Staff Bios

Sadie Switzer is the founder and lead instructor of Wild Ones. She grew up in Inverness traipsing through the woods, surrounded by a wonderful, loving community. She was educated in Waldorf schools, and has also taught Waldorf education for over a decade. Sadie grew up playing in the wild woods and exploring the beautiful beaches of West Marin. She had the good fortune to run headlong into Waldorf education when she was very small, and attended

Marin Waldorf School from kindergarten to eighth grade. She remembers a lot of stories, hard work, fantastic and elaborate plays, and the school garden best, and she feels that it is a great gift to have experienced Waldorf education from a child’s view. Over the past few years Sadie has expanded her perspective on what is most beneficial to the experience of the child, and this has led her to the creation of Wild Ones. She believes that more than ever children need to experience nature and have the freedom to explore the world around them in all its beauty and complexity.

Nicholas Barter grew up in the Mojave desert a stones throw away from Joshua Tree National Park. He learned from a young age how to be in harmony with the wild. His parents were both teachers so the Barter family would go camping all summer on epic road trips all up and down California, the pacific northwest, and Mexico. Nicholas carried his love of the wild and his camping skills into his adult life, traveling and living as a nomad in his 20’s before settling in Northern California where he became a Waldorf Teacher. Nicholas has been a Waldorf early childhood and grade school teacher for well over a decade now, and has most recently worked in San Francisco at Golden Bridges School, where he was an integral part of building an outdoor curriculum, taking his students to hike in the park every day. Nicholas will be joining the Wild Ones Crew all summer, bringing his considerable creative skills, his wilderness savvy, and his passion for helping children of all ages and backgrounds be at one with the natural world.