Liudmila Self

Class 4 Main Lesson Teacher

Originally from Bucharest, Romania, Liudmila grew up there and in Moscow where she trained professionally as an ice skater. She later moved to London to complete her graduate degree in education, and went on to receive an MFA in documentary filmmaking. Her first residence in the US was Birmingham, where she taught high school at the Alabama Waldorf School. She received her Waldorf Training from the Rudolf Steiner College and the Sunbridge Institute, and has been teaching at The Waldorf School of Tampa Bay since 2013. Liudmila loves how Waldorf education teaches children to find harmony and cooperation with each other and their natural surroundings. She loves teaching  science and the natural world most, and is a pioneer of innovative mathematical teaching methods. Liudmila is a certified and trained herbalist in traditional Chinese medicine, and loves herb gardening and painting.

Jackie Zradicka

Class 2 & Handwork Lead

Born in Vermont, Jackie grew up in Texas, California and Pinellas County. She received a degree in Agricultural Animal Sciences from Texas A&M, and found Waldorf education when her eldest of two children was still young. Jackie was a Tinkergarten Leader for four years before taking on the role of handwork teacher and is now excited to begin teaching Grade 1 at the Waldorf School of Tampa Bay. She loves that Waldorf education honors the child as an individual and seeks to nurture each one’s own strengths and talents. Always an experimenter on the cutting edge of art, Jackie loves to help children and adults alike find their creative voice. On weekends Jackie can be found walking with her family in the woods, exploring the Florida waterways or working in the garden.

Violetta Siyanov

Class 1 & Handwork

Having been born in the former Soviet Republic of Uzbekistan and then emigrating to Israel as a young child, to Canada as a teen and living in New York, California and Florida the last 10 years, Violetta has had many opportunities to see how different people see the world. When seeking a preschool for her child, she chose Waldorf from among many options because the community, the philosophy and the beauty of the school all spoke to her. She volunteered to do handwork for the festivals and took part in organizing events there. Violetta, who holds a doctorate in cellular and molecular medicine from the University of Ottawa, is currently completing the Waldorf Handwork Educators Training (WHE) and Grades Teacher training in Toronto at Rudolf Steiner College of Canada (RSCC).  She deeply appreciates the way Waldorf integrates the physical with the spiritual —such as through handwork, art and music.  By guiding children to connect their hearts, minds and hands, she says, Waldorf can help children to become whole, capable and resilient adults.

Brian Garland

Practical Arts & Gardening

Born in Staten Island, Brian grew up primarily on a farm in upstate New York, spending long hours getting lost in the forest. A professional advertising photographer for 20-plus years, and having traveled and worked in more than 20 countries, Brian found Waldorf education when his youngest daughter turned three and he began taking her to Parent + Child classes in Los Angeles. He was drawn to the curriculum’s focus on developing the whole child, as he believes most traditionally educated individuals are direly lacking in practical life skills. Since moving to the Gulf Coast of Florida, Brian has focused his innate artistic prowess on construction, woodworking, gardening and survival skills and has been involved with WSTB for over seven years. When not also acting as Facilities and Grounds Manager for the school, he can be found relaxing on the beach, or needle-felting with his wife, daughter, two dogs and one cat.

Monica Escarzaga Senger

Spanish Language

Monica was born in Mexico City, the daughter of Spanish parents.  She studied French at Ecole Lemania in Lausanne, Switzerland and returned to Mexico to receive a degree in Translation and Interpreting from Colegio Internacional de Idiomas.  She has worked as both an interpreter in Spanish and French and has taught the Spanish language for over 25 years.  Monica is thrilled to be joining WSTB as she has known many Waldorf students over the years and long admired their imagination, artistic capabilities and their compassion towards others, animals and environment.  Monica loves the outdoors -- when the weather is good you will find her kayaking, taking the dogs to the beach or on the bike trail.

Amel El Eshnehy

German Language

Frau Ah, as the children call her, was born and grew up in Egypt.  She received a degree in German and Italian Languages and a Level C certification in teaching the German language from the Goethe Institute in Cairo.  Amel has taught German for 13 years, as well as being a classroom teacher, and is passionate about teaching German culture along with the language.  She loves the culturally diverse environment that Waldorf schools attract and encourage and is so excited to be joining our family!  Frau Ah is married with two young children and loves to listen to music (especially violin!) and read literature and scholarly articles in her free time.

Tyler Blass

Games & Grades ASAP Aftercare

Tyler was born in Fairfax County, Virginia and grew up in Tallahassee.  He played soccer competitively throughout elementary and high school, winning the Florida State Championship in his Senior year. Tyler has taught and run camps and after school programs since his late teens and was a head JV coach, and an assistant coach to Varsity for Chiles High School.  He graduated with a degree in Hospitality & Recreation from Florida State University and is delighted to be joining the WSTB community. Tyler loves how Waldorf education “thinks outside the box” when it comes to education, building confidence and helping children grow in healthy ways.  You can pretty much always find Tyler outside, hiking, camping or hitting the trails!

