LTHS Creates Director Of Equity Position

LA GRANGE, IL — Lyons Township High School has filled its new position of director of equity and belonging.

Jennifer Rowe, who held a similar job in an Aurora-based school district, was named to the position.

In 1998, Rowe began her educational career as an English teacher. After 11 years in the classroom, she served as a dean of students for a decade at Metea Valley High School in Aurora, which is in Indian Prairie School District 204. She then was that district's executive director of educational equity for two years.

Rowe received her master's degree in curriculum and instruction and a doctoral degree in education from Loyola University, Chicago.

“In the new Director of Equity and Belonging role, my focus will be working with the LT community to cultivate a culture that centers on equity and supports educators in their practices and approaches as we work to best serve all of our students and their individual needs," Rowe said in a news release.

She also said the school's continued success demands diversity and the understanding that multiple perspectives have value.

"By having such a (director's) position, it truly demonstrates that the community values equity and belonging and understands how it connects to academic success, social emotional learning, wellness, and all other aspects of developing citizens who value all people in a diverse world,” Rowe said.

According to the Illinois Report Card, 11 percent of Lyons Township High School's student body is low-income. Also, the school is 72 percent white, 21 percent Hispanic, 3 percent African American and 2 percent Asian.

In July, Hinsdale High School District 86 filled its newly created position of director of instructional equity.