Laura Baker
Business Manager
Laura Baker joined the school’s administrative team as business manager in 2007. She is a native of Portland, Oregon, and a graduate of the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington, where she received her bachelor’s in chemistry and minored in mathematics. After college, she was a member of the Peace Corps and spent two years teaching science in a remote area in the Fiji Islands. She went on to graduate school at Wake Forest University, where she earned a PhD in biochemistry. She then spent four years pursuing a career as a research scientist and postdoctoral fellow at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and later at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Pharmacology. Her family joined the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh community in the spring of 2006 when they enrolled her daughter in the school. She and her husband were instantly attracted to the school’s philosophy of teaching the head, heart, and hands, the spirit of volunteerism that pervades the school, and the impressive teaching staff. As the Business Manager, she is able to apply her analytical skills to keeping the budget balanced and the books in order, while occasionally making an appearance as the Wizard during the Halloween Journey.
Devon Wood
Enrollment Coordinator
Bio still to come
Brendan Froeschl
Facilities Manager
Brendan Froeschl joined the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh’s administrative team as facilities manager in 2007. Brendan attended St. Vincent College, which included two years studying in Germany, and earned a degree in history with minors in English and German. After his undergraduate work, Mr. Froeschl delved more deeply into the field of historic preservation. An interest in hands-on preservation work led to a training program in building preservation at Belmont Technical College. This training and his work experiences at the Jekyll Island Museum perfectly matched to managing the unique needs of the school’s historic building. Outside of work Brendan enjoys biking, camping, and playing guitar.
Elizabeth Leonard
Office Manager
Elizabeth Leonard joined the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh’s Administrative Team in January of 2010. She received her BA in Professional Writing from La Roche College and came to the school after several years in retail management and self employment. Currently also moonlighting as a freelance writer, Mrs. Leonard was able to bring her talents in journalism, business writing, marketing and web content writing to this multifaceted position at the school. She currently spends her non-school hours writing for Examiner.com, managing two blogs and a freelance writing business, and working on her first novel. She is an avid cook, loves to garden vegetables and flowers, and is working towards a homesteader’s lifestyle for her and her family.
Julia Sawyer
Development Coordinator
Julia Sawyer first became acquainted with Waldorf education when her son enrolled in the kindergarten class at Shining Mounting Waldorf School in Bolder, Colorado. Following the completion of her undergraduate and Master’s degrees at the University of Colorado, Boulder, she moved to Pittsburgh in 1990 and subsequently completed her Ph.D. in Cultural Studies and Composition at the University of Pittsburgh. She also holds a secondary teaching certification in Language Arts and Social Science. Julia has over twenty years of teaching experience in contexts that range from jr-high school and college classrooms to supervision of novice college-level teachers, professional workshops, and one-on-one tutoring. For the past six years, Julia has served the non-profit community as an education consultant.
