Bund der Freien Waldorfschulen

Under the threat of Nazism the German Waldorf schools confederated in 1933 and later again in 1946 as the Bund der Freien Waldorfschulen (Association of Waldorf Schools) with its head office in Stuttgart. It is a federation which does not influence the autonomy of the member schools but which is responsible for common tasks and interests.

Members

At the moment there are 212 Waldorf and Rudolf-Steiner-Schools as well as 8 teachers’ training colleges for Waldorf education in Germany.

Apart from this there are about 1900 personal memberships.

Aims and tasks of the “Bund”:

To support free and self-governed schools – and to encourage the free flow of ideas and a free intellectual life;

To encourage and develop the pedagogy of Rudolf Steiner (Waldorf education) in Germany and abroad;
To cooperate with institutions in the field of Waldorf education in Germany and abroad;
To support and consulate with individual schools;
To coordination political activities as far as education is concerned;
To organise public conferences on Waldorf education;
To plan, run and coordinate teachers’ conferences, symposia, further education, colloquia etc.;
To finance of teachers’ training;
To provide Public relations services;
To Publish the monthly journal “Erziehungskunst”

Organs of the “Bund”

General meeting

The General meeting is the supreme legal body of the “Bund”.

Meeting of the representatives of the school management boards

The school boards are mainly concerned with resources, finances, buildings and legal matters. They meet nationally once a year (in October). Decisions are taken during the meetings with one vote per school board.

Meeting of school teacher delegates

They are engaged in questions of education and school development. They decide on the admission of schools as corporative members into the Bund. Each school nominates its delegates; they meet three times a year.

Council of the Bund

At the moment the council is composed of 7 elected members. It is the duty and the right of the Council of the Bund to take initiatives and to intervene, its management includes any action concerning the Bund.

The central Office

The Bund has three executive directors appointed by the council who run the Bund according to the decisions taken during the council meetings, who prepare meetings, write the minutes, implement decisions, keep contact with the schools as well as with the boards and managing directors of the school board etc.

Local Working Committees

Local Working Committees have existed for many years in the individual federal states in Germany representing the schools in their state and are especially active in legal questions according to the corresponding federal state structure whenever an intervention seems to be necessary or reasonable for the schools within a particular region. Every Working Committee has its individual structure and statues.

The German schools cooperate with following Local Working Committees:

Baden-Württemberg
Bayern
Berlin/Brandenburg
Hamburg
Hessen
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Niedersachsen/Bremen
Nordrhein-Westfalen
Region Mitte-Ost (Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt und Thüringen)
Rheinland-Pfalz/Saarland/Luxemburg (guest status)
Schleswig-Holstein

The Parents Council within the Bund

The Parents Council is composed of one or two representatives of the parents as well as possibly one representative of the teachers per school. They meet twice a year in different places and exchange actual problems and tendencies in the development of their schools.