Message from the Head of School

It takes just one person to change a life, and with this annual report of philanthropy, I share with you my deepest gratitude for your stalwart support and dedication to Walker’s. Each girl is shaped by your gift and your desire to see girls excel and prepare for lives of impact and meaning.

What a year Walker’s enjoyed! Though we were not able to be together, your support was demonstrated in many wonderful ways. With your commitment, engagement, and (virtual) presence — your support added such a lift to my work and to the quality of Walker’s educational offerings.

Faculty met the challenges of teaching through the pandemic with great dedication and success. We went outdoors to help keep faculty and students healthy, with over 1,000 classes taught outdoors under ten tents! Our extended community remained vigilant to keep our community safe and healthy. With great care and in partnership with faculty, students, families, Board of Trustees members, and Alumnae Board members, we worked to keep traditions intact and continued to work on the School’s Strategic Plan and our future.

With each challenge before us, we adjusted and learned to do things differently and in new ways — not always easy or enjoyable — and the process itself offered the opportunity to learn. A student-directed Drama Club fall play, Twelfth Night, was performed outdoors under a tent in mid-November. The joyful, festive evening was a tribute to the can-do spirit of Walker’s during a most unusual year.

Academically, our community continues to excel. Science Department Chair, Dr. Suzanne Piela P’22, ’28 introduced a year-long public health course with students gaining first-hand experience in epidemiological research as the Walker’s community participated in a study through Yale University’s School of Public Health using new contact tracing technology.

Walker’s students studied the COVID-19 pandemic through multiple lenses that included a study of epidemiology, vaccine development, and the health inequities that exist for certain populations based on lack of access to resources. The course was planned for several years, and our circumstances provided an extraordinary opportunity for inquiry and exploration. These students engaged in their learning with understandings that helped shape a healthy community. For generations, Walker’s faculty have taught students the love and craft of writing. In its fourth year, Walker’s Visiting Writers Program once again brought two authors, Camille Dungy and Carolyn Forche, for week-long visits. Despite the virtual participation, these outstanding writers gave generously of their expertise to inspire our students in their journey as writers, poets, and authors.

Our English department was thrilled to share the news that:

Shermaya Dover-John ’21 made history as the first Walker’s student chosen to be the Connecticut State Poetry Out Loud champion.

Three Walker’s students were selected winners for their submissions to the Harvard Alumni for Global Women’s Empowerment annual essay contest.

And some well-deserved news from the athletics fields, Walker’s winningest coach, Mimi Duran, Field Hockey, received the M.D. Nadal Award for Sportsmanship given annually by heads of school and athletics directors from the Founders League. We chose to celebrate this extraordinary accomplishment during our Thanksgiving Vespers ceremony when we could all be together as a community.

With residence halls at their capacity, Walker’s Campus Master Plan will lead us forward with many projects, including a new residence hall, to create a cohesive campus that supports a healthy living and learning community. Watch for more details as we begin to move this plan forward.

Thank you for your dedication and commitment to Walker’s. Indeed, these recent years have tested our measure. I am proud that the Walker’s community has responded to the challenges of a pandemic with courage, determination, creativity, and thoughtful deliberation and action. We are a stronger community having been through the challenge together and are looking toward our bold future.

With respect and gratitude,

Dr. Meera Viswanathan Head of School