Dr. Jean Damisch
1994 Inductee
Throughout her career, Dr. Jean Damisch has given learning disabled, emotionally disturbed, and behaviorally disordered students a chance at academic success.
Now retired, her goals as a special education teacher were to help her students become self-confident, develop writing, reading and math skills, and learn to be successful. She used strategies that caused her students to be more interested, involved and engaged. Those strategies paid off since more than 95 percent of her students apply for college admittance.
Jean's 31-year teaching career included 20 years at Niles West High School in Skokie, IL. During her career, Damisch taught at New Trier High School in Winnetka, IL, Chicago Latin School in Chicago, and as an instructor for Performance Learning Systems at Northern Illinois University from 1987 to 1992.
She received a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology in 1951, a Master of Arts degree in counseling in 1969 and an Administration Certificate in 1980 from Northwestern University, and a Doctor of Education degree in 1990 from Northern Illinois University.
Special Honors
2002-2004 | Elder - The Village Presbyterian Church of Northbrook, Illinois |
2000-2001 | President, Chicago North Shore Alumnae Panhellenic |
2001 | Chair, Northwestern University Class of 1951 50th Reunion |
1998-2002 | Vice President for Membership, Circumnavigators Club, Chicago Chapter |
1998-1999 | President of North Lake Shore Retired Teachers of Illinois |
1994 | Northwestern University Phi Delta Kappa (PDK) Recognition Award |
1994 | NorthShore Walk of Fame awarded by NorthShore Hilton and NorthShore Magazine, Illinois (one of six) |
1991 | Special Merit Award for Action Research in Schools from the Institute for Educational Research for her research project "Teaching Techniques of Outstanding Teachers" |
1990 | One of 100 Chicago-area women selected as Women of Destiny by Marshall Field's and Marilyn Miglin/Destiny perfume |
1988 | First worldwide recipient of the PDK International Doctoral Fellowship |
1987 | Kohl International Award for Outstanding Educators |
1982 | Recipient of PDK's Gerald Read International Travel Scholarship, which she used to study the educational system in China in 1983 |