Karen Shaver, newspaper adviser at Reavis High School, reads to Assistant Principal Dr. Fred Schouten the words on his 2008 IJEA Administrator of the Year plaque. Shaver nominated Schouten, who received his award May 20 in Burbank at a school board meeting and again June 14 at the IJEA All-State luncheon in Springfield. Schouten was the Illinois entry for the national JEA Administrator of the Year competition. Photo by Sally Turner.

Dr. Fred Schouten accepts his 2008 Administrator of the Year Award from James Tidwell, former IJEA executive secretary, June 14 in Springfield. Photo by Randy Swikle.

Dr. Fred Schouten recently retired as assistant principal of curriculum and technology at Reavis High School. He is being honored as “Administrator of the Year” for the support he has give to the adviser and staff of the Blueprint, the school’s student newspaper, for the past three years.

Schouten began his educational career in music, working as a music teacher and director of music at a number of schools throughout Illinois, minus a detour in the service from 1971-74, where he was a section leader in the 1st Infantry Division Army Band and as a college professor at SUNY-Potsdam from 1983-85. But since the late 1980s, Schouten has worked in the area of administration, focusing on curriculum and technology. He has been a staff development consultant for a number of schools in Illinois and is an adjunct professor at Olivet Nazarene in Bourbonnais, Ill. Schouten has degrees in music education and educational leadership from Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois State University and the University of Illinois. It is for his work with the student newspaper staff at Reavis High School and his membership to its advisor, Karen Shaver, that Schouten receives the IJEA’s 2008 Administrator of the Year Award.

“At the onset of the 2005 school year, Schouten made an open ended commitment to become more involved the paper,” explained Reavis newspaper adviser Karen Shaver. “He found time in his schedule to attend the staff planning meetings, unobtrusively offering suggestions and visibly showing his enthusiasm when the writers suggested good ideas. Because of his interest and openness, he became a partner to the newspaper. His shared knowledge of the publishing industry, his awareness of trends in reporting, and his willingness to be involved has made him a mentor to the staff.

“The staff and I are grateful for what he has shared with us: his knowledge, advice, expertise, and his enthusiasm and love of journalism. Shouten’s influence on the Blueprint has quietly guided us into the paper we are today, and we are fortunate to have had him as a mentor and a friend.”