Walker News

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council Members

6/8/2021

Sonia Ahmed
Lower School faculty member

Michael Arjona
Assistant Head for Academics
Upper School Head
Alumnus ’97
Walker Parent ’27

Eva Bundy
Middle and Upper School faculty member
Walker Parent ’30

Caron Cone
Board Member
Walker Parent ’25

Michelle Easton-Williams
Walker Parent ’23

Jack Hall
Head of School

Rick Holifield
Director of Community Life

Karen Park
Director of Communications & Marketing
Walker Parent ’29

Shirley Powell
Board Member
Walker Parent ’19 & ’21

Tiffaney Renfro
Walker Parent ’22 & ’25

Jamie Rubens
Middle School faculty member

Glenn Shaw
Board Member
Walker Parent ’19 & ’23

Angela Walton
Walker Parent ’31

Dr. Derrick Williams
Human Resources Director
Walker Parent ’24 & ’27

Ryan Wilson
Walker Alumnus ’08

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Mission Statement

6/8/2021

Walker’s Commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

We believe in the infinite worth and dignity of the individual and are committed to developing a cohesive, inclusive, and diverse community where our storied perspectives, cultures, backgrounds, ethnicities and range of identities are communicated, understood and embraced in ways that value each person and enrich the Walker Community.”

The Walker School encourages students, faculty, staff and parents to develop a perspective that embraces diversity and enhances global awareness. Walker actively seeks opportunities for interaction and meaningful dialogue to nurture a sense of belonging, eliminate disparities and foster equality.

The School honors this commitment through inclusive admission policies, hiring practices, professional development, and curriculum. The Walker Community is committed to a positive, engaging, perspective-widening academic environment where meaningful relationships inspire transformative learning.

Announcement: Director of Community Life

6/7/2021

Dear Walker Community:

It is with great joy and excitement that I share that Rick Holifield is rejoining The Walker School to serve as Director of Community Life. Rick is returning to Walker from The Lawrenceville School in New Jersey where he was the school’s first Dean of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement. Before joining Lawrenceville, Rick was The Walker School’s Assistant Head of Upper School and Director of Community Life for three years. Prior to that, he was the Director of Diversity at Pace Academy from 2013-2017.

Walker’s Director of Community Life is charged with building community across all divisions as well as ensuring a sense of infinite worth and dignity for each member of the Walker community. This position is rooted in both our mission to be a caring and diverse community as well as our first core value. Our desire is for Walker to be a place where everyone experiences a genuine sense of belonging and participates wholly in the life of the school – in the classroom, in our arts and athletics programs, at community events and beyond.

There are so many reasons why Rick is the ideal person for this position.

First, Rick is known for developing meaningful relationships with students and adults alike. This was a key component of his previous service at Walker, and I know firsthand that he has kept in touch with many Walker students during his year at Lawrenceville.
Second, Rick is a master community builder. He has done this at each school he has served, and after a year in which community building was so challenging because of COVID-19, I am excited to have Rick returning to Walker to help us reconnect in meaningful and genuine ways. Many of you may remember the “New Parent Dinner” that Rick and Shelly Manuel created – an evening under the stars (and tents) next to Warren Science & Technology Building as we enjoyed the conversation, connection and a wonderful meal. Rick is always thinking about ways in which we can bring our community together, whether for a meal or participating in the Martin Luther King Jr. Day March or serving those in need in our community.
Third, Rick is exceptionally talented in collaborating with non-profit organizations to bring much-needed opportunities for student growth, training and professional growth for faculty and staff, and parent education. During his three years at Walker, one of the key highlights of Rick’s impact on our community was bringing the “Power of Words” program from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which included a separate opportunity for parents to learn about the program, ADL-facilitated training for student leaders, two meaningful assembly programs for Middle and Upper School students and a reading program for Primary and Lower School students and families.

Last but not least, Rick loves The Walker School, considers it “home,” and will be able to hit the ground running when he arrives on campus this summer. Rick will connect with Dr. Derrick Williams, who served as Interim Director of Community Life this past year, and the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Council to learn more about their work. Together, they will create a plan for building and strengthening our community and creating opportunities for students, faculty, staff and parents to develop a keen understanding of what it means to be a welcoming and inclusive community where every child experiences a genuine sense of belonging.

During his previous tenure at Walker, Rick had a profound positive impact on building a true sense of community, and he was able to do that in a part-time role. As we welcome Rick back to Walker in a role that is fully dedicated to community life, we should all be excited about how Rick’s cumulative experience and immense talent will play a critical role in making Walker an even stronger school and more cohesive community.

“I am humbled and excited about the opportunity to return to The Walker School,” Rick said. “The chance to work alongside this amazing faculty and staff, parent body and most importantly the students, affords me the chance to lead this important community-building and DEI work in a meaningful way. I am committed to ensuring all students feel accepted, valued and encouraged at Walker. I eagerly await the start of the 2021-22 school year.”

