A confused Lowell freshman wanders around the halls aimlessly during lunch, lacking friends to eat with. She eventually resorts to eating alone, feeling overwhelmed with loneliness from not fitting in with her peers.
This quiet, nervous student would later go on to become Lowell’s principal.
This year, the Lowell community has welcomed a new principal, Jan Bautista. Bautista was a student at Lowell herself, and was an assistant principal at Lowell for the last two years before taking the job as principal after the departure of former principal Dr. Michael Jones.
Bautista vividly remembers her experience as a student at Lowell. During her time at Lowell, Bautista said she often struggled to fit in with her peers. “There would be times I probably ate lunch by myself,” she said. However, she was able to find a community at Lowell thanks to her experience being in the Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC). “I got more out of my shell because of JROTC,” Bautista said. “A lot of the friends I had in JROTC are still my friends to this day.”
Bautista began working in education immediately after graduating college. Her first job within the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) was at Everett Middle School, where she taught science and later newcomer classes, which are classes designed for students who aren’t proficient in English.
After gaining experience in various specialized jobs in the district, including overseeing the training of English language learner (ELL) teachers, Bautista joined the Lowell community as an assistant principal. “After COVID, I decided that it was great working in Central Office and specialized programs, but I really wanted to spend more time with kids and teachers,” she said. Bautista also mentioned the massive change in school population from her previous jobs to working at Lowell. “My baby programs of 500 students and 20 teachers blew up to 2700 students and 300 staff,” she said.
Outside of school, Bautista is passionate about many things, including music, sports, and art. Much of the memorabilia in her office surrounds her Filipino heritage. “I have a Ruby Ibarra poser… she’s a Filipino rapper that’s super cool,” Bautista said. “I have an art piece from a Southeast Asian artist that’s this woman standing in the rain… it reminds me of the Philippines and playing in the rain.” Bautista also has items connected to San Francisco, where she grew up, including San Francisco Giants posters and artwork from Bay Area artists.
Although she says becoming Lowell’s principal has been a daunting task, Bautista feels that the experience has primarily been a positive one. “Everyone has been super welcoming,” she said. “It’s been really nice hearing people being so supportive and cheering me on.” According to Bautista, the Lowell community has been appreciative of the fact that Bautista already has experience at Lowell, both as a student and as an assistant principal. She noted how meaningful the support has been and how relieved she has felt to hear it. “That [support] has been super positive, and made me feel really comfortable in how things are going,” Bautista said.
Overall, Bautista says she is excited about her first year as principal. She particularly mentioned being excited for events and celebrations during the school year. “The silly thing I’m most looking forward to is the Halloween costumes, and figuring out what the rally theme is so I can dress up,” Bautista said. According to Bautista, she also hopes to strengthen the sense of community around the school and collaborate with students. She feels that this collaboration would allow students to appreciate the positive aspects of their school lives and empower them to tell their own stories. “I would love for students to help me highlight the bright spots [of Lowell] and do the storytelling from their perspectives,” she said.
Bautista mentioned the full-circle feeling of coming back to Lowell after being a student so long ago. She said that she hopes to support students in their experiences at Lowell and send them off in the right direction. “It’s so powerful to imagine that the students I’m supporting now are going to be Lowell alums that will move forward into world-changing careers,” she said. “I’m not saying that this is world-changing, but I am so proud to be able to be a leader in supporting all of our students in doing that themselves.”
