Our Administrative Staff

The Orchard Valley administrative team oversees and manages the daily business of the school so students can learn, teachers can teach, and parents and board members can rely on a well-functioning school. This daily business includes: recruiting and admitting new students, handling tuition and fees, facility management, fundraising, building community awareness, addressing concerns and carrying out the administrative policies and decisions made by the Faculty and Board of Trustees.

MADELIEF WELTERS
madelief.b@ovws.org
Administrative Director

Madelief attended the Great Barrington Rudolf Steiner School in Massachusetts and was raised in a home steeped in the traditions of Anthroposophy. Her family immersed themselves in Waldorf education, biodynamic farming and many other aspects of Steiner’s teachings. Madelief and her family have been a part of the Orchard Valley Waldorf School community since 2008, and during this time she served in numerous roles, including Parent Council member, chair of the ATA (Accessible-to-All) Committee and Vice-Chair of the OVWS Board of Trustees.

MARIANNE PERCHLIK
marianne.p@ovws.org
Pedagogical Chair

Marianne is part of the parent community that founded the Orchard Valley Waldorf School in 2004. She joined the faculty of Orchard Valley in 2017. Prior to this, she owned a practice as a Childbirth Mentor, Doula and Parenting Coach and assisted in the Morning Garden preschool. She then trained as a Waldorf High School teacher and taught for four years at the Initiative; a Vermont Waldorf High School located on the campus of Goddard College.

Before motherhood, Marianne served at the Juvenile Defenders office as a Juvenile Attorney, holding a JD and a Master of Environmental Law degree from Vermont Law School. She also served in the US Peace Corps as a sustainable agriculture volunteer in Paraguay and holds a BA in Theater and English.

CAIT PETTEYS
cait.p@ovws.org
Front Office Manager

Cait’s interest in Waldorf education began after the birth of her first child in 2018. She became involved with Orchard Valley when she enrolled her child into Sweet Clover Nursery, and knew that this beautiful community was one she wanted her and her family to be a part of. In December of 2021, Cait joined the Orchard Valley staff as the Front Office Manager, and has been enjoying her time here ever since. 

Cait brings to the table an eclectic work and school experience. She graduated with a dual major in Cinema Studies and Literature from Burlington College in 2013. She has worked as a projectionist in a movie theater (when they primarily used film), traveled and worked as a  farmhand in Ireland and across the United States, and was most recently a pastry chef and baker. Working in a Waldorf school has been a welcomed change of pace, and she’s grateful for this opportunity! 

When she’s not at work, Cait enjoys stomping around the woods with her 4 year old, preserving the garden abundance her husband enjoys growing, and talking about books and film with anyone who is interested.

TERI PAGE (she/her)
teri.p@ovws.org
Admissions Director

Teri has a master’s degree in Arts Administration and Nonprofit Management and has held administrative positions in dance education, theater and symphony organizations, as well as in higher education. She joined the Orchard Valley community as a parent of two grades students in 2018 and served in several volunteer roles before joining the staff in July 2021. Teri is also the creator of the popular homesteading blog, Homestead Honey, and the author of Family Homesteading and several other books about homesteading, gardening, and off-grid living.

SUSAN HAND
susan.h@ovws.org
Registrar

Susan joined the Front Office Staff in 2018, bringing a wealth of administrative skills from her 23-year career with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society where she served in capacities ranging from event coordination to information technology systems. Her extensive experience with database management supports her current role as Registrar. In 2009, Susan attended Morning Garden with her eldest daughter and has been connected to OVWS ever since! 

ROBERTA TORRENS
roberta.t@ovws.org
Administrative Assistant

After teaching at a small independent school in San Francisco that integrated its urban farm into the curriculum, Roberta was drawn to Orchard Valley first as a parent in 2006, seeking a spiritually nourishing educational experience for her children that prioritized creative expression, outdoor exploration and reverence for the natural world. Roberta’s four children all attended Orchard Valley and she was deeply involved in our school during those years. Roberta has worn many hats at OVWS including Kindergarten Assistant, On the Land Assistant, Administrative Support and Front Office substitute. Roberta majored in Psychology and English at Middlebury College with a minor in Art History and has a Masters in English Literature from Middlebury's Bread Loaf School of English. 

When not working upstairs in the farmhouse, Roberta enjoys stand up paddleboarding and pond swimming, growing vegetables and herbs to use in salves and tinctures, spinning wool and exploring Vermont’s woods in all seasons.

ANNA COUTURE
anna.c@ovws.org
Sweet Clover Nursery Administrator

Many combined life experiences inspired Anna, as a mother, herbalist, small business owner, and teacher with a passion for education, to settle into the work of Early Childhood as a career. She has been studying at Sophia's Hearth and will continue to widen her scope in the realm of Waldorf Early Childhood Education. Anna is looking forward to using her skills in the new role as SCN Administrator/Teacher Support and encourages parents to reach out to her with any questions and/or comments.

KATE BENNECKER
kate.b@ovws.org
Development Coordinator

Kate joined the Orchard Valley community in 2023 with a kindergartner and second-grader, and started working with the staff as Development Coordinator shortly after. She brings experience in education, project management, and writing, along with degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and Western Washington University. She is working toward a Development & fundraising Specialization from the University of California Berkeley Extension as well. Outside of Orchard Valley, you’ll often find her reading a book, knitting a sweater, or working in her garden.

ELSA DOOLING
elsa.d@ovws.org
Social Media

Elsa holds a B.S. in English from North Carolina State University and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Waldorf Education at Antioch University New England. She is a communications, nonprofit and small business development specialist, as well as a Waldorf education and parenting specialist. Her concentrations are communications, marketing, business management, event planning, fundraising and education. She is also a writer and an experienced teacher.