Ethel Walker School
Student Life Overview
Your home away from home
Whether you are a boarding or day student, you will be a part of a warm community where you will be accepted and valued for who you are.
At Walker’s, faculty are more than just teachers. They are advisors, coaches, mentors, and your family away from home. Here, all students, whether day or boarding, are part of a vibrant community that lives, studies, eats, and plays together seven days a week. It’s nearly impossible to distinguish who is a boarding student versus a day student as all students are fully engaged in the life of the school.
In between classes, Upper School and Middle School boarding and day students make the most of our facilities on campus, including the library, the Centennial Center social center, fitness center, music rooms, the barn, dance studios, and the basketball and squash courts. In warmer weather, students can be found gathering on the Centennial Lawn behind Beaver Brook or sitting at the picnic tables near the Centennial Center.
After classes, students participate in co-curricular programs then join their friends in Abra’s for dinner. Following dinner our Upper School students spend time together, rehearsing with musical groups and meeting with clubs and affinity groups. Day students are always welcome to join boarders in the Library for study hall following dinner. Residential students can also choose to study in their dorm room. On weeknights following study hall, boarding students gather in their dorm common rooms with residential faculty for games, snacks, celebrations, and camaraderie.
On weekends, day students are often found spending time with boarding students at brunch, on the fields, and at events both on and off campus.
Boarding School Life
At a boarding school, you are never more than a few steps away from someone who is an integral part of your daily life at Walker’s.
Day School Life
As a day student, you will explore every part of life at Walker’s, including all-school and weekend events, or even staying for dinner in Abra’s.
There’s Always Something to Do at Walker’s
Weekend Life
Our student Head of Activities works with our Director of Residential Life and Student Activities to make sure there are plenty of fun events and outings each weekend. Day and boarding students will always have the opportunity for a full schedule.
Student Government
Walker’s students have many opportunities to engage in student government positions which promotes the smooth running of student activities, and provides leadership for students as they face challenging issues or concerns.
Clubs and Affinity Groups
The many student and faculty-led clubs and affinity groups provide students with the opportunity to find their niche community. Students can create their own club with faculty or advisor consent. The possibilities are endless!
Frequently Asked Questions
Families often ask us questions about what it’s like to be a boarding student at Walker’s. Here is a compiled list of the most frequently asked questions:
Do you have a dress code? Uniform?
We have a dress code that guides our students’ dress during the school week. One of the highlights of our dress code is that every Wednesday is “Walker’s Wednesday” where the whole community dresses in Walker’s gear to cheer on our teams who typically have games, matches, and meets on Wednesday afternoons. While we don’t have a uniform, we do have what’s called “Vespers” dress, which is a grey Lands’ End skirt or pants plus a white top with the Walker’s seal.
Does Walker's have a school store?
Yes! Located on the lower level of Beaver Brook, Diddle’s Depot is typically a hub of activity. Here, students may shop for school supplies, clothing, snacks, gifts, and more. Students may also purchase Walker’s wear and dress code items online through BSN Sports, Lands’ End, and Tommy Hilfiger.
Can I bring my car to campus?
Day students may bring a car to campus after registering for a parking spot. Day student cars should not remain on campus overnight. Boarding students may not have a car on campus.
Can I start a club? Am I required to participate in a club?
In the Upper School, you are not required to participate in club activities. Any student can create their own club as long as one does not already exist for the same topic. The creation of a club requires students to create a mission statement and to secure a faculty advisor.
Do I have to play a sport?
Students are not required to play a sport, but they do have to sign up for a co-curricular for each of the three seasons (fall, winter, and spring). Some students do get waivers if they are active in an activity outside of the Walker’s community. For instance, if a student is an avid gymnast, she is able to get a waiver so she can pursue the sport independently.
Will I receive any help to book travel if I need to do so?
While we do not book flights for students, we do offer assistance when needed. Some international and long-distance boarding students will oftentimes choose to celebrate major holidays together and not return home for breaks.
Do you turn off the wifi?
While we do not turn off our wifi at any time, we do block sites that are not suitable for children.
Are phones taken away at night?
No! Students are welcome to bring technology to campus, and we expect that they will use that technology in a productive and appropriate manner. Students are counseled that they should not be on social media during study halls. Phones should also not be out during class and passing times in the hallways. Phones are never allowed at meals.
How much access will I have to the Health Center if I need it?
The Health Center is open Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. and from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. pm Saturday and Sunday. An on-call nurse is available overnight. Walker’s is located in close proximity to urgent care facilities, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, UConn’s John Dempsey Hospital, St. Francis Hospital, and Hartford Hospital. We are located about two hours from either Boston and New York, should additional care be needed.
