cheryl d. s. walker
president & CEO, seven24 consulting group
With a Juris Doctorate from Washington University in Saint Louis and an Electrical Engineering degree from Missouri University of Science and Technology, Cheryl D. S. Walker intentionally set about using her formal education for the benefit of all those around her, and not just those with whom she worked. As a lawyer with nearly thirty years of legal experience, an innate analytical mind, and a published performance poet, lyricist and music aficionado, Cheryl has a finely attuned ear for language-not just for the nuances of legal interpretation, but also for the art of inspiring and motivating others to action and elevating the business imperatives of agencies that she counsels. Cheryl employs this rare combination of attributes to develop creative and effective strategic advice for a wide variety of enterprises.
Below is a list of some of Cheryl’s community engagement.
- President of the Missouri Ethics Commission, following appointment by Governor Michael L. Parson, which commission promotes and maintains transparency, accountability, and compliance with campaign finance, lobbying, and conflict of interest laws.
- President of Saint Louis Regional Health Commission, the regional thought leader on access to care, trauma informed healthcare and toxic stress, that administers in excess of $30,000,000 annually for delivery of primary and specialty healthcare services for more than 15,000 uninsured and under-insured Saint Louisans.
- Vice president, and mayoral appointee, of the Board of Commissioners of the Saint Louis Regional Arts Commission, a governmental enterprise that annually awards in excess of $3,000,000 in grants to artists and arts organizations.
- Member of the Board of Trustees of Whitaker Foundation, a $23,000,000 private foundation that annually awards $2,000,000 in grants to support excellence in the arts and the preservation and use of parks.
- Upon the appointment by Governor Robert L. Holden, Jr., served on the University of Missouri Board of Curators for a six-year term, including one as chairperson. The Board of Curators is the governing board for the four-campus University of Missouri system, with an annual budget in excess of $3 billion.
- Served as a member of the Board of Trustees, and two-term president, of the Deaconess Foundation, a $53,000,000 healthcare conversion foundation that awards grants to organizations to improve health of children and youth in Saint Louis region. Chaired the grants committee for three years, and developed new grant guidelines. Together with the chief executive officer, led the foundation through its transition to an outsourced chief investment officer model, which included investigating best practices, developing position requirements, and interviewing and selecting the service provider.
- Former President of the Board of Directors of the Deaconess Center for Child Well Being, whose mission is to advance child well-being in the Saint Louis region by strengthening alliances for child-friendly public policy, increasing citizen contact with policy makers, and engaging faith communities in advocacy.
- Served as a member of the Board of Trustees of Saint Louis Mental Health Board, a special taxing authority that administers funds for behavioral health and children’s services, including two terms as president.
- Executive Search Committee Leadership in formulating search processes, including selection of search consultants for the following high level searches
- Saint Louis Regional Arts Commission Executive Director Search Committee Chair – Successfully Concluded
- St. Louis Regional Health Commission CEO Search Committee Chair – Successfully Concluded
- University of Missouri System Presidential Search Committee Co-Chair – Successfully Concluded
- University of Missouri System Presidential Search Committee Member – Successfully Concluded
- University of Missouri System General Counsel Search Chair – Successfully Concluded