School Community

Detroit Waldorf School was conceived in the mid 1960s during a period of tremendous social unrest in Detroit. Our founders, Amelia and Rudolf Wilhelm, saw an opportunity to create a school where children of all races and socio-economic backgrounds could learn and play in harmony.

We have operated at our historic Indian Village location continuously since 1967. Today, our commitment to creating a diverse, inclusive and nurturing school community continues and we are recognized nationally as a model urban Waldorf school.

The Detroit Waldorf School partners with other local nonprofits to address community challenges and support the revitalization of Detroit’s East Village neighborhoods. We contribute to the educational and cultural life in the city through film screenings, lectures, workshops and other public programs in an effort to make living and working Detroit more rewarding.

Historic Building

Step inside our building and you’ll find bright sunny rooms and soft colors swirling across every wall. Storybook pane glass windows, Pewabic tile, and features perfectly sized for children make the school feel like a home. And that is how the building was designed: to be a home for inspired, engaged learning.

Our Arts & Crafts building was constructed in two phases between 1913 and 1923. It is the only surviving school designed by the renowned architect Albert Kahn and was built as the east side campus for the Eastern Liggett School, one of Detroit’s first schools exclusively for girls, which operated between 1913 and 1965.

Notable individuals who have studied at the site include Evangeline Lodge Land (mother of Charles Lindbergh), Eleanor Clay (Mrs. Edsel B. Ford), the granddaughters of brewer Bernard Stroh, and the daughters of Sebastian Kresge (Kresge Company founder), George C. Booth (Detroit News and Cranbrook founder), and John Dodge (auto company founder).

See more on Indian Village on WikipediA