What measure do you have in place to keep your campus safe?
Walker’s campus is located in a rural area of northwestern Connecticut about 30 minutes from Hartford, Connecticut’s capital city. Simsbury is considered a very safe community with an active emergency medical services system in place. Each of our buildings requires a swipe card to enter and we offer overnight security patrols seven days per week. Each student is also required to use BoardingWare, an app that allows faculty and staff to account for the whereabouts of each student. Visual attendance is taken with boarding students each night and on the weekends, in addition to the use of the app. During the week, day students are required to check in each morning and check out each afternoon or evening when they leave campus for the day.
In Their Words
Walker’s has emphasized the importance of community to me. Over the years I have become friends with people that live across the world from me, are years older and younger than me, and those who have different cultures than my own. The ability to get to know my peers beyond their surface was due to the close-knit environment at Walker’s.
—Amelia P. '24
Explore More Student Life
Community Partnerships
Community Partnerships provide students with an opportunity to perform service in the community while acquiring skills.
Athletics
Students choose from among 12 sports in three seasons along with fitness, outdoor adventure, yoga, and cross training.
Riding
Middle and Upper School students participate on IEA teams as well as in rated and non-rated shows throughout the country.
Arts
Students who have a passion for the arts choose it as their co-curricular or as classes in their daily schedule.
Meet the Team
Elisa Del Valle
Assistant Head for Student Life, Director of Social Justice and Inclusion
Elisa Del Valle is a transformational educator and deep believer of young people. She was raised in East New York, Brooklyn and molded by resilient ancestors: strong women who, despite hardship, yielded joy, and her own children who remind her each day that she is here to be taught by them. It is from these wisdom guides that she has learned the most about unconditional love and the power of sisterhood.
Elisa’s relationship to justice work is an embodied practice rooted in her own liberation and the liberation of others. She defines her work not by what she is against, but by what she is for and the world she wants to be part of. She moves in the world as a complex human with the understanding that she became this way because she was simultaneously harmed and loved by family and strangers alike. She models vulnerability, radical love, transparency, curiosity, and accountability for the young people she works with. They are her greatest motivator for this work and they are who keep her spirit light.
At Walker’s Elisa serves as the Assistant Head for Student Life and Director of Social Justice and Inclusion. Prior to her arrival at Walker’s in 2016, she spent 12 years working in higher education in residential life, student activities, leadership development, and new student orientation at Mount Holyoke College and Wesleyan University. While at Mount Holyoke, Elisa utilized her passion and graduate degree in Social Justice Education to design a more inclusive curriculum for the residential student experience. At Wesleyan, she pursued her passion for justice work on the Presidential Task Force for Equity and Inclusion and was an active voice on issues of Equity and Inclusion amongst her student affairs professionals.
Elisa attended an all-girls high school in New York City before attending Smith College in Northampton, MA. As a first-generation college student, she majored in Government and minored in Spanish. While working full-time at Mount Holyoke College, Elisa also attended graduate school full-time at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where she graduated with a Master’s in Social Justice Education.
Elisa is currently the Chair of the Commission on Diversity in Independent Schools (CODIS) through Connecticut’s Association of Independent Schools (CAIS).
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Nishette Isaac
Dean of Students, Dean of Middle School Digital Library Services
Nishette joined Walker’s in 2016 from the Collegiate School in New York where she served as the school’s librarian for three years. She earned her B.A. in anthropology from Hofstra University, her M.S. in teaching from Fordham University, and her M.L.S. from Pratt Institute. Nishette began her career as a librarian for the New York City Department of Education where she served for four years at PS 305 and PS 256. There, she ran the library while being frequently called upon to perform classroom teaching duties. In 2011, she joined Dalton School as a volunteer librarian and spent the 2012-2013 year as a maternity leave replacement librarian at both Chapin School and Brearley School. Nishette was born in Saint Lucia and moved to the United States when she was 10. She is an active member of the Shelflives Book Club and has served as vice president of the Hudson Valley Librarian Association for the past three years.
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Mallory Pasquariello
Director of Residential Life and Student Activities
Mallory is a graduate of Roger Williams University with a bachelor’s degree in art history and a triple minor in architecture, business management and English literature. She also has an M.A. in Museum Studies through the distance learning program at the University of Leicester. Previously, Mallory served as teller supervisor and customer service representative for Northwest Community Bank in New Hartford where she has gained a wealth of experience in customer service and organization. Here at Walker’s, Mallory serves as the Director of Residential Life and Student Activities. She is also a housefaculty member in New Dorm.
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