Obituary of Elaine Marie Walker

Elaine Marie (Sutherland) Walker, fondly called “Marie” by family and friends, passed peacefully at her home in Allentown, New Jersey on Wednesday, December 9, 2020. A devout Buddhist, Marie was surrounded by members of her temple, the American Association of Buddhist Education, and her adoring family, when she drew her last breath during the first snowfall of the season, an auspicious sign of a person’s goodness according to Buddhist tradition. Marie’s life journey began in Spanish Town, Jamaica on November 18, 1952, where she was born to Norman and Alice (Richards) Sutherland. Marie attended Wolmer’s High School in Kingston, Jamaica and continued her education at the University of the West Indies, where she majored in Sociology and received her BSc. in 1975. Marie migrated to the United States in 1978, where she studied at Howard University, receiving her Masters’ Degree in 1983 and her Ph.D. in 1985, both in Sociology. It was in the Washington, DC area where she met Horace Walker, with whom she would marry and have two daughters, Jody and Ashleigh. Marie and Horace moved to New Jersey in 1982, and in 1983, Marie took a position with the Newark Board of Education, where she was Director of Research and Testing until 1998 and won national awards for educational research. In 1998, Marie was recruited by Seton Hall University’s Department of Educational Leadership, where she educated many of New Jersey’s future superintendents and ultimately became Chair. Concurrent with her work at Seton Hall, Marie built Sametric Research, which provided research and evaluation services for school districts and state and federal agencies. Marie’s work with Sametric and Seton Hall University contributed more broadly to what we know about adolescent sex education, after school programs, arts education, and to the graduation of countless doctoral students. Marie was also the author of many research papers and the book, Educational Adequacy and the Courts: A Reference Handbook. In 2014, Marie married Martin Finkelstein, and became step-mom to Josh and Seth. Outside of work and her Buddhist practice, Marie had many hobbies, including traveling, ballroom dancing, reading and watching classic films. Marie was cherished by countless family members, friends, students and colleagues, and was known for her kindness, brilliance, generosity and gentle spirit. Marie is survived by her siblings, Ian Sutherland, Marcia Sutherland, and Jacqueline Renwick; husband, Martin Finkelstein; daughters, Jody Walker and Ashleigh Walker; grandson Joshua Walker; former husband, Horace Walker and his wife, Derron Walker; her dear cousin, Maxine Crooks Williams; many cherished cousins, nieces and nephews, including nephews, Kalonji Sutherland-Madhere and Jared Sutherland; and her two loving Manx cats, Kodo and Joshu.