Ethel Walker School
Harrison Shure
Assistant Head of School/Dean of Academics
Harrison Shure
Harrison comes to Walker’s from The Loomis Chaffee School where he served as the History, Philosophy, and Religious Studies Department Chair and Associate Director of the Kravis Center for Excellence in Teaching. In addition to these administrative duties, Harrison was a history teacher and the coach of Loomis’ IEA Equestrian Team. As Walker’s Assistant Head of School/Dean of Academics, Harrison will be the academic visionary voice on campus and will lead the continued development of curricula and innovative pedagogies that carry forward our strong academic vision for the School. He will oversee program evaluation and ensure alignment of a curriculum that reflects the School’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and belonging. Harrison will partner with other administrators including Sarah Edson, Dean of the Faculty, and Isabel Ceballos, Head of the Middle School, on hiring a diverse and dynamic faculty and guide a teacher performance evaluation system which promotes professional growth. Harrison holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Virginia and a Master of Arts degree in American History from Pace University.
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Dr. Meera Viswanathan
Head of School
Dr. Meera Viswanathan
Meera joined Walker’s from Brown University, where she was an associate professor of Comparative Literature and East Asian Studies. A lifelong educator and scholar, Meera holds her undergraduate degree, her M.A. and a Ph.D. from Stanford University. Meera was born in Madras, India and emigrated at age five to Los Angeles.
At Brown, she earned the Barrett Hazeltine Award for Outstanding Teaching, and the John Rowe Workman Medal in the Humanities. She delivered Brown University’s Convocation Address, has received several National Endowment for the Humanities grants and awards, and has been both a visiting scholar and professor abroad. Meera has served as a reviewer for the National Endowment for the Humanities, on the review board of the journal, College Literature, and on the board of the Community Preparatory School in Providence. She is a Trustee of the Lawrenceville School in New Jersey. She has frequently led seminars locally and nationally about developing curriculum and resources on Asian literature. Meera has studied and speaks a number of languages including Japanese, French, German, Latin, Classical Greek, Old English and Old Norse.
Meera and her husband, Dr. Eric Widmer, resided at Deerfield Academy during his 12-year tenure as Headmaster. While there, she taught English for a year while on sabbatical from Brown. At the behest of King Abdullah II of Jordan, Meera and Eric co-founded King’s Academy in Madaba, Jordan, the Middle East’s first co-educational preparatory boarding school with financial aid. There, she taught and served as the curriculum’s principal architect and dean of faculty. King Abdullah II personally awarded Meera the King Hussein Medal, Jordan’s highest honor, for her endeavors.
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Aline Rossiter
Director of Enrollment Management
Aline Rossiter
Aline is a seasoned enrollment professional who comes to Walker’s with 28 years of admissions and marketing experience in independent schools, both boarding and day, and higher education in Connecticut. Most recently she was the director of admission at the Forman School and previously the director of enrollment management and marketing at Chase Collegiate School. Aline has been a faculty member of the Association of Independent School Admission Professionals (AISAP) annual institute where she presented on strategic enrollment management and marketing. She has been a presenter for the National Association of Independent Schools’ (NAIS) national meeting and for the Small Boarding Schools Association. Aline has been an accreditation committee member for admissions for the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). She holds a bachelor’s degree in organizational communications from the University of Hartford. When not at Walker’s, she enjoys swimming, cooking and reading.
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Michelle Helmin P'19
Director of External Affairs
Michelle Helmin P'19
Michelle has served as the director of external affairs at Walker’s since July of 2016 where she manages the school’s communications, marketing, media relations and community affairs. She also teaches Personal Finance to juniors and manages the School’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Community Partnership Program. Previously, Michelle was the director of the Annual Fund for Walker’s for the 2015-2016 school year. Prior to joining Walker’s, she was the director of communications and marketing at the UConn School of Law where she managed the strategic communications program for the school, including as editor for the school’s alumni magazine, media relations, website development, event management, media relations and other outreach activities. Michelle has worked in the area of institutional advancement for several years including serving as special assistant to both UConn’s provost and president of the UConn Foundation/vice president for institutional advancement.
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Mark Fuller
Director of Technology
Mark Fuller
After graduating from the University of Rhode Island, Mark studied at Richmond College in London where he met his wife. Settling in Houston, Texas, Mark worked at The Emery/Weiner School as a teacher, network administrator and then finally as a director of technology. Throughout his career at The Emery/Weiner School, Mark transformed it from one that used little technology to one where every member of the staff and student body now leverage technology to work and learn.
Mark also spent two years teaching adults technical skills ranging from Word and Excel to web development and programming. He has worked with special needs children in first and second grade, taught sixth, seventh and eighth grade digital literacy, and taught video editing to high school students.
