mission, story, & recognition

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Our mission is to educate the child in mind, body and spirit so that they  may contribute their unique gifts to humanity with conviction and  clarity of their life’s purpose, and to create a supportive and  nourishing learning community that cherishes each individual. Each year the school will seek to employ  teachers with Waldorf teacher training certificates  or those who are engaged in Waldorf  teacher training and are being mentored/supervised in the Waldorf  pedagogy. We will add one grade each year until we reach 8th grade, and continue to expand our Early Childhood program. 

The vision of a Waldorf school in the capital city of North Carolina has been held for many years. At last, in the fall of 2020, through the pioneering spirits of a mother-daughter team and three Waldorf teachers, The Unity School (now known as Raleigh Day School) was born. The timing to start a school was unlikely as we were in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the circumstances afforded us the opportunity to create an educational experience outdoors so that children could benefit from face-to-face social interactions while having their first school encounter. Outdoor structures were built in a beautiful natural setting in the woods by a creek. 

The traditional Waldorf curriculum was implemented by certified and experienced Waldorf teachers both in the early childhood program and in the first grade. The outdoor setting proved to be a healthy environment: we had no cases of Covid illness during that first year and only had a handful of virtual days necessitated by extreme inclement weather. We began our journey that year with 18 students, and in our second year when we moved indoors, we nearly doubled in size. We are now entering our fifth year with grades 1, 2, 3 and 5, and a stable early childhood program.  And we are returning to our outdoor roots: our new school campus is set on 35 acres of fields and woods with both indoor and outdoor classrooms!

In 2022 Raleigh Day School was recognized as an Associate Member of WECAN (Waldorf Early Childhood Association of North America). This is the first step toward our goal of becoming an accredited Waldorf school and full member of AWSNA (Association of Waldorf Schools of North America). Our faculty and administrative leaders are committed to this process which includes self-study, peer review, observation, interviews and reports.  

To read more about these organizations please click these links:  

https://www.waldorfeducation.org/

https://www.waldorfearlychildhood.org/