Meet Principal Walker

At the helm of the Denver East Community is Principal Terita Walker, who is currently entering her fourth year in the job. During her stint as Principal, Mrs. Walker has faced many challenges, including school following the pandemic, staff changes, incredible pressure, and unspeakable acts of violence.  However, through it all she has remained committed to the students and staff at East, restoring a sense of normalcy.

Mrs. Walker's path to the focal point of East’s hierarchy has certainly been an extensive journey. What began with broadcast Journalism and later business development quickly transitioned to the educational world. Her career in Colorado began with teaching at Justice High School in Boulder as well as Montbello High School. When the counseling job opened at East she became an Angel, remaining as a counselor for eight years before transitioning to an Assistant Principal and Athletic Director position. Following the departure of John Youngquist in 2021, she stepped up to the role of Principal and has remained there ever since.

While at East, Mrs. Walker has worked tirelessly in order to ensure that the students can walk away from high school having enjoyed every moment. She expressed that her goal is for all the students at East to “look back and say the best time of my life was at East High School.”  She explained that “if you truly enjoy your experience you will learn things along the way.”

As for the 2024/25 school year, Mrs. Walker has her eyes set on continuing to build the relationships around the building. “I think a lot of people who come here, or people who love it here, or people who went here, they talk about how much they love the fact that we are such a unified school community and how much people support each other” Mrs. Walker explained. “I think who we are to each other and the way we treat each other is really what allows us to be happy about coming to East everyday whether you're coming as a student or a staff member.” 

Mrs. Walker identified one of the ways to improve these relationships is through punctuality. “Somebody told me when you're late or you just don't show up it seems like you don't value them or their time.” The staff members at East work around the clock to create meaningful lessons that would “be great for you and for your development” and by showing up on time, both students and staff would “value this experience more.”

Despite facing many challenges, Walker has held true to her values of placing the students first. She has continuously avoided news appearances, including Good Morning America, in order to fulfill the wishes of her students. “I'm not looking for three minutes of fame from any of this because that's not what it's about,” she explained. “I asked kids what do you want, and you guys told me we just want to get back to normal, we don't want cameras in our faces, we don't want unfamiliar faces around.”

While often not seen by the East students, Mrs. Walker's leadership and commitment to the students has shone through in times of need. Her actions remind us that prioritizing the students in education can lead to an unshatterable community prepared to take on any challenge they may face.