Animated by the values of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Boston, the mission of Jackson Walnut Park is to inspire children to love learning, love God, and love one another. An inclusive Catholic school community committed to the flourishing of the whole child, we pursue academic excellence, promote service to others, and foster peace.
Jackson Walnut Park traces its roots to two schools established 50 years ago by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Boston. Their vision grew out of a desire to respond to the individual needs of each child and educate all children in an environment that encouraged them to love learning, love God, and love one another. This inspired the founding of a Montessori early childhood program at Walnut Park by Sister Josephina Concannon, CSJ, a pre-eminent educator of her time, followed by the opening of an ungraded elementary school on Jackson Road.
Since inception, the two schools have shared a commitment to Gospel values, to meeting each child where s/he is, and to calling all students to reach their highest potential, while caring for one another, serving communities in need, and treating those around them as “dear neighbors.”
For the past 12 years, the two schools have operated as a single institution under the governance of one Board of Trustees. Multiply accredited–Walnut Park by the American Montessori Society (AMS) and Jackson by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC)–Jackson Walnut Park is a member of the American Independent Schools Association of New England (AISNE) and the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA). We continue to send graduates to the most highly-regarded pre-secondary and secondary schools in the Boston area. In 2017, we were nominated to be included among the National Blue Ribbon schools. Walnut Park was recognized as the best Montessori preschool by Boston Parents’ Paper.