Elyse Fenstermacher

Music & Grades Support

Elyse hails from New York, Virginia and Ohio, as her parents were both active duty in the Air Force.  She loved singing in her high school choir and participating in All State Choir before attending St. Olaf College where Elyse sang in a world-class collegiate choir that toured all over the U.S., UK and Ireland.  She studied art history, French and comparative religions, with some canoeing and scuba diving mixed in for good measure!  Elyse loves the spiritual depth of the Waldorf approach, and the lightheartedness and joy brought forward by both staff and students.  She is “over the moon” to be joining WSTB full-time this year.  Elyse loves to sing in sacred and secular music ensembles, engage in ambitious experimental cooking projects, paint, and watch the waves at Honeymoon Island State Park.

Maral Merian

Grades Support

Maral (MA-ral, which means “deer” in Armenian,) was born outside Boston, Massachusetts.  She attended the University of Florida where she majored in Marketing.  Maral is an accomplished artist, has taught art in other elementary schools and believes everyone truly is an artist!  You will often hear her say, “Art is about what you learn on the journey, not about the finished product!”  Maral loves how Waldorf education isn’t a “one size fits all,” approach, and instead supports the creative mind and promotes learning through art and nature.  Maral can often be found painting or doing something artistic, reading, sitting out in the sun, taking nature walks, practicing yoga, cooking, gardening, and is currently learning how to forage.

Melissa Wood

Early Childhood Lead

Melissa was born on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge in beautiful Marin County, California, and heard about Rudolph Steiner as a child while spending summers in Stuttgart, Germany, and peeking in on her beloved great-grandfather’s anthroposophical reading groups which met in the living room.  Melissa attended Marin Waldorf (which her parents helped establish), and received a degree in international relations from the University of California, Davis. After several years in the corporate sector, Melissa found her way back when her daughters began attending Waldorf schools as young children. She spent 10 years assisting and teaching at the Summerfield Waldorf School, and received her training at Sunbridge Institute. Melissa joined WSTB in 2020 and loves that even in this hectic, fast-paced world, Waldorf education is a place where childhood is respected, protected and nurtured. Melissa can be found singing her way through the day, and loves to engage in parent education, as she knows first-hand that parenting is “the hardest job on Earth.”

Eliza McFadden

Early Childhood Lead

Eliza was born in Colorado, but grew up in South Florida, and has known and benefited from Waldorf education ever since she was in Kindergarten. She has a bachelor’s in interdisciplinary studies with a focus on social science from Florida Atlantic University. Her guiding principle in Waldorf is conveying the early-childhood idea from Rudolf Steiner that “the world is good”, which is now more relevant than ever. Working in outdoor Kindergartens and knowing her own experience of feeling most at peace whether in the mountains or at the beach, Eliza has seen how children thrive when surrounded by the simple beauty of Mother Nature, which also dovetails with the philosophy of Waldorf in allowing children the space and time to settle into their being while also nurturing a love of learning and of themselves. When she is not with the children or spending time outdoors, Eliza is undertaking teacher training at the Sophia’s Hearth.

Beatriz Ribeiro

Early Childhood Lead

Growing up in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Beatriz attended a Waldorf daycare founded by Betina Schmidt, followed by two years in another school, then back to Waldorf at the Rudolf Steiner Waldorf School. From the time she completed her studies there, she knew her vocation was to work in education, for she believes Waldorf offers the best ways to build a complete human being. With degrees in education and music, she has been working in Waldorf schools, in Brazil and Portugal, since 2011. In 2020, Beatriz began studying Emmi Pikler’s theories of infant education to try to better serve the very youngest learners. A birth doula and lactation consultant, she is especially interested in the first 1,000 days of the life of the growing human, including the life stages of pregnancy, birth and lactation, and how these connect with what comes later. What she loves most is how art and music are woven into all kinds of activities in Waldorf, for they enlarge and enrich the spirit, and assist movement in education—inhalation and expansion, exhalation and contraction. With her own love of music and movement, it is no surprise that Beatriz is also a tango dancer.

Christa Mutschler

Early Childhood Lead

A native of the Tampa Bay area, Christa found Waldorf simply through word of mouth more than two decades ago. Drawn to the way the curriculum revolves around the developmental needs of the child, Christa began assisting in the Early Childhood at The Waldorf School of Tampa Bay when her son was young, and went on to receive her Waldorf Certification from the West Coast Institute of Anthroposophy in British Columbia, Canada. Christa loves the outdoors and simple time with family, and is a highly gifted and creative practitioner of the many handwork arts.

