Jean Bowen a guiding light for students, staff in U-46
"We are in the business of learning" - that served as the guiding principle of Jean Bowen's life.
A tireless proponent for Elgin Area School District U-46, Bowen, 75, of Elgin died Sept. 16 at Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington.
Bowen spent a majority of her educational career in U-46 schools starting in the mid-1970s as a math and social studies teacher at then-Abbott Junior High School.
She became a guidance counselor, assistant principal, and head of the Visual and Performing Arts Academy at Larkin High School in Elgin. Bowen also served as the principal of South Elgin High School when it opened in 2005 and shepherded its first graduating class of 2008.
"She loved every minute of it," said Gary Bowen, 75, of Elgin, her husband of 53 years. "She really identified with students. She liked teaching, being a guidance counselor, assistant principal ... but it was all centered around the students."
Bowen's philosophy and passion for helping all students learn stuck with those who served alongside her.
"She was that instructional leader that helped guide you as a professional so that the team became stronger," said Melanie Meidel, U-46 assistant superintendent of human resources, who served as South Elgin's associate principal under Bowen. Meidel later assumed Bowen's mantle as principal of South Elgin.
"She was a phenomenal individual ... mentor, colleague, friend, confidant and everything in between," Meidel said. "I'm a creative person, but that creativeness needed to be focused into another level and she helped me find that. She didn't know the difference between life and work. Her life's work was supporting students and staff. Her breadth of experience and education opened so many doors for so many people at a new building, and laid the groundwork for everyone."
U-46 CEO Tony Sanders described Bowen's "love and compassion for the students of U-46 is unparalleled.
"She just gave her heart and her soul to her students, her staff ... she left it all on the field," he said.
Sanders said Bowen was one of the first people who reached out to him when he joined the district in 2007 as chief of staff to former Superintendent José Torres.
"Every time she would seek me out, even after retirement, to every now and again remind me of why we do what we do," Sanders said.
Bowen was a founding board member of the U-46 Educational Foundation. She also served on the boards of the Elgin Junior Women's Club, which named her its first Outstanding Young Woman of Elgin in the late 1970s, the Elgin Service Board, Community Crisis Center, and the Elgin Sports Hall of Fame.
Failing health forced Bowen to withdraw from community involvement, and for the past year she was in and out of the hospital, her husband said.
In addition to her husband, Bowen is survived by her sons, John Bowen of Lindenhurst and David Bowen of Roselle; three grandchildren, sister Janet Mann; and brothers John Gerber and Paul Gerber.
Visitation is 4 to 8 p.m. Friday at Laird Funeral Home, 310 S. State St., Elgin. The funeral service is 11 a.m. Saturday at Wesley United Methodist Church, 1070 South St., Elgin. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the U-46 Educational Foundation, 355 E. Chicago St., Elgin, 60120, to provide scholarships for South Elgin students.