On November 27, Parker graduate Bill Lowry ‘80 filed his petition of over 3,400 signatures — almost eight times more than the minimum needed to run for election to the Cook County Board of Commissioners as the representative of the Third District.

The Democrat, who is currently the president of the Nyhan, Bambrick, Kinzie & Lowry law firm, is intent on turning his legal career into a political one to focus on issues for which he’s advocated for years. Dem. Jerry Butler, who currently holds the position, is planning to retire at the conclusion of this four-year term, making this year opportune for Lowry to run.

Lowry said, “I’ve been working behind the scenes in politics for about 20 years,” referencing his work on Harold Washington’s mayoral campaign in 1983 while he attended Lake Forest College, as well as his time as finance chair for Toni Preckwinkle, and–for the last seven years–as the Cook County Board President, a job that exposed him to County matters. “This time I decided to step out and run myself.”

There are six other candidates who will be competing in the Illinois Primary on March 20 to become the Democratic nominee in the general election, taking place in November. Prominent figures that have endorsed Lowry include Preckwinkle, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and Illinois senators Kwame Raoul and Donne Trotter.

Lowry’s platform addresses a need to create more jobs, improve police and community relations, and reduce gun-related violence by providing more support to youth. His goals, he said, reflect his experience of living in Kenwood, a constituent neighborhood of the district.

“I feel a need to give back to the community,” Lowry said. “I want to help people who might need a hand because I might not be in the position that I’m in if others hadn’t helped me.”

Lowry has long made a strong commitment to volunteerism, serving on 14 different boards across the city, including the Loyola University Law School Board of Governors–Lowry attended Loyola for law school–and Bright Star Community Outreach, which works on issues like child abuse, homelessness, and poor economic opportunity, according to its website.

In 2013, after a teenage girl by the name of Hadiya Pendleton was shot just 10 feet from his house, one of Lowry’s three children asked him how he was going to respond to the violence. He, along with other residents of the neighborhood, responded by founding the It’s Time Organization, which supports groups that work with and help kids in the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Wards.

“Bill is certainly putting his Parker education to work,” Principal Dan Frank, a longtime friend of Lowry’s, said. “He’s a community-minded person, and he’s now focusing his commitments and values in his effort to run for public office. By running for office, Bill is living Parker’s mission as a dedicated, responsible citizen and leader in a democratic society.”

It was during March of 1979, the middle of his junior year, when Lowry transferred to Parker from St. Francis de Sales High School. The point guard was leaving school after a basketball practice when a car pulled up next to him, and the driver pointed a gun towards the sky and fired. Though Lowry went unharmed, the incident prompted him to leave that school.  He started at Parker the next week.

The Lowry family has strong ties to Parker. Bill’s father, William A. Lowry, and his uncle Jim Lowry, both attended Parker in the ‘50s. His father returned to be the athletic director for two years in 1960, and his mother, Lil Lowry-Manning, taught dance in the ‘60s, chaired the Physical Education department in the ‘80s, and served as Dean of Students in the ‘90s. Bill’s sister, Kim Pilcher, also worked as a teaching assistant to first grade teacher Bev Greenberg.

Lowry credits Parker for instilling in him the values that have led him to engage in civic issues. “Parker has a real commitment to social justice,” Lowry said. “We grew up with a sense of responsibility to our societies, and it was the norm for us to be involved in community activities outside of school. It’s that community piece that I experienced in the late ‘70s, early ‘80s, that I’ve carried with me throughout my life.”

Social Justice Committee Head and sophomore Lindsay Carlin expressed concern about the current state of the Civic Engagement program at Parker. “I think in general, Parker students aren’t as aware as they should be on issues surrounding social justice,” Carlin said. “I think the school is well intentioned in its commitments to social justice and giving back to the greater community, but it’s not super clear what is expected of students in fulfilling the school’s objectives.”

Student involvement, Lowry explained, is critical. “I want to make sure that our young adults are a part the political process,” Lowry said. “You not only deserve to be heard, but you need to be heard because the future of this city is in your hands.”