Henry Richmond Harold Fowler C.D., M.A. (12 May 1915 – 14 February 2007) was a

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

n educator, politician and cultural leader.

Early life

Henry Fowler's parents were Horace and Agnes Fowler, white planters from

Moneague Moneague is a small town in Saint Ann, Jamaica on the main road between Kingston and Ocho Rios Ocho Rios (Spanish for "Eight Rivers") () is a town in the parish of Saint Ann on the north coast of Jamaica, and is more widely referred ...

in central Jamaica. Henry was educated at Jamaica College in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

. An academic achiever, he went on to

Worcester College Worcester College ( ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms was ad ...

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

in 1935, as a

Rhodes scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international Postgraduate education, postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Esta ...

Educationalist

Fowler became one of Jamaica's leading educationalists. He started his teaching career at Wolmer's Boys School in Kingston, specialising in English literature. In 1942, Henry Fowler opened his eponymous private school in Kingston, and then in 1944, launched the Priory School, remaining as headmaster until his retirement in 1973. He was appointed as Visiting Professor (Comparative Education)

Western Carolina University Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the University of North Carolina system. The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU ...

in 1982, and President of the Inter-Regional Centre for Curriculum Development from 1985 to 1990. He continued as a distinguished advisor on education, serving as Chairman of Jamaica Ministry of Education's Committee for preparation of Youth for Independence and Chairman of the National Council on Libraries, Archives and Documentation Services. He was a Visiting Senior Associate at

Queen Elizabeth House Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

, University of Oxford and was a member of the Council of the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 18 English-speaking countries and territories in t ...

Politics and diplomacy

Fowler became active in politics at Oxford, where he was chairman of the Oxford University Labour Club. A supporter of the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

, he took part in international student delegations, including th
Brussels International Peace Conference
in 1936; the British delegation led by Lord Robert Cecil to the World Students Conference in Paris in 1937; and the 1937 British universities mission to Prague. At the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Fowler returned to Jamaica, where he joined Norman Manley's People's National Party (PNP) and, from 1939 to 1943, edited ''Public Opinion'', a publication with ties to the PNP.

Cultural role

Fowler had a lifelong interest in theatre. He was active in the

Oxford University Dramatic Society The Oxford University Dramatic Society (OUDS) is the principal funding body and provider of theatrical services to the many independent student productions put on by students in Oxford, England. Not all student productions at Oxford University a ...

(OUDS) as a student. He founded the Little Theatre Movement (LTM) in Kingston in 1941 with his first wife, Greta Bourke. Together they set up the Jamaica Theatre School, now the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts and the Ward Theatre Foundation. The Fowlers were friends of

Noël Coward Sir Noël Peirce Coward (16 December 189926 March 1973) was an English playwright, composer, director, actor, and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what ''Time (magazine), Time'' called "a sense of personal style, a combination of c ...

. Fowler served as Chairman of the All-Island Art Exhibition Committee and Vice-Chairman of the Caribbean Arts Festival. He became founder Chairman of the Board of the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation and also served as Jamaica's appointed ambassador to

Unesco The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

Family and personal life

Fowler married twice: * firstly to Greta Bourke (née Todd) M.B.E. (d.1978) who ran the

Little Theatre Movement As the new medium of cinema was beginning to replace theater as a source of large-scale spectacle, the Little Theatre Movement developed in the United States around 1912. The Little Theatre Movement served to provide experimental centers for the ...

(LTM) in

. Greta had previously been married to the Jamaican lawyer Alfred Wellesley Bourke. Their daughter Jennifer Bourke married the actor Robert Shaw. * secondly to Beryl Chitty CMG (m.1989, d. 2009) the former deputy British High Commissioner of Jamaica and a graduate of

St Hugh's College, Oxford St Hugh's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It is located on a site on St Margaret's Road, to the north of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 by Elizabeth Wordsworth as a ...

. He died on St Valentine's Day, 14 February 2007. His life was celebrated with a memorial service at

St Hugh's College St Hugh's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. It is located on a site on St Margaret's Road, to the north of the city centre. It was founded in 1886 by Elizabeth Wordsworth as a ...

, Oxford.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Henry Jamaican educators 1915 births 2007 deaths Jamaican Rhodes Scholars Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford 20th-century Jamaican educators People educated at Jamaica College