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Joe Cowan, Monticello, KY, in KY Civil Rights Hall of Fame Somerset Community College employee is assistant Director of Disability Service and an instructor in Bringing Educational Achievement to Migrants (BEAM) at Somerset Community College Click on headline for full story plus photo(s) By Dave Cazalet, Jr., Wayne County's Joe Cowan was inducted into the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame at a ceremony held in Louisville on Friday, October 15, 2011. Cowan is the assistant director of Disability Services and an instructor in the Bringing Educational Achievement to Migrants (BEAM) at Somerset Community College. Cowan, who was born in Monticello in 1951, suffers from a rare congenital disease called Arthrogryposis . The affliction has caused his shoulders, arms and hands to be withered and malformed. He uses a wheelchair. Being selected for the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of Fame came as a "real surprise to me," Cowan said. According to the Civil Rights Hall of Fame, nominees are men and women who have made significant contributions to Kentucky's progress in the areas of civil and human rights. Their fights against discrimination may have been in the areas of race, sex, religion, disability, age and economic status, religion or other human rights arenas. A panel of volunteer judges selects the inductees. "It was wonderful," Cowan said. "It was great. I didn't realize what a big deal it was. It's nice to know that I have done something to help others with disabilities; to know I made it better for people like myself." With his induction, Cowan joins Richard Todd Duncan as the only Kentuckians with Somerset connections to become members of this elite group. Cowan joins other notable Kentuckians in the state's Civil Rights Hall of Fame such as former Kentucky Governor Edward "Ned" Breathitt and the late Brooklyn Dodger short stop Harold "Pee Wee" Reese. It's been a struggle at times," Cowan confessed. "State and federal agencies prefer that you just fit into their system. It's simpler for them. Every time I got a job or changed something, they would threaten to reduce or cut off my services." "I always try to encourage people not to give up," Cowan said. "I tell people, 'It might take us (disabled people) longer to get from Point A to Point B, but you can get there.' It takes a lot of determination and a lot of will power but you can overcome the obstacles that are in the way," "Joe has a great positive attitude. He's overcome a lot of obstacles in his life," said Dave Cazalet, the Director of Grants at SCC. "I had the honor to hire Joe back when I worked in SCC's old Economic and Workforce Development Department. He sincerely cares about the people he works with and he is an inspiration to everyone he comes in contact with." "Back when I was in school, handicapped children were kept at home and the school system sent teachers out to us," Cowan, who is also African American, explained. "I really didn't get the full benefit of an education until I went to college." In 1971, Cowan moved to Lexington and spent almost four years at the Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Center. "They provided me with physical therapy, an education, and they taught me how to survive on my own. They even taught me to drive a car," Cowan recalled. "Eventually, I was able to go out and get my own apartment, meet a girl, who was a student at UK, and get married." It was also during his stay at Cardinal Hill that Cowan enrolled in the Kentucky Business School and earned a certificate in accounting. "I never could get anyone to hire me," Cowan said. "I would get discouraged sometimes, but I honestly thought they looked at me as being handicapped and not at my race." Cowan and his wife returned to Monticello in 1975 and he began attending Somerset Community College. He was awarded an Associate Degree in Human Services in 1977. That led him to a job as a counselor at the Job Corps Center in Pine Knot, but he kept taking college classes when he could. In 1995, Cowan earned his Bachelors Degree from the University of Kentucky in Social Work and by 2001 he received a Masters Degree from UK in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. During those years, Cowan was also interested in entering the ministry He is a member of the Greater Emanuel Temple Holiness Church, which is based in Birmingham, Alabama. He was ordained an elder in the church in 1996 and served the denomination's church in Monticello. In 1997, Cowan began working for Somerset Community College in a grant-funded, job-training program known as BRITE, which was located in Albany. When that grant ended, he was employed by SCC as an instructor in the High School Equivalency Program, which helps farm and migrant workers to obtain their General Equivalency Diplomas. In 2008, Cowan was also given the responsibilities of the Assistant Director of Disability Services at SCC. "I love working at SCC," Cowan said. Cowan and his first wife, were twice married and twice divorced. The final divorce came in 1999. Later he met the former Ella Bobbitt and they were married in June of 2001. To his great sorrow, Ella passed away in 2010. He has served on a number of statewide boards and advocacy groups for the disabled. He served on the Kentucky Protection and Advocacy Commission, an independent state agency, for eight years. The group's mission is to protect and promote the rights of Kentuckians with disabilities through legally based individual and systemic advocacy, and education. Cowan also served on the University of Kentucky's Interdisciplinary Human Development Institute (IHDI), which is one of over 60 University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research and Service, IHDI focuses its efforts on improving lifelong opportunities and services for individuals with disabilities, their families and the community. A third group that has benefited from Cowan's service is the Kentucky Assistive Technology Services (KATS). The KATS Network serves Kentucky residents of all ages with disabilities of all types, their families, employers and employment service providers, educators, health care and social service providers, and others seeking information about assistive technology (AT) and accessible information technology. The KATS Network provides device demonstrations and short-term loan of assistive technology devices for up to six weeks. These services are intended to assist the consumer in device selection and allow them to make an informed decision before a financial investment is made. But Cowan isn't done helping the disabled in Kentucky, he was recently nominated to serve on the statewide advocacy group, Protection and Advocacy For Individuals With Mental Illness (PAIMI). Cowan has never been militant or confrontational in his efforts to improves the lives of the disabled. According to Cowan, his purpose in serving on these state boards is to work with businesses and employers to increase their awareness of the physical barriers that prevent disabled people from living full lives and taking full advantage of public services. As the Assistant Director of Disability services at SCC, Cowan and SCC Director of Disability Services Mary Petry host an annual workshop for the disabled at The Center for Rural Development to inform disabled individuals about the opportunities available to them at the College. Cowan said that the lives of disabled people have improved considerably since Congress passed the Americans With Disabilities Act in 1990. "It used to be impossible to get into some places," Cowan recalled. "I would have to ask people to lift me up stairs. For example, for many years I didn't have a photo on my driver's license because I could not get to the second floor of the courthouse where they took the photos. The public library was inaccessible to me and other handicapped people. That has all changed now. Of course, there are still challenges to be met and overcome." Cowan has one adult daughter, Domonique, she is married to a member of the United States Air Force, Eric Ehler. He is the proud grandfather of two grandchildren: Dylan, 5, and Daxtyn, 4 months. This story was posted on 2011-03-04 09:31:10
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