The educational tradition of Warren-Walker School remains proud as students and staff celebrate a diamond anniversary on the Peninsula.
The school’s anniversary actually fell in February, but the celebration has spanned the entire school year, said officials.
To that end, the private proprietary school has been engaged in fun-filled activities and lessons about its history.
The activities included Field Day on March 2, where, for the first time, all three Warren-Walker Schools ” two elementary schools in Point Loma and La Mesa and a middle school in Mission Valley ” came together in one place, according to headmistress Pam Volker.
A sense of nostalgia has enveloped faculty and alumni alike throughout the year as former students visited their alma mater.
“They [students] were just so happy to see that their school was still here they actually asked me if they can go on the slide,” Volker said. “It was a chance for them to reconnect.”
Field Day brought older and younger students together to participate in sack races, disc tosses and other games at Robb Field.
One celebration, which fell on Day 75 of classes, brought students and teachers out to the playground to display projects and participate in various activities having to do with the number 75, Volker said.
The celebration included including a human formation of the number 75, prompting a photograph from the roof of the school, Volker said.
As part of the yearlong celebration, students and teachers also created a human timeline to show illustrate the rich history of the school, Volker said.
Elementary students paired off with middle school students for a demonstration and gave a brief description of significant milestones over the life of the school, Volker said.
Driven by the philosophy of preparing children for high school while providing a challenging academic environment, Volker said the teachers instill values in their students that draw upon intrinsic self-confidence to develop a sense of responsibility and respect for others.
Founded by Nellie Warren-Walker in 1932, the school has grown from its very first class, held above the drugstore of then-U.S. Sen. Fred H. Kraft in Ocean Beach.
As the school grew, Warren-Walker purchased in 1939 the site where the school now stands on Point Loma Avenue.
Warren-Walker headed the school until turning it over to her daughter, Ruth Sweeney, in 1980, according to Volker.
Warren-Walker passed away in January 1986 at the age of 99.
In 1983, Sweeney hired Ray Volker as the school”s first headmaster. Sweeney retired in 1988, leaving the Volkers to own and operate the school, Volker said.
Accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Warren-Walker School teaches 250 elementary school children at the Point Loma campus and about 100 students at both the La Mesa campus and the Mission Valley middle schools, according to Volker.”,CHRIS HEDGES,http://matchbin-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/public/sites/351/assets/4655e6caa2910_19_1.jpg,,,,,,,,4655e6caa2910_19_1.jpg,,,/warren-walker-going-strong-at-75/,Peninsula Beacon,,,0,,SDNews
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