Hundred Hills School moving forward as SYV native and her husband look to give local children and their families another educational option
A new Waldorf-based school called Hundred Hills School will be opening this fall in Buellton. Historically, Waldorf education is based on the education philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, the founder of anthroposophy. They are independent schools that follow the Waldorf philosophy, which is known for its emphasis on the arts, including music, theater, and visual arts, as well as its focus on the development of the whole child, including their physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being. Its educational style is holistic, intended to develop pupils’ intellectual, artistic, and practical skills, with a focus on imagination and creativity.
Hundred Hills School is a private, nonprofit, co-educational day school for students in preschool through grade four. It was founded by passionate Waldorf parents Whitney Stevenson-Chanana and Sundeep Chanana, with the unwavering support from equally passionate Waldorf educators Chinyelu Kunz, Terri Webster, and Marjorie Rehbach.
According to its website, the school’s educational philosophy is influenced by a reverence for children’s EQ and IQ journeys, which are segmented into three stages, or the three I’s: Imitation, Imagination, and Intellect. The philosophy is manifested in a curriculum that elegantly prioritizes both academic rigor and experiential/kinesthetic learning.
“I was born and raised in the Valley,” said Stevenson-Chanana. “My father was a veterinarian who worked for Jim Buell in the racehorse industry in the ‘ 70s, and my mother was a substitute teacher. Just last week my mother gave me a book that she found in her things that was written by Steiner in the 1960s about education. When I was a child, my mother actively managed my education by getting intra-district transfers so I could access the best teachers and curriculum available. I attended Family School, Jonata School, Vista, and Los Olivos schools, and Santa Ynez Valley Union High School. My parents supplemented my education by incorporating 4-H, horses, Suzuki Method violin lessons, art, and ag. My mom had a vision of what she wanted to cultivate in her children.”
After graduating from UC Davis, Whitney worked on Wall Street as a research analyst covering semiconductors, retail, and hospitality. She said that when she became pregnant with their first child, she wanted to do a home birth and raise their child outside of New York City, so she and Sundeep returned to the Valley in October 2020, just two months before their first son was born. All of her family still live in the Valley or nearby.
The journey to launch a Waldorf school began in 2021 when, thinking ahead, Whitney and Sundeep were concerned about the education they wanted for their children. She recalled that she was first introduced to Rudolf Steiner when she was living in New York.
“There was an intriguing little bookstore with a lot of books written by Rudolf Steiner, which was always intriguing,” Whitney recalled. “I had a friend who had interesting grown children, capable and smart people. He once commented that if he had more children, he would send them to the Waldorf School, which was located on the Upper East Side.”
“Actually, my husband gets all the credit for the idea of opening a Waldorf School here in the Valley,” she added. “We were trying to figure out how we could remain living here and have our children enjoy the kind of education we wanted them to have. It was his idea to open a Waldorf School here in the Valley. He initiated the process.”
The Chananas are on a site for the school on Dairyland Road in Buellton that was approved in a lengthy Buellton City Council meeting on July 24 (see story on page 6), which will grant them a five-year land lease to incubate the Hundred Hills School. After the initial five-year term, their plans are to build a permanent campus in Buellton.
Now the parents of three small children, ages 4, 2, and a newborn, the Chananas are looking forward to seeing all their hard work come to fruition with the opening of Hundred Hills School this fall.
Chinyelu Kunz is the founder of We Nurture Collective, a podcast she started in 2020. Stevenson-Chanana said she would listen to podcasts by Kunz, and that’s what led her to contact Kunz about opening a Waldorf School in Buellton, and they became friends.
Born and mostly raised in Enugu, Nigeria, Kunz came to the U.S. after high school to attend college and majored in interior architecture at the New York Institute of Technology, and then studied architecture at Cal Poly Pomona.
“When my son was almost 2, I was introduced to Waldorf education,” Kunz said. “That was in 1992, and I have been completely involved in early childhood education ever since.”
“In 2020, I left the classroom and started podcasting, coaching, and supporting parents in parenting their young children,” she explained. “When Whitney brought up the idea of opening a Waldorf School in Buellton, I was wholeheartedly in favor. Then, by some miracle, my husband was offered a job in Santa Maria in aerospace, and within weeks we were moving from Pennsylvania to the Central Coast. I joined Whitney and became the joint head of Hundred Hills School.”
“Our goal is to create a Waldorf community that is not insular but builds a lasting and enriching relationship with the entire Valley,” said Kunz. “I am passionate about Waldorf education, and I see the benefits it has had on my three children, who are all grown up now.”
Kunz has published one parenting book titled “The Little Book of Parenting” and one children’s book titled “Away to Dreamland,” consisting of poems and stories for bedtime that will be released on Sept. 15. Kunz can be found @wenurture on Instagram, or visit her website at www.wenurturecollective.com.
The school is accepting enrollment for preschool and kindergarten for the fall 2025 classes. They also have a series of free events for families over the summer held on Fridays at 9:30 a.m. at SYV Botanic Garden and Saturdays at 10 a.m. under the magnolia on the Buellton Library lawn.
“We have been really inspired by the way the pieces and the people involved have come together for our project to take flight,” said Stevenson-Chanana.
For more information, visit www.hundredhillsschool.org (a 501c3 nonprofit) or on Instagram @hundredhillsschool.
