Recent graduate Jeremy Bower ’15, was an active participant in many extracurricular activities, including playing Inline Hockey for the Redbirds, tutoring adults with special needs, and volunteering at an after school center for children.
Bower now teaches at The School of Expressive Arts and Learning (S.E.A.L.) in Woodstock, Illinois. S.E.A.L. is a school that focuses on students with emotional or behavioral difficulties. Bower noted he thoroughly enjoys working with the school’s students, saying they are all “wonderful, intelligent, kind children who just have some difficulty in larger classrooms or with their school’s work load.” The epitome of the Department of Special Education is acceptance, and therefore Bower felt adequately prepared. These children are brought to S.E.A.L. to help them learn how to cope and the school’s number one priority is the students’ learning. Bower loves his students and says he could not have a better group of faculty to work with.
In Bower’s words, his biggest achievement at Illinois State was that he “most importantly learned how to be a great teacher.” Bower said the Special Education program at Illinois State is second to none. Because of Illinois State and through the hands on experience with great professors and amazing counselors, he feels better equipped to be an effective teacher.
Bower said a person who really helped him at ISU was his advisor, Janet Caldwell. She was constantly helping and checking on how he was doing. Whether it was a class he needed to take, or when he lost his dear friend, Ben Allison, Janet was there for Bower. Bower said Janet was so welcoming and encouraging and an amazing person to be around.
Bower said a professor who changed his life at ISU was Roberta Trites. She is an English professor who focuses on children’s literature. Bower said she was very helpful with providing him with ideas and thoughts on how to incorporate some of her lessons into his own teaching of students with special needs.
Bower was also able to learn and benefit from his supervisor (Ileen Salzstein) and coordinator (Krystal Lewis-Pratl). “Without the two of them I would not be half the teacher I am now. It is because of these two women that I was able to learn and thrive in field base and student teaching. And I was able to get a job before even leaving ISU officially,” he said. “I am who I am now because of these four women, and I could not be happier. I hope everyone at ISU gets the opportunity to meet these women and to learn from them because they really helped me and I would call them all mentors of mine, and I am honored to call them friends.”