Kosima Grundy

Honeysuckle Bridge

Kosima was born into a family who attended Waldorf schools for two generations in Germany. Her great grandparents were pupils of Anthroposophy with Rudolf Steiner, and her parents helped establish Marin Waldorf School in California, which she attended as a child. When her daughter was born in 2002 in Reno, Nevada, she connected with a small Waldorf-inspired school and brought Waldorf pedagogy, festival life, and eurythmy to the community, eventually helping them become a fully accredited Waldorf school. Kosima completed her Waldorf foundational training in 2014 with emphasis on birth to 3, graduated from LifeWays Training in 2015, and completed the 0-3 Remedial Foundation Program in 2016. She raised two children in Sonoma County, California, in a Waldorf/Anthroposophical environment, and there created her own Waldorf mixed-aged program for two- to six-year olds.  Kosima is an avid crafter, party planner, and lover of nature. 

Connie Manson

Parent + Child

A native of Virginia, Connie grew up in a musical family—studying piano, guitar, and voice while performing classical, contemporary, jazz and Afro-Caribbean music. After receiving her bachelor’s of fine arts, she moved to New York City, which is where she discovered Waldorf Education, and went on to receive her master’s in education and Waldorf Teacher Training from the Sunbridge Institute. Connie is drawn to the magic and artistry of Waldorf teachings, and how it teaches respect for the child. She has spent the last few decades creating puppet plays, directing theatre, and teaching early education and music. Connie has been with WSTB for eight years, has taken up the ukulele and is the artistic director of Starlite Puppets, which shares puppetry inspired by Rudolf Steiner to the greater community.

Abby Grundy

Early Childhood Assistant

Abby grew up in Northern California and attended Summerfield Waldorf School and Farm from Kindergarten through 10th grade.  She is a fourth generation Waldorf student -- her great, great grandparents were Anthroposophists who studied directly with Rudolf Steiner in Stuttgart, Germany.  Abby was a competitive swimmer for eight years and has taught many children how to swim, as well has been a  long-time nanny for Waldorf families both in California and Florida.  Last spring served WSTB as an EC assistant mainly in Magnolia Garden and hopes to begin her Early Childhood Training at the Sunbridge Instituted in 2024.  Abby delights in seeing all the beautiful, smiling faces of the children every morning, and feels honored to help hold the magic and sacredness for childhood that Waldorf education prioritizes is the mixed-age Kindergarten.  In her personal time, Abby enjoys exercise, holistic nutrition and is a lifelong backpacker, so sleeping out under the stars is her happy place.

Luana Soares

Early Childhood Assistant

Luana was born and grew up in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and lived in New York for 16 years. Her mother was introduced to Waldorf education through the family’s pediatrician. Luana’s young brothers attended early-childhood programs, and Luana attended the Rudolf Steiner school when she was eight and nine years old. She graduated as an industrial designer and worked for many years in project management for retail and residential construction. With the birth of her daughter, she returned to the kindness and gentle rhythm of Waldorf as a way to protect her daughter’s childhood from fast-paced life. Motivated by this as well as a goal to open an initiative in Astoria, New York, she rekindled her own warm Waldorf memories. Luana is a lifelong learner in the areas of early-childhood and parent-child programs. She enjoys getting to know new people and loves to laugh and spend time with friends. Movement, including yoga and CrossFit, and being outdoors and near the water all make her feel good and provide peace of mind. When she is not engaged in those activities or spending time with family and friends, you might find her reading the latest in-depth book on childhood development and nutrition.

Jenny Venezia

Early Childhood Assistant

Born in Connecticut, Jenny has lived most of her life in Florida. She studied journalism at university and her previous work life includes public relations, marketing and fundraising. She has been a class assistant for three-year olds at another school, but found Waldorf education when looking for a school where her son would flourish. She loves the strong rhythm that Waldorf education creates, and the security it provides for the children. When not in school, Jenny loves to be outdoors, meditating, cooking or dancing to music with her family.

Sophia Shapiro

Early Childhood Assistant

Sophia was born and raised in Gainesville, Florida and was a Waldorf student herself.  She did her undergraduate work at the University of Florida and then received a Master’s in Special Education with a focus on behavioral disorders from Hunter College in New York City.  She has worked in various schools in Florida in New York in many different roles for twenty years.  Sophia joined WSTB over eight years ago when she and her eldest daughter attended Ms. Connie’s Merrily We Meet program. Considering the child as a whole, while creating a magical environment to nurture and develop the child’s imagination is what draws her to Waldorf education, as well as how curriculum complements the natural development of the child, not just cognitively but socially and emotionally as well.  Sophia is passionate about creating art of all kinds, currently immersing herself in the fiber arts world, and loves to root for the Gators on football Saturdays.

