Dear Parents/Guardians:

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to The Sisulu-Walker Charter School of Harlem, New York State’s first public charter school. We are a unique and small learning environment that services grades kindergarten through five. Our aim is to educate every child to be a resourceful, confident student through high academic standards, honor, and service to our community. Sisulu-Walker serves a vibrant, multicultural population of learners, including students of African-American, African, Latino and Asian heritage.

Sisulu-Walker uses a curriculum that integrates literacy skills within the framework of Blooms Taxonomy for higher order thinking. Our academic programs provide the highest quality education for all of our learners and are based on the New York State Standards in English Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies, Science, Technology, and Service Learning. Our teachers create learning environments that support and nourish communities of young learners. A mentoring component has been built into the program to allow each student to pair with a teacher. This partnership provides a follow through mechanism for our youngster’s cognitive, social, physical and emotional progress. It also promotes a more effective transition from elementary into intermediate school.

Sisulu-Walker’s rigorous academic program, coupled with a highly-skilled and experienced staff, prepares our students for success. Our collaborative partnership with organizations such as StreetSquash Inc., Harlem’s Opus, Uptown Dance Academy, Drama Kids International, Police Athletic League, and Children’s Aid Society support an integration of the arts and civics education into our curricula. These programs enhance students’ self-esteem and empower young people to develop their sense of individual responsibility, community service, and universal obligation. Our study of national and current events enables students to understand the relevance of the Constitution and their lives.

Ultimately, our rigorous academic program prepares our students for specialized high schools throughout the city and placements in elite private day and boarding schools. Our expectation is that our students will attend highly-selective universities and colleges across the country.

Our school day begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 4: 00 p.m., Mondays through Fridays. We have a uniform dress code throughout the academic day and for students who remain for any after school programs. Learning to dress appropriately for school, work, and recreation is an important life skill and one that is stressed at Sisulu-Walker. In order to assist our students in developing these skills, our school requires our students to adhere to a dress code.

We strongly encourage parents to volunteer within our learning community as our home-school partner. We thank all of our parents and guardians for their continued support in the academic success for all of our students as we prepare our students for a lifetime of achievement, honor and service