Jack Hall
Head of School

Walker revises mask guidelines

5/16/2021

As you may be aware, the CDC updated its mask guidelines to say that anyone who has been fully vaccinated can resume normal activities without wearing a mask. Based on that guidance, Walker Administration and the Health & Safety Taskforce, made and announced the decision that Walker will adopt the same guidelines.

Since that announcement went out to our community, the CDC updated its guidance for schools, recommending that schools continue using the previous mask guidance for at least the remainder of the 2020-2021 academic school year. The CDC made this recommendation for two reasons:

Students under age 15 will not have the ability to be fully vaccinated prior to the end of the school year
Many schools and school systems need time to make the adjustments to the new guidance

Walker’s commitment to maintaining a safe environment for our students, faculty and staff has not waned. From the onset of the pandemic, the Health & Safety Taskforce has worked diligently to understand the science behind the CDC’s school guidance to ensure that we are making the right decisions for our students and our community based on our ability to implement safety enhancements that larger, less nimble school systems can not make.

As such, we feel confident that the CDC’s general guidance regarding masking for fully vaccinated individuals is appropriate for Walker and that we can safely and effectively implement this guidance because of our size and structure. The Health & Safety Taskforce has been monitoring the science behind the vaccines and the safety and efficacy data for all three available vaccinations since the beginning of Operation Warpspeed.

We also are excited about the continued decline in COVID cases nationally, regionally and locally. These combined factors further support our decision to adopt the CDC’s general masking guidance beginning tomorrow, May 17.

As a reminder, here are the protocols we announced yesterday that go into effect tomorrow:

Fully vaccinated students, faculty and staff may remove their masks indoors and outdoors: Fully vaccinated means it has been two (2) weeks since a person has received the second dose of Moderna/Pfizer or single dose of Johnson & Johnson vaccines.
Proof of full vaccination: All students, faculty and staff must provide proof of vaccination to Nurse Dana Ferguson via email before going mask-free. Faculty and staff who were vaccinated at Walker do not need to show proof of vaccination because we already have the information on file.
Unvaccinated community members: If a student, faculty or staff member has not been vaccinated, they must continue to wear a mask indoors. Community members do not have to wear a mask outdoors unless they are in a densely populated area.

We have updated the COVID FAQs based on questions we have received thus far. If you have additional questions, please submit them here.

We thank you for your patience and support and are excited to continue celebrating our students’ accomplishments the past year, culminating with graduation this Saturday.

Have a great last full week of school!

Christie Holman

Assistant Head of School for Operations

Head of The Walker School Health & Safety Taskforce

3 selected to Governor’s Honors Program

5/2/2021

Congratulations to rising seniors Toby Allers, Alex Arkoette and Justin Zhou for being selected to the 2021 Georgia Governor’s Honors Program. Allers was chosen for Theater Performance, Arkoette for Social Studies and Zhou for Mathematics.

May 8 musical: “High School Musical Jr.”

5/2/2021

The Upper School Arts Department presents this year's musical: “Disney's High School Musical Jr.” streaming May 8-9. Click “read more” for details.

Senior tennis player featured on CBS Weekend News

4/18/2021

Senior Linden Patterson and her love-ALL organization that provides tennis gear to underserved communities were featured on CBS Weekend News. Linden will be playing tennis at Davidson College next year. Way to go, Linden!

Walker Senior Hart Named District STAR Student

4/17/2021

The Walker School is proud to announce that Senior Merrill Hart has been named the Marietta City Schools District STAR Student and will represent Walker and the district at the regional level.

8th-graders win Georgia poetry contest

3/29/2021

Congratulations to eighth-graders Mary Lin Beaver, Blake Anderson, Ava Wilson and Jonah Douglas for their winning entries in the 2021 River of Words Environmental Art & Poetry Project. Click “Read More” to learn about the contest.

Jack Hall announces 2021-22 will be his final year as Head of School

3/24/2021

The Walker School Board of Trustees and Head of School Jack Hall announced today that the 2021-22 school year will be Hall’s last at the school.

FACULTY AND STAFF RECEIVE COVID VACCINE

3/12/2021

Mock Trial team advances to States

3/10/2021

Congratulations to the Walker Mock Trial Team for advancing to the State Playoffs, which begin this weekend. Walker was one of 99 teams to advance to the round of 32.

Making Change One Stroke at a Time

2/9/2021

Alex and Ralph Grand'Pierre not only have the Olympic dream of swimming for Haiti, but are also spending time with the children in their parents' home country teaching them how to swim and enjoy their time in the water.

Food Drive raises nearly 13,000 items for Salvation Army

11/23/2020

Walker's annual Salvation Army Food Drive, organized by the Upper School's Student Services Organization, raised nearly 13,000 items this year, smashing the goal of 10,000 items!

Honor Council focuses on education, not punishment

10/7/2020

Walker’s Upper School Honor System is core to students’ high school experience. It is why you won’t find locks on lockers, why students feel at ease leaving their backpacks unsupervised outside the cafeteria while they eat lunch and most of all, why teachers trust students to work independently.