Jennifer Bowden grew up in DFW, between a home and sailboat on Lake Ray Hubbard, and attended UNT for her bachelor’s degree. Before joining WAC, she had been a secondary fine arts and geography teacher for a decade in two DFW districts. She served as director of education at the Council from 2007-2016 and returned to this role in July 2019. During her Council break, she served as an international affairs coordinator for a large school district. Jennifer holds two Fulbright awards, has written six published articles, and won several local and national awards for her work in education. Her master’s degree is in international education from the University of Illinois and her favorite pastimes are global travel (31 countries and counting), ethnic cuisine, and the arts.