Superintendent Honored With Service To Education Award

From LVJUSD: Kelly Bowers, Ed.D., Superintendent of the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District (LVJUSD) since 2010, has received the Phi Delta Kappa 2017-18 Outstanding Service to Education award in recognition of her leadership. Bowers was nominated by Dick Stark, Treasurer of the Cal State East Bay–Diablo Chapter of Phi Delta Kappa (PDK). She accepted her award at the Chapter’s Annual Awards Dinner on June 1, 2018, at the Brass Door in San Ramon. PDK is an international organization that focuses on leadership, research, and service in education.

Stark has known Bowers for many years, since she was a new teacher at Barnard White Middle School in Union City. Bowers taught core subjects in grades 7 and 8, and Stark taught industrial arts and computers. Bowers was a teacher there for several years before moving on to other teaching and teacher-leader assignments, serving as a middle school principal, followed by district-level positions. She earned her Administrative Credential and Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership at Cal State East Bay, and her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from UC Berkeley.

Stark said, “She was one of the best young teachers I’ve ever had a chance to work with. I knew she was bound for leadership. She had all the attributes needed - organizational skills, classroom management, common sense, and more.”

Stark was impressed with how well Bowers handled the unanticipated closure of the charter schools in Livermore, and the sudden need to accommodate and welcome nearly 1,200 additional students into the LVJUSD public schools, which required the opening of a new school, Lawrence Elementary, midyear. Bowers works closely with her employees, the community, industry partners, and the Board of Trustees to create a nurturing environment where students will graduate with the skills needed to contribute and thrive in a changing world. The Chapter Board agreed that Bowers deserved its Outstanding Service to Education award for Leadership this year.

A passion for education and supporting youth runs in the family. Bowers’ son was a past winner of this Chapter’s Scholarship for Prospective Educators. He is a high school basketball coach and also works in child welfare, with families, schools, and the School Attendance Review Board (SARB) - a community-based program - to help at-risk youth stay in school, attend classes regularly, and graduate.

Congratulations to the Bowers family!

Image via LVJUSD