Bridget Kelley

6th GRADE & LEAD BIODYNAMIC FARM TEACHER

Bridget Kelley grew up exploring the foothills and mountains around the Ojai Valley in Southern California. She comes from a long line of Midwestern farmers and gardeners and has been planting organic vegetable and herb gardens for the majority of her life. She holds a B.A. in Microbiology from UC Santa Barbara and a Doctorate of Naturopathic Medicine (N.D.) from Bastyr University in Seattle, with an emphasis in botanical medicine and nutrition. She also has training in Waldorf Education and Biodynamic Farming from Rudolf Steiner College in Fair Oaks, CA. She’s been a Waldorf parent since 2001 and a Waldorf educator since 2014. From 2014 - 2020, Bridget served as the Biodynamic Farm Manager and Garden Educator for Grades 1-8 at Highland Hall Waldorf School in Los Angeles, where she also taught high school botany. She has led many adult workshops on biodynamic gardening, permaculture, fruit orchard care, food preservation and fermentation, holistic nutrition, and plant medicine.

After relocating to Texas with her family in August 2020, Bridget worked at Hamilton Pool Vineyards and Farms as the Nature & Farm School Education Director, Lead Middle School Farm Educator, and Farm Co-Manager. 

In addition to being a lifelong gardener and native plant enthusiast, Bridget enjoys traveling, beekeeping, cooking, camping, downhill skiing, bird watching, hiking, and reading. She is an active member of One Chapel Church in Austin, where she’s currently working to build a community garden on the campus grounds. She’s living the good life in the Hill Country with her musician-composer husband, Bryan. They have two grown Waldorf-educated daughters, Madelyn and Phaedra.

In 2022, Bridget joined the Living Oaks team as the lead biodynamic farmer and third grade teacher. She has become an integral part of the growth of Living Oaks and has helped transform the campus farm and garden space into what it is today.