Walter Myers III

Board of Directors, Discovery Institute

Walter is a Principal Engineering Manager leading a team of engineers, working with customers to drive their success in the Microsoft Azure Cloud. He holds a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from Biola University's Talbot School of Theology, where he is an adjunct faculty member in the Master of Arts in Science & Religion (MASR) program teaching on Darwinian evolution from a design-centric perspective. He is also a board member of the Orange County Classical Academy (OCCA), a classical charter school in Southern California associated with Hillsdale College. He is a former board member of the Lincoln Club of Orange County, where he served as Programs Chair from 2015-2018, fighting to reduce the power and scope of government, advocating for free markets, lower taxes, and more freedom for all. He is a regular contributor to the Discovery Institute Evolution News and Views website writing on parallels in the design of computer systems and biological organisms. Walter lives in sunny Southern California where he enjoys road biking and landscape/night photography when time permits.

Archives

The Case for Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles

Walter Myers III
January 20, 2023
All-electric battery vehicles (BEVs) have become all the rage, particularly with the political class, who see them as a magical means to combat climate change. We know, of course, there is no such thing as magic. But that won’t stop politicians from making proclamations, followed by policies that bring about bad, even destructive, results.

Tackling Misconceptions About Charter Schools

Walter Myers III
September 9, 2022
What many don’t understand is that charter schools are public schools – funded by federal and state funds – but privately run. The advantage of charter schools is that they are exempt from state and local regulations to a substantial degree, giving them the flexibility and autonomy to innovate and meet the needs of students.

Tackling Misconceptions About Charter Schools

Walter Myers III
September 9, 2022
What many don’t understand is that charter schools are public schools – funded by federal and state funds – but privately run. The advantage of charter schools is that they are exempt from state and local regulations to a substantial degree, giving them the flexibility and autonomy to innovate and meet the needs of students.

The Need for Classical Education Beyond Charter Schools

Walter Myers III
June 28, 2022
A classical education, particularly within the context of charter schools, is the remedy for the failure of our current K-12 education system to produce well-rounded, well-educated individuals who exhibit true moral virtue and respect for others.

Electric Vehicles: Not a Panacea for the Gas Crunch

Walter Myers III
March 9, 2022
Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and current Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg recently argued that electric vehicles were an affordable solution to the now record gas prices. But he didn’t specifically say how. It turns out that if one considers the real costs and practicalities of owning and operating an electric vehicle, his statement is false.

Affirmative Action is a Symptom of Our Failing K-12 Education System

Walter Myers III
February 10, 2022
However well-meaning, affirmative action is not the answer. It fails to address the root causes of educational performance disparities, creates an atmosphere of unequal opportunity and protection, and can even have negative effects on the very students who are meant to reap its benefits. We should instead come together and focus our efforts on reforming and redesigning K-12 education.

Affirmative Action is a Symptom of Our Failing K-12 Education System

Walter Myers III
February 10, 2022
Once again, the Supreme Court is set to review race-conscious admissions policies, this time those of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina. Though I don’t favor affirmative action policies, I would argue that both proponents and critics of affirmative action overlook a far more important issue: the failure of America’s K-12 education system, which creates the wide educational disparities affirmative action is intended to remedy in the first place.

Walter Myers COSM 2021 Interview

Walter Myers III
February 10, 2022
Discovery Institute Senior Fellow Jay Richards interviews Walter Myers, Principal Engineering Manager at Microsoft, about the COSM 2021 panel discussion, Is It the End for Silicon Valley?

Affirmative Action is a Symptom of Our Failing K-12 Education System

Walter Myers III
February 10, 2022
However well-meaning, affirmative action is not the answer. It fails to address the root causes of educational performance disparities, creates an atmosphere of unequal opportunity and protection, and can even have negative effects on the very students who are meant to reap its benefits. We should instead come together and focus our efforts on reforming and redesigning K-12 education.

Is It the End for Silicon Valley?

Walter Myers III
February 9, 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in a new era of hybrid work, and allowed many workers to operate remotely. What does this mean for major tech centers like Silicon Valley and Seattle?

Critical Race Theory: Intriguing, But Wrong for K-12 Education

Walter Myers III
January 19, 2022
Critical Race Theory (CRT), a relatively young legal theory that has been circulating in legal academic circles since the 1980s, suddenly burst on the scene of public consciousness in the past year. It continues to be a topic of controversy due to its being advocated for inclusion in K-12 instruction.

Critical Race Theory: Intriguing, But Wrong for K-12 Education

Walter Myers III
January 19, 2022
CRT is a movement of admitted far-left scholars who wish to challenge power structures represented in the American legal culture and society with respect to “the rule of law” and “equal protection.” Their belief is that whereas our laws are ostensibly “neutral” and “objective,” they are neither — and never could have been objective in the first place because of the racial dynamic that has been exercised legally and ideologically over the course of American history.

Critical Race Theory: Intriguing, But Wrong for K-12 Education

Walter Myers III
January 19, 2022
Critical Race Theory (CRT), a relatively young legal theory that has been circulating in legal academic circles since the 1980s, suddenly burst on the scene of public consciousness in the past year. It continues to be a topic of controversy due to its being advocated for inclusion in K-12 instruction.

The Rise in Black Unemployment Is about More Than Race

Walter Myers III
September 16, 2021
AFL-CIO chief economist William Spriggs argued that the primary cause for disappointing black employment numbers is discrimination. While there may be some correlation, the primary factor inhibiting black economic attainment is the failure of urban public schools to adequately prepare students for post-secondary education.

The Rise in Black Unemployment Is about More Than Race

Bridging the economic gap between black and white workers starts with bridging the achievement gap in K–12 education.
Walter Myers III
September 16, 2021
AFL-CIO chief economist William Spriggs argued that the primary cause for disappointing black employment numbers is discrimination. While there may be some correlation, the primary factor inhibiting black economic attainment is the failure of urban public schools to adequately prepare students for post-secondary education.