Dana Rhodes

Office Manager & Administrative Coordinator

Dana was born, raised and has lived most of her life in the Tampa Bay area. She has immersed herself in the educational arena for decades, having taught music, arts and creative summer-camp programs to children of all ages, for nearly 30 years. Dana is passionate about allowing space for children to be creative in an environment of self-discovery, and to develop a deep love for learning while increasing capacities, and the confidence to make their own choices. This year, Dana will share her gifts by supporting students and faculty in her role in administration. When not at school, Dana loves to be near the water—whether the beach, a beautiful spring, or anywhere she can maneuver her kayak! She regularly spends time in the woods to ground and center herself in the peace that Nature offers.

Tonya Stoddard

Educational Support Specialist

Tonya grew up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, but until she recently traded the west coast for the east, had lived in Northern California since 1998. She knows Waldorf through searching for a school for her son, which she found in the East Bay Waldorf School when he was four. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a master’s in social work and a certification in anthroposophical psychology, Tonya has more than 20 years’ experience working with diverse populations and issues, including parent-child relationships. She likes to help others work toward transformation by leading them to develop the capacities of thinking, feeling and willing through cultivating a rich inner life, making healthy environmental choices and creating a positive path toward healing.

Elizabeth Bedore

Associate Business Manager

Elizabeth was born in Savannah, Georgia, but lived in eight states by the time she was eight!  Her family then moved to Florida where they settled down.  Elizabeth attended Eckerd College and became fluent in Spanish.  Her mother was a dance teacher, and Elizabeth has danced, taught and helped manage the family dance studio for all her childhood and young adult years.  While continuing to teach dance, she also began and had a 13 year career in banking.  Ten years ago, she opened her own dance studio which she still runs today.  Elizabeth has been at WSTB for seven years, and has served on the Parent Council Committee and the Board of Trustees.  She loves that Waldorf education offers an education that is focused on the whole child where childhood is preserved, and is excited to join the WSTB administration.  Elizabeth loves rejuvenating with board and card games, attending Broadway productions and hiking to waterfalls!

Barbara Bedingfield

School Founder and Resident Wise Woman

Barbara grew up in rural, northern Alabama and lived there until 1960 when her family moved to the Tampa Bay area. When a Unitarian church friend returned from a Waldorf Weekend in Michigan with watercolor paints, beeswax, and books, raving of the magic of this education, Barbara was hooked!   She received the bulk of her wide Waldorf education from Antioch University New England in New Hampshire and completed a 10-week internship at the Washington Waldorf School with Jack Petrash.  Barbara is passionate about the principles of Waldorf that help children to develop warm and flexible thinking, teach them practical skills so that they have the confidence they can do anything, and nurture social capacities that enable children to serve others, and the world. Barbara is a life-long student of Anthroposophy, a talented singer and musician, mother to three adult children, step-mother to two adult children, grandmother to nine, and great-grandmother to two! She is eternally grateful to her husband, John, who has always strongly supported her Waldorf endeavors.

Kate Garland

Director of Communication & Enrollment

Kate was born in Chicago and moved to Florida when she was four years old.  She attended the University of Notre Dame where she double-majored in English Literature and Communications.  After graduating, Kate moved to Los Angeles and began a career in Yoga Therapy and Holistic Lifestyle Coaching.  She taught and managed several yoga studios in LA before founding her own studio and private yoga therapy practice which she ran successfully for over 12 years.  She has taught internationally, presented at national conferences and is a published author, including in peer-reviewed journals.  Kate was introduced to Waldorf before her daughter was born by her osteopath, who presented it as “the premier holistic education,” and enrolled in a mommy and me class when her daughter was three.  Kate has been involved in WSTB for seven years and loves the warmth and mindfulness that faculty, administration and parents all bring to their relationships. Kate loves to needle felt, cook and sing at the beach.

Cara Sutherland

Lead Administrator

Cara was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada and attended Acadia University where she received a degree in Business Administration with a focus in Entrepreneurship.  After Graduation, she moved to Toronto to work for Accenture (formally Anderson Consulting), traveling throughout North America as an IT Business Analyst focused on Energy Degradation projects.  Cara moved on to Accenture, then worked for Oracle (formerly Siebel) out of Huston, TX, within the Telecommunication and Energy industry, continuing to travel  throughout North America and the UK.  With the birth of the first of her four children, she stepped back from corporate life and has been a parent at WSTB since 2008.  Cara volunteered at the school for many years on the IT Task Force, then joined the Board in 2011 where she shared her invaluable experience in financial management and strategic planning.  Cara has been a part of the school’s administrative team since 2019 and when not working loves crocheting, puzzles and pickleball.