In Memoriam: Dr. Jo Anne Juncker (1945-2022)
December 8, 2022
Dear Members of the NJCU Community,
Dr. Jo Anne Juncker, of Washington, D.C., and formerly of South Orange, N.J., a longtime professor in the Department of Early Childhood Education and the founder of NJCU's Early Learning Center — now known as the Children's Learning Center — passed away on November 21, 2022 at the age of 77. She retired from NJCU in 2011. Jo's advocacy for early childhood education led to her teaching. A leader in the Education department, she was a chair of the team seeking accreditation for Jersey City State to become a University. |
The following tribute was authored by her colleague Dr. Sai Jambunathan, Professor and Chairperson in the Department of Early Childhood Education:
"Dr. Juncker has influenced so many of us in many different ways. Her friendly smile, desire and willingness to help everybody, calm demeanor and never-giving up attitude will always be etched in the minds of those who worked with her. I had the privilege of working with her for over 10 years and learnt how to be an effective early childhood educator in an urban setting. I watched her advocate for those who were unable to do so themselves. She was an encyclopedia of information about state laws, people at NJDOE, at JCBOE, Hudson and Essex counties early childhood educators, people at NJCU and the history of courses and processes at NJCU. Her work has left a lasting impact on the lives of early childhood educators in Hudson and Essex counties."