Wayne Walker is one of the first nine members appointed by Mayor Kenney to the Philadelphia Board of Education (BOE) in April 2018. Beginning in July 2018, the Board will oversee the School District of Philadelphia.

Wayne earned a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Loyola University New Orleans and a law degree from Catholic University of America, in Washington, DC. Wayne was the first in his family to go to college and is a firm believer in the transformative power of a quality education as well as the importance of public service. Wayne has spent his career focusing on corporate governance, corporate restructuring, and turnaround management for large and complex organizations.

What area of the city do you call home? What do you do in your free time?

I live in Center City and I enjoy staying up on current affairs and reading. Autobiographies and books about people’s lives really interest me.

Who were the people in your life who helped you to form your values?

My family had a great influence on me. My mother showed an incredible commitment to education. Every night, we’d sit at the kitchen table and do homework. She would help me with penmanship by putting her hand over mine. She’d call out words for me to practice spelling, and we’d go through multiplication together. Whatever the subject matter was, she’d sit there and help me through it.

Another strong value in my family was religion. Between attending Catholic school and then going to the Seventh-day Adventist church on Saturday with my grandfather and to Baptist services on Sunday with my grandmother, I went to church seven days a week.

Saturdays with my grandfather taught me an important lesson, because during communion we would wash each other’s feet. I hated that then, but you can’t discount the value around humility and service you learn from it. To be great, you have to serve. You have to help. You can’t be distant or disconnected or perfunctory. You have to be committed. Washing someone else’s feet teaches you about service and teaches you about equality.

What motivated you to apply to join the Board of Education?

I know the value of education. I know what it has done for me in my life. And I know the opportunities and changes that I’ve received as a result of that education. I am thankful to the people who helped me along the way.

Those of us who have been served have the duty to serve. People have taken time to help me and I just saw this as a chance to offer my services to others. It’s my turn.

Tell us about your educational and professional journey. What inspired you to pursue the majors and degrees you now have?

I went to college initially to become a disc jockey – I love records – and Loyola had a great communications program with a studio and campus radio.

In law school I loved public service work but was recruited by DuPont, which turned out to be a great match because I had an interest in corporations and the law – which evolved later into being interested in governance and restructuring.

What I also realized was that I could practice corporate law and do charitable and public interest work. While at DuPont I was also involved in Habitat for Humanity and the American Bankruptcy Institute – which led to me being involved in projects like helping businesses recover after the 1992 Los Angeles riots. In this way I was able to work in-house while also fulfilling my passion to help the public. For a lot of my life, there’s been an added layer of public service work in everything that I do.

What brought you to Philadelphia? What do you love about living here now or what are some of your favorite things about Philadelphia?

I’ve been rooting for Philadelphia for a long time. I was at the Philadelphia Eagles game when they played the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XV in New Orleans. And I was rooting for Philadelphia, even though I didn’t know I’d later live there.

I came to Philadelphia by way of Wilmington, which was where I moved after DuPont recruited me. What I love about Philadelphia is that it has everything you want culture, art, sports, food. It’s a manageable city. I see this as a town where in spite of all our differences, there are issues that can make us one.

Briefly, what vision do you have for our school system in 5 years?

We have to help students be ready for whatever kind of future they want to pursue. The world is changing and the marketplace is changing. We want students to have the capability to connect with things as they change, and to at least have the fundamentals that will prepare them to easily adapt. I want students to be ready today for tomorrow.