The Quintessential Teacher, Librarian, and Consultant – Honouring Kevin Mowat

WRITTEN BY CAROL HRYNIUK-ADAMOV 

The Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg mourns the sudden passing of Kevin Mowat, a distinguished Manitoba literacy leader who enriched the literacy landscape of our province for several decades.

Kevin was an outstanding teacher-librarian and library consultant who supported thousands of teachers with his remarkable expertise. During his long and distinguished career, Kevin was the quintessential teacher, librarian, and consultant in the Winnipeg School Division. He was always willing to help educators locate resources and develop innovative projects. He acknowledged and supported all our efforts to promote literacy and learning.  

Forever curious, looking for innovative ways to promote literacy and inquiry, Kevin served as a tremendous role model for new and seasoned educators. He was a dear friend of our reading councils, our provincial Manitoba Reading Association (MRA), and the International Literacy Association. He was always eager to promote our annual literacy events and often tweeted about the highlights of literacy programs, conferences, and resources.

Kevin emailed me, in the early morning of the first day of school, just hours before he passed away. He was trying to locate, post and distribute registration forms in order to promote this year’s upcoming council events for professional learning. He was also a great supporter of “I Love to Read” Events across school divisions and public libraries. He promoted and celebrated the four MRA Adolescent Literacy Summits. Kevin was also revered by his colleagues, who awarded him the Manitoba School Library Association Distinguished Service Award in 2016 for his remarkable service to school libraries in Manitoba. This was one of the highlights of his career. 

The Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg Board and Membership extend our condolences to his beloved wife Jennifer Mowat, a retired reading clinician, son Andrew, and his colleagues in the Winnipeg School Division and the Manitoba School Library Association. We will all miss his inspiring presence.

Kevin Mowat has left a tremendous legacy, urging us to carry on innovative approaches to promote literacy in Manitoba and work collaboratively with our colleagues across the province to ensure “Every Manitoban, a Literate Manitoban.”


About the Author - Carol Hryniuk-Adamov serves on the editorial committee of Reading Manitoba in her role as a member-at-large for the Reading Council of Greater Winnipeg Board. She is a past-president of RCGW and MRA and the past co-president of the Manitoba Council of Reading Clinicians. She also served as the International Literacy Association provincial co-ordinator for many years. Carol works at a reading clinician in the Winnipeg School Division Clinical Support Services in the Carpathia district.

---