Walden Foundation

Christa Rybczynski

A Foundation member since February 2007, Christa is the mother of Walden alumni Reyna (UC Davis) and Kelsey (Berkeley High School), and current Middle Grouper Eliza. Having studied architecture at the University of Cincinnati, she and her husband, Lawrence Grown, now own Metro Lighting, where they design and fabricate decorative lighting fixtures. Christa previously served as a parent representative on the Board of Nia House Learning Center, a Montessori preschool in West Berkeley. Throughout the last thirteen years, she has worked on numerous community-building and fund-raising projects at Walden. In fall 2006, Christa spearheaded the formation of the Walden Parents Association as a way for parents to come together to provide extra support for the school. “I am especially excited to be working on Walden‘s short- and long-term strategic plan, as we head into our next fifty years.” She currently serves on the Building Committee, using her architectural background to support the collaborative design process between architects and Walden’s community.

Cristin Costello

Cristin began teaching at Walden in 1993 in the Middle Group, and now focuses her teaching attention on the areas of math and science. She is absolutely thrilled to be part of the teaching collective and believes that a Walden education is one of the greatest gifts she can give to her son, currently an Upper Group student.

Cristin rejoined the Walden Foundation in 2004, having previously served between 1996 and 2000. She is delighted to serve on the Foundation because it sits directly at the crossroads of history and progress. As a board member she uses her communication and organizational skills to support the school specifically in the areas of personnel policies and professional training. Cristin received a bachelor of science from Smith College in 1985 and a multiple subject credential from San Francisco State University in 1992.

Jennifer Nutt

Jennifer is a staff attorney at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Her younger son is excited that he‘s finally old enough to participate in Walden‘s much-loved tradition, the annual Upper Group Play, and her older son is thriving at Willard Middle School after six years at Walden. Jennifer joined the Walden Foundation in 2007. She has helped the school to update its personnel handbook and is looking forward to taking on new projects this year.

John King

John King is the father of Madeline King, who attended Walden for seven years and now is a senior at Berkeley High, where she has a range of college choices thanks to the excellent foundation given her by Walden’s teaching and character building. He’s also the urban design critic for the San Francisco Chronicle and a UC Berkeley graduate with a degree in history. He grew up in Walnut Creek and is married to Cynthia Butler, another Walden fan.

Jon Patmore

Jon graduated from Humboldt State University with a BA in English, and earned his teaching credential from Holy Names University in Oakland. He taught in public schools in the Hayward Unified School District and joined Walden in 1999, where he teaches in the Upper Group. He has been a member of the Walden Foundation since 2001.

Jon was drawn to Walden by the school’s multimodal approach toward learning. He attributes Walden students’ evident enthusiasm for their education to this approach. “Walden kids love to come to school,” he says, “because they have the chance to shine in a variety of ways.” Jon’s interests include reading, writing, art, design, music, science, and philosophy.

Lee McRae

Lee McRae is proud to be a cofounder of Walden Center & School. A long-time social activist, educator, and firm believer in young people having an education based on the arts, in 1958 Lee and her husband Alan came together with like-minded friends to create a school unlike any other then in existence. Their intention was to establish a center where the public could join together in meaningful dialogue on the arts in education, as well as social issues facing the nation.

Alan McRae wanted to call the school the “Anarchist-Pacifist Day School” but he was voted down! In the spirit of Henry Thoreau’s Walden, the collective intended to build a place where children would thrive as independent, creative, and aware individuals. Rooted in progressive values and centered on freedom of expression through arts-based education, social and environmental consciousness, the Walden Center & School is now a thriving independent K–6 school.

Nora Goodfriend-Koven

A native of the San Francisco Bay Area, Nora Goodfriend-Koven has been dedicated to public health for over three decades. A graduate of Berkeley High School, Nora majored in Latin American studies and anthropology at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and obtained her master’s in public health in community health education from San Jose State University.

Nora’s primary concern lies in social justice and equity, particularly in health and education, with a particular focus on mental health and community preparedness to respond to trauma. Now a full-time professor in her eighth year at the City College of San Francisco, Nora teaches a course on psychological trauma response and recovery. Her main mission is to teach and coordinate the Healthcare Interpreter Certificate Program located at the Ocean Campus, where she strives to prepare students to become the linguistic and cultural bridges between patients who do not speak English and their healthcare providers.

Nora is the daughter of Walden founders Audrey Goodfriend and David Koven. She is a Walden alumna, as well as the parent of Walden graduates. Fluent in Spanish, she has traveled extensively overland throughout Europe and North, Central, and South America. She enjoys observing nature and listening to music.

VickiLee Edge

Vicki, whose daughter is a Walden graduate, has been a member of the Walden Foundation since June 2007. She also serves as Walden’s Admissions and Communication Coordinator. Vicki received an AB in linguistics from the University of California at Berkeley and an MD from the University of Connecticut. She trained in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of California at San Francisco, after which she joined a private practice in Berkeley. She is an editor with specialties in medicine, science, and textile arts.

Vicki brings clear thinking, the ability to move seamlessly between detailed and global perspectives, and a listening ear to her work at Walden. Her own experience as a learner and reading Summerhill by A. S. Neill in high school inspired an enduring passion for education. Vicki believes that children treated with respect and dignity, as they are at Walden, grow into adults who can confidently step into positions of responsibility and leadership. Vicki finds a creative outlet in the textile arts.