Leadership

Todd Rossi is an Adjunct Professor in Mechanical Engineering at Rutgers University, where he teaches energy concentration and basic mechanical engineering classes. He’s also the Associate Director of Rutger’s Center for Advanced Energy Systems that’s the Field Manager for US Department of Energy’s Industrial Assessment Center (IAC) program. He is involved in bringing related technology into the marketplace to reduce energy use and cost and decarbonize industrial and commercial facilities, especially in NJ. Todd is the Board Chair of the Waldorf School of Princeton and a Board member and Captain of the Carnegie Lake Rowing Association that supports community rowing from the Princeton University boathouse. Todd's son graduated from WSP over a decade ago.

Herbert Hagens is a co-founder of WSP. He holds graduate degrees from Middlebury and Princeton and taught German at Princeton High School, Kimberton Waldorf School, and Princeton University. Herbert’s activities include lecturing on Anthroposophy and teaching courses at the Goetheanum in Dornach, Switzerland. He served on the Board of Chapin School in Princeton and for several years as Board president of the Threefold Educational Foundation in Spring Valley, NY. Assisting in managing Hagens Recording Studio here in Princeton keeps Herbert further occupied during his retirement years.

Rasheda Garcia has been an Educator for more than 20 years, as well as a Principal of the largest Deaf and Hard of Hearing continuum in Bergen County, working with students from early intervention to 21 years old. It is her belief that Waldorf education could benefit the academic and social needs of so many children placed within the mainstream schools that are having a hard time navigating public education. She is stepping from her role of Board secretary to Board treasurer for the 2024-2025 school year. She looks forward to working in tandem with the business administrator to support all of the fiscal needs of the school. Rasheda has been a member of the Waldorf Community since 2017 and is a parent of a recent Waldorf student.

Kaia Motter joined the Board at the Waldorf School of Princeton in 2020 and is currently serving as Board Secretary. She went through 12 years of Waldorf education and earned a B.A. in Comparative Literature, French and English, from Bryn Mawr College. She has held various roles in scholarly publishing over the past 20 years and is currently Head of Academic Affairs, North America at Springer Nature where she leads academic affairs activities in the US and Canada, building relationships and collaborating with funders, institutions, and other non-profit organizations in the region. Her son graduated from WSP in 2024. As a Waldorf parent, alumna, and daughter of a Waldorf teacher, Kaia has experienced the benefits of the education from multiple perspectives.

Ondria Wasem joined the Board at the Waldorf School of Princeton (WSP) in 2022, to continue serving the school's needs in a new capacity. She currently sits on the Governance Committee and Orchard Farm Task Force. She holds a B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from MIT. Subsequent to her engineering career, Ondria completed Foundation Studies in Anthroposophy here at WSP, the training and internships of WHiSTEP (Waldorf high school teacher training) through the Center for Anthroposophy, the TSS course in Waldorf middle school science teaching through SENSRI, as well as various other courses and workshops over the years in Waldorf middle school math and science teaching and anthroposophy. She was a WSP parent from 1997 to 2014 (now alumni parent) and served on the parent council for several years (including as co-chair), in addition to volunteering in other ways. Ondria taught various subjects at the school, among other roles along the way, 2006-2022.

Elisabet Mas Porté has a professional background is in digital marketing and business development, and is currently a Digital Communications Marketing Senior Manager at dsm-firmenich. She has been involved in the Waldorf School of Princeton for several years as a parent, Spanish teacher, and Trustee. Her two children are currently enrolled in the EC program and in Grade school. She has an immense love for this school and a genuine belief that Waldorf pedagogy will form the kind of humans this world needs.

Sarthak Banerjee is a Vice President and solution developer in Profit and Loss (P&L) Attribution team for Fixed Income products at Morgan Stanley in New York and worked to develop a Cross-Asset framework for computing P&L attributions over a distributed computing grid. He has worked with a variety of investment and retail banks in Asia, the Middle East, and U.S. over almost two decades. Sarthak has patents on Anomaly detection on multi-stage process (patent pending) and Integrated and Automated Generation of Carbon Credit (2019). His daughter is currently a student in the Early Childhood at WSP. He strongly believes in the importance of building a strong foundation for children, especially in the very early stages of life, and this school is in a unique position to fulfill that need. Sarthak also leads the DE&I working group which includes Teachers, Parents, and Board members dedicated to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community within the Waldorf School of Princeton.

