel abroad with his wife JoAnn. Jonathan loves to spend time outdoors with his family and enjoys cooking for loved ones. Jon has been at GBS since 2018. |