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Pamela Bowen Schwartz
Retired Teacher/K-12 Gifted Coordinator for Escambia County School District
After dedicating over 30 years to teaching, Pamela Schwartz continues serving the community through her various volunteer work and donations to causes including those geared toward literacy and child advocacy.
What did you learn about yourself as a teacher?
Being a teacher taught me that having a strong EQ, emotional quotient, is more important than having a high IQ, intellectual quotient, for success. Teaching is a work of heart with students progressing when they know you care enough about them as individuals to share the joys of lifelong learning.
Why are you so passionate about being involved in causes geared toward bettering the lives of children?
My belief that our children are the future makes me passionate about participating in causes helping them develop resilience in facing life’s challenges with choices to not only improve their lives but to also become good citizens contributing to a better world.
How do you believe your donations to the UWF National Writing Project are making a difference?
As a new, idealistic teacher I soon realized my degree did not adequately prepare me to meet the needs of my diverse students in becoming better readers and writers. My donations to the UWF National Writing Project make a difference to classroom teachers seeking support for improving strategies and resources to increase students’ literacy for greater academic success. Supporting literacy allows me to continue to contribute to community progress as well as to express gratitude to all the teachers who contributed to my success in life.