Theresa Viggiano operates a value-added natural food brand, First Field, that works directly with regional and sustainable growers. Theresa also worked at Rutgers University in health services research focusing on mental health, aging, and at-risk children, and taught courses in Sociology, Social Psychology, and Health Policy. She received a BA in Sociology and Medical Humanities from Indiana University, and an MA in Medical Sociology from the University of Kentucky. Theresa Viggiano has been a parent at WSP since 2016, and has two sons in the 4th and 6th grade classes. She is thankful for the rich education and social experiences that WSP provides her children, as well as all that the school offers to the community.

Torsten Bernewitz has over 30 years of experience in communication, business strategy and change management. He is Principal Emeritus at ZS, a large global management consulting firm. He is currently researching and consulting on safety and performance of artificial intelligence. He is also a musician and music producer, working with recording artists in the US and in Europe. His two children have attended the school in the past, and he served on the Board as a Trustee in various officer roles and on committees between 2016 and 2018. He believes that the Waldorf School of Princeton is an alternative to mainstream education that is very much needed.

Jennifer Santos is a certified nurse-midwife with non-profit board and committee experience, and she is pleased and humbled to serve a community that has given her family so much. She has been a member of the Princeton Waldorf community for over 20 years; her oldest child attended WSP from Parent-Child to 8th grade, another completed the early childhood program, and she currently has a rising seventh grader who began in the Nursery when as a three-year-old. As a parent and community member, Jennifer feels extremely invested in the success of the school, and is very proud that the Waldorf School of Princeton is carrying the task of delivering this transformative curriculum in New Jersey. She has been active in the PCA and the reading group, as well as with the local anthroposophical society.

Ariana McBride is the Program Director for Share My Meals, a Princeton-based food recovery non-profit organization. Ariana has over 20 years of experience in strategic planning, program development, process design, and organizational collaborations. She is a long-standing Girl Scout troop leader and has experience working with a variety of non-profits. Ariana holds a Master’s in Community Planning from the University of Rhode Island and a Bachelor’s from the College of William and Mary. She has been a member of WSP community since 2022 when her two daughters started in 2nd and 5th grade. She attended a Waldorf School in Rhode Island from early childhood through Grade 1.

Carolina Olszak obtained a Psychology degree at Universidad de Buenos Aires in 2005 and a Masters in Social Work at New York University in 2013 after moving from her hometown of Buenos Aires, Argentina to the US in 2011. Carolina has over 15 years of experience working in the mental health field, providing psychotherapy to adults, children, and families. Her areas of expertise include immigration adjustment, relationship conflict, parenting guidance, grief and trauma. Carolina is the mother of two children who joined the Waldorf School of Princeton in 2022, after attending a Waldorf School in Kansas City for six years. Carolina is passionate about the Waldorf Education and Philosophy, she has been a parent class representative and an enthusiastic participant of the reading group for the past two years.

Lindsey Stephenson is a historian of the Middle East and holds a PhD in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University. She served for two years as the head of the Refugee Assistance Committee at the Muslim Center of Greater Princeton. Lindsey has been involved with WSP as a parent of children in EC and 2nd grade, an EC assistant, a summer camp lead artist, and a member of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee.

Amy Shor received her bachelor’s degree in sociology from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. She earned a certificate in Waldorf early childhood education and completed the coursework for a master’s degree in Waldorf education from Sunbridge College in Chestnut Ridge, New York. Amy has taught at the Waldorf School of Princeton since 2003, primarily leading nursery and parent-child programs. Ms. Shor’s deep knowledge of Waldorf education has helped many parents manage the challenges of raising children. Her warmth with the children and ability to build community both in and outside the classroom make her classroom an inviting gateway to the school. Prior to working at Princeton, she was a nursery teacher, parent/tot teacher, and administrator at the Dayspring Community School in Warwick, New York.

Charlie teaches 4th Grade and runs the Movement and Games program at the school. He has been an independent school educator for over fifteen years, serving as a classroom teacher, administrator, board member, and coach at his former schools. As an educator, his training includes the New Teacher Institute (two year teacher training), DEIJ, SEL, and recently in the field of Waldorf education. He is currently in his third year at the school and second on the Board. He earned a B.A. from Kenyon College in International Studies. Charlie was born and raised within walking distance of the school and recently moved back to the area from California.