Core Team

Dru Smith-Crain

Director, Saguaro Center for Teacher Renewal

Dru Smith-Crain is an educator, school leader, and mentor whose work lives at the intersection of human development, artistry, and the lived realities of contemporary Waldorf teaching. With decades of experience as a class teacher, program director, mentor, and adult-education facilitator, Dru brings a uniquely integrative approach rooted in anthroposophy, Goethean Science, sensory-based classroom practice, and deep study of child development.
Dru joined Saguaro Center for Teacher Renewal in response to the urgent need for accessible, high-quality Public Waldorf teacher preparation in the Desert Southwest. What began as a regional impulse has now grown into a thriving, multi-year program serving teachers (both in public and independent schools) across and beyond Arizona. Dru’s leadership continues to shape Saguaro’s mission: to offer artful, embodied learning experiences that awaken the capacities of the teacher and support the healthy development of every child.

Michelle Blazewicz

Founder, Saguaro Center for Teacher Renewal

Michelle discovered and fell in love with Waldorf education through a parent-child class at the Cape Ann Waldorf School in Massachusetts. She became a Certified Waldorf Elementary teacher and worked for four years as a class teacher before taking time out to again focus on the family. During her time away, she completed a year-long foundations course in music where she learned to play the lyre.  In addition to teaching, Michelle is a graduate of a program in Waldorf Remedial Education at Rudolf Steiner College, which she finds invaluable to her work as a class teacher. Michelle completed a Master of Arts in Transdisciplinary Healing Education from Antioch University. Michelle enjoys family outings, especially if they involve exploring nature or visiting museums, photography and animals.

  • Founder

    Rebecca Hipps, Ed.D, M.Ed has over a decade of experience in teaching, training teachers, and curriculum development. Rebecca has taught in charter, private, and public schools, including several Waldorf schools. Rebecca completed a Doctoral degree in Vanderbilt University's Leadership and Learning in Organizations program and currently works as a consultant for Waldorf Schools across the country. She received her Waldorf Teaching Certificate at Antioch University, holds a BA in Elementary Education and M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction: Literacy from Arizona State University.