By Carol Brunson Day
One of the most influential early childhood education mentors of the last 50 years was Barbara Taylor Bowman. In the article that follows, Patricia “Patsy” M. Cooper examines the thinking, work, and life of this legend. Cooper’s article first appeared in the Fall 2023 issue of Young Children, which focused on advances in understanding child development and learning through a lens of equity.
It is telling that so much can be written about and revisited in Barbara Bowman’s work. Indeed, Barbara’s professional resume is formidable. Her service on prestigious national and international committees and panels; her countless publications about early childhood advocacy, policy, and practice; and the honors she garnered again and again for her extraordinary contributions and service provide testament to the description of her as a pioneer in the field of early education.
What you won’t see in her resume, however, is who Barbara was as a mentor and role model for her thousands of students, like me, who had the opportunity to know her personally and to learn from her close-up. We carry with us lessons that have influenced our careers and our lives.
First and foremost was Barbara’s uncompromising insistence on scholarship. She held us to the highest standards of grounding our opinion in facts. One cannot be an early childhood education professional just because one loves children—one must know, understand, and respect developmental theory. She demonstrated that in many ways, not the least of which was the feedback she gave on our papers, but also through her actions.
I remember when Jean Piaget came to Chicago to speak, Barbara went to the airport to pick him up—yes, that Piaget! When Erik Erikson came to speak to my class at Erikson Institute, she introduced us to him as “his grandchildren.”
Barbara taught us to know and respect great minds and made us feel that we too could contribute great thinking to our work with children and families, by grounding it in our knowledge of developmental theory.
The second trait was Barbara’s uncompromising commitment to knowing children firsthand. For her, what was as important as what you read or heard about children was what you learned from your own firsthand experience. In her teaching, she constantly illustrated points by telling stories about the children and families with whom she had worked. She emphasized learning from them and from your own mistakes with them.
When I was about to graduate from the Erikson Institute, I went to Barbara for advice about what to do next, because another faculty member was encouraging me to go straight into a PhD program. Barbara said, “What’s the rush? You should spend some time working with children. You have a whole life ahead of you to get a PhD.” Barbara taught us that the basis of our credibility as educators is firsthand experience with children.
And finally, a mentoring lesson that I and many others of her students value and hold very dear—how to manage your life and work with others with style and grace and with honesty and integrity. Although Barbara was always in the spotlight for her brilliant academic mind, she also let us see her soft side. She invited students into her home for conversations—and, in fact, for our graduation ceremonies. As Barbara taught, counseled, and advised students, she would talk about her dear husband Jimmy. And we heard many stories about her precious daughter, Valerie, and later her precious granddaughter, Laura. In her sharing, we came to know that work-life balance was important and achievable.
Barbara was always so supportive of students while we were struggling through the rigors of the Erikson Institute’s advanced study experience. And she continued her support long after we left. I personally have treasured that. I still have, hanging over my desk, a congratulations letter that Barbara wrote to me on the occasion of one of my first professional accomplishments.
Even to this day, I treasure that support because she continued to be there for me to offer advice, and she gave it willingly and honestly. She inspired so many to always do our best—to model ourselves after her. Although we lost a legend when Barbara passed away in November 2024, we remember and honor her legacy as part of NAEYC’s centennial.
Mentorships are valuable and important to many early childhood professionals. Having access to good mentors is often viewed as the key to a successful career.
Along with her thought leadership in child development and early childhood education, Barbara Bowman served as example of an impactful mentor. Here are a few key lessons you can apply in your own professional life:
An insistence on scholarship for educators: Focusing on making sure your practice with children is informed by what we know about child learning and development
A commitment to knowing children first hand: Corroborating theory as it is informed by what you learn from working directly with children
An approach to managing your life and work with others: Characterized by style, grace, honesty, and integrity
Carol Brunson Day, PhD, is the former President of the Governing Board at NAEYC.
Copyright © 2026 by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. See Permissions and Reprints online at NAEYC.org/resources/permissions.
An earlier version of this piece appeared on NAEYC’s Blog in 2019, which captured remarks delivered by Carol Brunson Day during a celebration of Barbara Bowman’s 90th birthday at NAEYC’s 2018 Annual Conference in Washington, DC.