Swallowtail School is an independent Waldorf elementary and middle school offering Early Childhood classes through Grade 8. We are dedicated to a curriculum that speaks to a child’s heart, intellect and physical being.  We value imagination, resourcefulness, and responsibility. We focus on developing character, community, and intellect, while cultivating a reverence for others and the natural world. Fine and applied arts, storytelling, music, and drama all provide essential pathways for inspired holistic learning and form a basis for enlivening a strong and penetrating academic program.

Families in Swallowtail’s earliest years held a strong priority for the School to practice stewardship of the land by using the outdoors as a natural classroom. To realize that dream, Swallowtail purchased a 26-acre parcel on the west edge of Hillsboro in 2004. Additionally, in 2016, Swallowtail acquired and relocated to its own 6.5-acre campus in Cornelius. This move has provided children with abundant time and space to immerse themselves in nature, fostering a deeper connection with the natural world and an understanding of their place within it.