Ding Dong the Witch is Gone

We were recently informed that Emily Bowar, the child abuser that abused our daughter, has “resigned” from Oak Hill Montessori Community School.

This is a welcome development, and we are beyond joy for the kids that remain at the school, as they no longer have to worry that Ms. Bowar will abuse them. This development was announced in an email, dated February 2, 2025, and forwarded to families at the school by acting Director Dave Conrad. You can see a screen shot of the email by clicking here.

It reads:

Dear LE2 Families, 

I wanted to take a moment to express my sincere gratitude for the incredible time we've shared together. Watching the students grow and learn this year has been truly rewarding. Our birthday celebrations, squaring, symbolizing, history and trips to the park have been nothing short of amazing. 

During these last few weeks, I have had to make the difficult decision to resign my position at Oak Hill. This decision is due to family circumstances beyond my control.  As a result, my last day will be February 14th. Since my departure coincides with conference time, I have set aside time on the 13th and 14th to conference with as many of you as are interested. Please use the following link [link removed] to sign up for a conference.

Students, please remember that you all have unique talents and potential, and I encourage you to continue exploring your interests and embracing new opportunities. While I'm moving on to a new chapter, I will always cherish the memories we made in this classroom. 

With best wishes for your future success,

Emily Bowar 

Everyone, in our family at least, wishes Ms. Bowar nothing but the absolute worst, and everything she deserves in life. If this site can serve as nothing more than a warning to anyone that has the misfortune of crossing paths with Ms. Bowar in the future, we will consider it a blessing.

We hope she knows that many of those “memories” she will cherish are more aptly labeled as traumas. In addition, we hope the “family circumstances” are something that is physically, and emotionally, damaging to her, and that she suffers at least as much as she has made children in her care suffer.

Now, you may be wondering if this means this site still serves a purpose. When we launched this site, we offered terms for removal of the site, entirely. These terms were the removal of Shirley Volk as director, removal of Emily Bowar as a teacher, and new policies put in place to prevent this from happening again. Two of those three conditions have been met, yet almost a year later, no new policies are in place.

At this point, even that would be too little, too late. The school, itself, and the community surrounding it, have proven themselves to care more about the institution than the children that make up the reason it exists. At this point, this site will remain indefinitely, as a warning to those who may come across it.

In addition, this email from the acting Director, Dave Conrad, thanking Ms. Bowar for her “time and talent,” makes it clear the institution continues to pretend it is not as culpable in this abuse as the monster they employed, and continued to employ after she was a known child abuser.

Dear Families,

I am writing to share with you that Emily Bowar has made the difficult decision to resign her position of Lead Teacher of Lower Elementary 2. Her last day at Oak Hill will be February 14th, 2025.

Below is the message Emily shared with families in the LE2 classroom earlier today.

Please join me in thanking Emily for the time and talent she has shared with her students and our community the last four years. On behalf of the entire OHMCS staff, we wish her the best in her next endeavor.

Please know that we are working diligently to develop a short and long term plan for this role and will communicate new information as it becomes available. Our first priority, as always, is ensuring a smooth and positive transition for our students. Our team is committed to providing additional support to the entire Elementary community during this time of change.

As always, please reach out with questions or concerns.

Dave Conrad

That may simply be a legal CYA move, but either way, it is disgusting to thank a child abuser for their service.

In the end, we should not that 15 families have reached out to us, at various times, asking about the school and if these issues were resolved. Telling them nothing but the truth, and encouraging them (as always) to make their own decisions, all 15 have decided to either leave Oak Hill, or to not apply in the first place.

We also have heard from three other families that reported abuse at the hands of Ms. Bowar, but whose issues were resolved to their satisfaction by the acting directors and / or the State of Minnesota. The spotlight remains on the school, and will for as long as we have a say in the matter.

Thank you for your continued support.