Dr. Kowitt’s Stack Award for Teaching Excellence
Written by Mia Yacono & Vivian Pawloski
Dr. Jennifer Kowitt, assistant Special Education Professor at the University of Saint Joseph, was awarded the Stack Award for Teaching Excellence at the 2024 graduation ceremony this past spring. Upon receiving this award, Dr. Kowitt was tasked with writing and presenting a speech at the 2024 Convocation regarding her achievements and accomplishments here at USJ.
Dr. Jennifer Kowitt has been a Professor at USJ since 2017, coming to the university at the end of her PhD program at UConn. What is interesting about Dr. Kowitt is that she did not originally plan on working in the special education field. Having obtained her undergrad in art history, Dr. Kowitt didn’t get involved with the world of special education until she began working at the Yale Center for British Art, where she was tasked with creating a program for young adults with disabilities. As Dr. Kowitt continued her career working in art museums to accommodate individuals with disabilities, she began to realize that was where her true passion lay, leading her to get her PhD in educational psychology. Dr. Kowitt explained that “[Art] is something that really enriches my life, and I think that everyone should have access to these things that make their lives feel like they’re high quality. It’s not going to be the same for everybody, but we need to make sure that our communities make it possible for everyone to discover what that might be for you.” From there Kowitt began her career at USJ as a professor in the special education program. As of today, Dr. Kowitt is an assistant professor of special education teaching several undergraduate classes that give students experience in the field of special education.
Dr. Kowitt was nominated for the Stack Award for Teaching Excellence by an anonymous student and presented a speech at Convocation that focused on inserting yourself in new experiences and not being afraid of the outcome or outside pressure you may receive. Kowitt used an example from her personal life, explaining her strange and impulsive decision to take tap dancing lessons as an adult, and the anxiety that came with it. While always relating back to her adult tap dancing lessons, Kowitt discussed several important and overlooked issues in her speech regarding special education and the misconceptions around students with disabilities. Kowitt spoke about how often school systems “overly support and set unreasonably low goals for students, and then students don’t get the chance to shine, take risks, or show us and themselves what they really can do”. Dr. Kowitt wants to challenge this and help young adults with intellectual, developmental, and physical disabilities in their transition to adulthood. “There’s a lot of great research around the transition to adulthood, but we also know that in general, we are doing a really bad job. We know that so many people who are very capable are underemployed, they aren’t getting further education, they aren’t living independently in the community…there’s something broken here”. Dr. Kowitt then explained how special education can be universal, and that it applies to everyone in different ways. For example, teaching the principles of organization and time management to children on a disability spectrum would benefit all students, regardless of ability. “The diversity of what it means to be human should impact everyone because we all have diverse bodies and diverse brains”.
When asking Dr. Kowitt about her reaction to presenting her speech to incoming students at Convocation, she expressed how she was slightly uncomfortable and that it caused her slight anxiety because of her preference for interaction rather than lecture based teaching. Dr. Kowitt shared that her feelings towards having to speak related to the overall theme of her speech and how there might be anxiety, things might not go perfectly, but that’s okay. Dr. Kowitt was articulate and thorough on all the topics she covered and her speech was inspiring and motivating for all who heard her speak.
Featured image provided by Mia Yacono and Vivian Pawloski.
