100 Years of Scouting Banner Yankee Clipper Council - Boy Scouts of America
Northeastern Massachusetts and Southern New Hampshire
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Lawrence Area

honoring:
Thomas S. Barenboim
William Buck
David M. DeFillippo
June 5, 2008  -  Andover Wyndham

Haverhill Area

honoring:
William & Rosemary Klueber
Ted & Mary Murphy
May 22, 2008 - Michael’s Function Hall
12 Alpha St. - Haverhill, MA

First on the team


Boy Scouts honor Middlesex Community College President Carole Cowan for her commitment to others

The Lowell Sun  Article Last Updated: 01/13/2008 07:01:17 AM EST
http://www.lowellsun.com//ci_7960883?IADID=Search-www.lowellsun.com-www.lowellsun.com

By Nancye Tuttle ntuttle@lowellsun.com

LOWELL -- "Me first" isn't something Carole Cowan says too often. Cowan, president of Middlesex Community College, isn't egotistical. She shies away from bragging about her accomplishments, choosing instead to praise the people she works with. But Cowan has come in first many times. She's the college's first female president and received the first Girls Incorporated of Greater Lowell Celebration of Today's Woman Award. The North Suburban Chamber of Commerce named her its first female Distinguished Business Person of the Year and she received one of the first Women's Business Hall of Fame Awards for her commitment to the college. Cowan will be first again on Feb. 26, when the Yankee Clipper Council, Boy Scouts of America, presents her with its 2008 Distinguished Citizen Award at a dinner at Lowell Memorial Auditorium.

As the first woman honoree, she joins a long list of men who received the award before her.

"When I looked at the list, I realized I was in good company. I told them I'd be glad to do it -- but that I wouldn't wear a Scout uniform," quipped Cowan, referring to John Chemaly, who accepted the award two years ago in full Boy Scout regalia.

"It's a great honor and humbling in a lot of ways. But any time I'm recognized by the community, it's a reflection of the great people I work with here at the college," she said.

Cowan's name was at the top of the list when the award committee met last fall, said Chuck Marvin, the council's finance director.

"Her name came up, and it was unanimous from the start," he said.

The award goes to "individuals who have demonstrated integrity and genuine concern for others ... the recipient need not have been a Scout but must carry the 'Spirit of Scouting' into their adult life."

Born in Lynn, the middle of three children, Cowan was raised by a single mom who emphasized education.

Her early schooling was at St. Michael's in Lynn, where she was one of two Irish kids in the Polish parish school.

"The nuns taught us a lot. My mother always said that students who did well in life were taught by nuns," said Cowan.

She also learned respect for authority and was "shocked" when she started Lynn Classical High School at how little her classmates respected their teachers.

At Lynn Classical, she excelled in business and still found time to be a cheerleader for football and basketball. She planned to work as a secretary at General Electric when she graduated in 1959 at age 16. But her mother and uncle had other ideas.

"Girls didn't go to college as much then. But my mother and uncle wanted me to go to college. It was either Northeastern, where my brother was, or Salem State. My uncle, who was a guidance counselor, helped me with my decision," she said.

She sailed through Salem State and started teaching business at age 20. Within a year, she was back in school for her master's degree, then earned a certificate from Boston State. Along the way, she worked for the family business, a real estate firm constructing new homes, and had her son Kevin, now 40.

By 1976, she was teaching business and rising through the ranks at MCC. She held positions as dean of the business division and dean of administration and finance, while earning her doctorate, with a concentration in community college leadership, in 1980 at UMass Amherst.

Cowan juggles many jobs, including serving on local, statewide, regional and national boards. And, she says, it wouldn't be possible without her co-workers.

"The college environment is wonderful. It's like a team, with everyone doing their jobs. I have wonderful people working with me who contribute way beyond their job descriptions," she said.

Under her leadership, MCC weathered severe budget cuts, yet Cowan successfully secured permanent campuses in Bedford and Lowell.

That's her proudest accomplishment and one she hopes to build upon.

"Our major plan for the next decade is to secure funding for new academic buildings in Lowell and Bedford," she said.

She has no plans to retire yet, but will know when the time is right.

"I like working, but I'm not a workaholic," she said.

And, as she has all her life, Cowan will continue to encourage others, appreciate them and lead with quiet conviction.

"I was a cheerleader, and I still am. I haven't stopped, I'm just cheering for different things," she said.