Walker Sims
2018 Saratoga Fellow
Joseph Walker Todd Sims, a native of Memphis, TN, graduated from the Naval Academy with a B.S. in History in May of 2018. In the fall of 2017, he was screened and selected for the Navy nuclear power program (surface) after completing technical interviews with Naval Reactors headquarters. His first ship is a guided missile destroyer, where he will be assigned for two years before attending Nuclear Power school and then returning to sea on an aircraft carrier.
While at the Academy, Walker enjoyed studying the foundational values of the American republic and the impact that ethical leaders can have on history. He won the 2016 Founders Award from the Sons of the American Revolution for his essay on Charles Carroll of Carrollton and his support for the revolutionary cause. Walker is also interested in the intersection of Natural Law and U.S. national security and foreign policy and incorporating the classical just war theory into new technologies and intrastate conflicts.
Walker played four years of Division One tennis at the Academy and eared four varsity letters. He was named an International Tennis Association Scholar Athlete for three years in a row. In 2016, he was named the overall Patriot League Scholar Athlete for men’s tennis.
During the summer of 2015, Walker spent four weeks as a member of a Yard Patrol crew honing his ship handling and navigation skills. During the summer of 2016, he interned at Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab’s National Security Analysis Division, where he contributed to legal research on nuclear weapons for the upcoming Nuclear Posture Review. In the summer of 2017, he graduated from the Marine Corps officer development course known as Leatherneck as the academics and land navigation honor graduate and also completed an internship at the State Department’s Counterterrorism Division as an assistant to Senior Strategist Scott Allan.
A practicing Catholic, Walker was an active member of the Catholic Midshipmen’s club while at the Academy. He also held leadership positions within the Brigade as a battalion honor juror and a squad leader. His sister Amelia Sims was a John Jay Fellow in 2017.