DES PERES, MO. - A new era in leadership has begun for St. Paul's Lutheran School in Des Peres, Missouri. On July 31, 2022, Dawn Walker was installed as the school’s new principal, becoming the 15th principal to serve since the school’s founding in 1849. Walker succeeds Janet Profilet, who retired this summer after serving as principal for nearly twenty years.
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Walker knew she wanted to be a teacher when she was in Mrs. Kibler’s second-grade class at Holy Cross Lutheran School in Collinsville, IL. She attended high school at Metro East Lutheran High School in Edwardsville, where she was inducted into the Hall of Honor. At Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) she graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in secondary education–science and a minor in psychology. She earned her Master of Science degree in 1995. While at CUW Walker played on the women’s volleyball and basketball teams, was named Volleyball Academic American, and was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005.
Walker’s career began in 1991 back at Metro East Lutheran High School teaching biology. Throughout the ‘90s, she served in various other capacities. Back at Concordia Lutheran Wisconsin, she was an admissions counselor, Director of Residence Life, and head women’s volleyball coach. In Hays, Kansas, she ran the men’s residence hall at Fort Hays State University. In 2004, Walker was called to First Immanuel Lutheran School (FILS) in Cedarburg, Wisconsin, to teach middle school science and coach volleyball; in 2010, she became the school’s principal.
During her tenure at FILS, the school grew in enrollment and added a new school wing for four-year-old kindergarten through fifth grade. In 2018 she was named South Wisconsin District Principal of the Year. Simultaneously, Walker was the head varsity volleyball coach for Living Word Lutheran High School from 2015-2021. She and her 2015 team will be inducted into the school’s Hall of Honor this August. Walker has served as LCMS School Leadership Development mentor three times and became a Van Lunen Fellow in 2021.
St. Paul’s Lutheran School of Des Peres has a rich tradition of outstanding Christian education and currently serves nearly 400 children through its K-8, Early Childhood and Parents’ Day Out programs. For enrollment information, visit stplutheranschool.org or email admissions@stpaulsdesperes.org.