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Kati Eggert
Athletic Director
Kati Eggert
Kati joined Walker’s in 2018 as the aquatics director, sports information director, and head swim coach before transitioning to athletic director in 2019. Kati also has served as the assistant varsity softball coach and coached in the field hockey program. Prior to working at Walker’s, she was the assistant athletic director at Westover School where she served as the head swim coach, varsity field hockey coach, and softball coach and lived in the dorm during her seven years at the school. Kati was a three-sport varsity athlete at Drew University in field hockey, swimming, and softball. While at Drew, she earned All Academic Conference recognition, served as captain to the ECAC qualifying field hockey and swim teams. She was a Landmark Offensive Player of the week for three consecutive weeks her senior year and medaled in all four Landmark Conference Championship swim meets.
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Sarah Edson
Dean of Faculty and Dean of Academic Technology and Innovation
Sarah Edson
Sarah joined the Walker’s community in 2009 after more than a decade of working in the fields of education and academic technology. After graduating summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Middlebury College with a B.A. in history, Sarah attended Harvard University where she completed her master’s degree in education with a focus on technology and innovation in education. Since joining Walker’s, Sarah has held the role of Dean of Academic Technology and Innovation. In this position, Sarah has supported faculty in integrating technology meaningfully into their classes. She also educates students on topics related to digital citizenship through a seminar she designed and has developed through the years. In July of 2020, Sarah stepped into the role of Dean of Faculty, just as schools everywhere were planning for an uncertain year of teaching and learning. The 2020-2021 school year challenged every educator at Walker’s to innovate and leverage technology creatively more than ever before. We now have the opportunity to move forward, applying the many lessons learned from that challenging and transformational year.
Beyond the classroom, Sarah coaches Walker’s cross country team, advises Upper School students, and serves on the School’s Administrative Leadership Team. She is a former member of the Board of Trustees for the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools and currently serves on the CAIS Commission on School Growth and Collaboration. Each year she also organizes Edcamp CT, a summer professional development event at Walker’s for educators from throughout the region. Additionally, Sarah co-chairs the School’s Strategic Planning Committee and appreciates the schoolwide collaborative effort to fulfill Walker’s mission and achieve its vision for the future.
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Elisa Del Valle
Assistant Head of School for Student Life/Director of Social Justice and Inclusion
Elisa Del Valle
Elisa Del Valle, a native of Brooklyn, NY, has lived in Connecticut for over a decade. Prior to joining Walker’s in fall 2016, she worked as the director of student activities and leadership development/new student orientation at Wesleyan University. While at Wesleyan, Elisa served 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’s deep-rooted interest in women’s education is what brings her to Walker’s. Elisa attended an all-girls high school in New York City before attending Smith College in Northampton, MA where she majored in Government and minored in Spanish. While working at Mount Holyoke College, Elisa attended graduate school at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where she graduated with a Master’s in Social Justice Education. Elisa is an active Commissioner of the CAIS Commission on Diversity in Independent Schools, an educators network focused on diversity, as well as training and resources for diversity practitioners at CAIS member schools.
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Clarissa Basch P'15
Director of College Counseling, Co-Director of Community Partnerships
Clarissa Basch P'15
Clarissa Basch has served as Walker’s director of college counseling since February 2004, where she guides students through the process of investigating, applying to, and selecting colleges.
Before joining Walker’s, Clarissa spent seventeen years as a college admissions officer at Drexel University, Endicott College and Hampshire College. She was lured to “the other side of the desk” because of the opportunity to work directly with students on their post-Walker’s plans, and to be part of this vibrant boarding school community. With professional colleagues at colleges and universities all over the country, she loves to welcome them to Walker’s when they come to meet with her students in the fall.
Clarissa is an avid exerciser who swims and helps guard at the Walker’s pool on weekday mornings. She is an active volunteer for numerous organizations in the greater Hartford area and at Walker’s serves as one of the faculty advisors to the Community Partnerships Program. Clarissa put her college counseling know-how to use with her daughter (EWS ’15), and both survived the experience intact. Following graduation, her daughter enjoyed a wonderful gap year in England as an English-Speaking Union Scholar, before enrolling at Susquehanna University from which she graduated in 2020. Clarissa lives on campus with her family which also includes her husband and son, currently a junior at University of Connecticut.
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Isabel Ceballos
Head of the Middle School
Isabel Ceballos
Isabel Ceballos was born in Medellin, Colombia, and raised in Connecticut. She earned her B.A. and M.A. in Modern Languages with a concentration in Spanish Language, Literature & Culture from Central Connecticut State University. She is currently working on her Ed.D. in Leadership and Learning in Organizations from Peabody College Vanderbilt University. Isabel Ceballos has been a member of Walker’s Language Department since 2013, and is the founding executive director of Horizons at The Ethel Walker School, the first all-girls Horizons program in the country.
Named one of Hartford Business Journal’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2016, and a recipient of The Thelma Ellis Dickerson Community Bridge Builder Award, Isabel is an active member in the community. She serves on the Board of The Aurora Women & Girls Foundation, and is a member of the United Way Community Engagement Committee.
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