THE Mansfield Steiner School has been in the district for 35 years and has forged strong ties with students and families in the local community.

For the past couple of decades, principal Fran Cummins has been actively involved in the school's development.

Her passion about the lifelong benefits of Steiner Education and its integration of the arts will remain, but this year she will retire and hand over the reins to a new principal who will take the school into its next stage of growth.

Started in Maindample in 1986, the Steiner school was established by two passionate teachers and was truly hand–built, self–funded and independent.

In 1996 the school relocated to Mansfield, and that's the year Fran joined the staff.

"It was exciting to be involved with the move to Mansfield," she said.

"The school was initially very community driven, hands on with parents and teachers.

"It was originally a primary school with composite classes, which made managing the curriculum a bit of a juggle.

"Of course now we're single streamed and we've gone from four teachers to having 43 on staff."

Fran grew up in Mansfield, attending St Mary's then the secondary college, then left to start her career in Melbourne before her teaching journey brought her to Steiner.

"It was a highlight discovering Steiner Education itself, finding another proven way that suited my teaching," said Fran.

"To have a solid curriculum that valued the arts was a great relief, and it was also a great challenge as a teacher, striving to be a good role model and participating in the arts yourself."

Fran's kids went to the Steiner school and then onto Mansfield secondary thereafter, prior to the Steiner school's growth into that area.

"First we added years seven and eight, which felt like a really big achievement," said Fran.

The school followed with plans to offer the International Baccalaureate (IB) to year 11 and 12 students.

"Offering another option for education in Mansfield was the intent," Fran said.

"We chose the IB so we weren't competing with the secondary college.

"So many kids head off to boarding school, too, so it was nice to keep young people in Mansfield by giving them another option."

The Steiner school has grown and continues to do so, but Fran says it's been slow, steady growth, which is probably more sustainable than rapid development.

"We've got to this point, and it just feels like the right time for me," said Fran.

"You know that feeling when the time is right, and now it's time for someone to come in with new ideas to take the school to the next stage of growth and development while preserving the Steiner ideals."

Looking back on her time at Mansfield Steiner, Fran recalled a number of fond memories.

"Our first camp to Central Australia, we drove a big group up the Oodnadatta track with a bus and trailer," she said.

"It was a really exciting 17 days away; a couple of parents came and we went all the way to Alice Springs, around to all the major attractions.

"Another highlight was taking the year 10s to Slovenia for 10 weeks.

"The students were all billeted with Slovene families and attended the Ljubljana Waldorf School.

"While we were there we went on an art camp to Florence, a surveying camp to Croatia, and a music camp to Vienna; it was all amazing."

Fran finishes up towards the end of January, after which she'll have a lot more time on her hands.

"I'd like to do a few long walks, maybe some writing and travelling, maybe some other opportunities," she said.

"It's been a long career in education, and time for something different."

The new principal at Mansfield Steiner School has been appointed and the announcement to the school community is pending.

For Fran, the enduring memory of her time at the school is just teaching itself, in particular the methodology Steiner has which sees teachers move up with their students over a number of years.

"It is such a privilege to take students for such a long time," said Fran.

"You certainly get to know the students and their families really well through each stage of their development, over every speed hump and through the good times.

"When you come to the end of that journey and get feedback years later when they're adults, that connection is amazing."