Dr. Jane Walters
MEMPHIS - Dr. Jane Walters, 85, of Memphis, passed away on Wednesday, August 19, 2020.
Dr. Walters knew she wanted to be a teacher from the age of 7 and spent over 50 years in education. She had a passion for children, teachers, public education, and the arts and dedicated her life to their service becoming nationally recognized for her efforts.
She began her career in 1956 as a math and music teacher at Messick High School. After a sojourn at the Board of Education, she was tapped in 1974 to serve as principal of Craigmont Jr. High School. In 1979, she became principal of both the Jr. and Sr. High Schools, becoming only the 2nd woman principal of a high school in the Memphis City Schools. During Dr. Walters’ distinguished tenure at Craigmont the school established the first optional program for International Studies and was chosen by the U.S. Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School.
Dr. Walters left Craigmont in 1994 to become the 21st Commissioner of Education of the State of Tennessee - the first woman to assume that office in state history - in Governor Don Sundquist’s administration. She served in that capacity until 1999 when she retired for the first time. However, she was called back into service to lead the non-profit PIPE (Partners in Public Education). She retired (again) from PIPE in 2003 but didn’t stay retired for long. She was approached to serve as the founding principal of the Grizzlies Academy. She agreed only if the school served students who were two grades behind. In 2009 she retired for the last time.
She was a graduate of Central High School; Southwestern College (now Rhodes) with a Bachelor of Music and a Bachelor of Arts; Memphis State University (now University of Memphis) with a Master’s in Counseling; and obtained her Doctorate in School Administration from Duke University.
As a patron of the arts, she was a supporter and/or a board member of Opera Memphis, the Memphis Symphony, the Memphis Youth Symphony, among many others.
She was the recipient of numerous awards, including: recipient of the first Horatio Alger Association National Educator Award; Memphis Education Association Principal of the Year; University of Memphis Educator of the Year; Rhodes College Honorary Doctor of Humanities; and she was one of the first inductees into the Memphis City Schools Education Hall of Fame.
Quoting from the Tennessee Senate Joint Resolution 403 that honored Dr. Walters upon her retirement as Commissioner of Education: “Even though there were times during her tenure as Commissioner of Education that she wondered if, “Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit.” (The Aenid, Book I, Line 203), she continued to march through Tennessee, stamping out ignorance and spreading culture while fighting for the children and teachers of Tennessee’s public education system .... Her straightforward and honest answers are always based upon the perspective of the children, and not on politics ... she was loved and respected by those whose lives she has touched.”
She is survived by her brother, Arthur Walters; nieces, Elizabeth (Lane) Reams; Barbara Walters (Keith) Price; great nieces and nephews, Nicholas (Jenni) Reams; Evan and John Reams; Sarah and Anne Price
Funeral services will be held Friday, August 28 at 1 o’clock in the Riverside Chapel of Memorial Park Funeral Home with a visitation beginning at 12 o’clock. Interment will follow in Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to either Reach Memphis (https://www.reachmemphis.org/ways-to-give) or Friends of Tennessee School for the Blind (http://www.friendsoftsb.org/donate.html)