June Zabchin

1947 - 2020

June Zabchin

Clifton - The family of Dr. June Zabchin sadly announces her passing on June 10th after succumbing to pancreatic cancer. June passed away peacefully while in the loving care of her family.

June enjoyed a long and dedicated career with Bergen County Special Services School District, educating special needs students from 3 - 21 years of age. During her tenure she held a variety of positions including Principal, Supervisor of Instruction, Assistant Superintendent before attaining the role of Superintendent. She was both admired and respected by her colleagues and the students she served. June was dedicated to ensuring the optimal programming for her students and worked tirelessly to provide the best education for them. She took great pride in her student's successes yet remained humble and never discussed any of her own wonderful accomplishments.

June obtained her B.A. degree in Special Education from Newark State College (now Kean University) in 1969. The following year she received her M.ED degree in Special Education from North Eastern University. June then spent several years using her education to benefit children and adults with disabilities in both educational and non-educational settings. These experiences inspired her to enter a doctoral program at the University of Connecticut in 1974. During her time at UCONN, she worked as a counselor and researcher. She earned a prestigious PhD. in Special Education in 1978.

Upon graduation June returned to New Jersey to work with special education students, first as a substitute teacher in several schools, and then as a full-time teacher in Nutley from 1979 through 1983.

June began her career with the Bergen County Special Services school district on February 22, 1983 as an Assistant Director of the Life Skills Program at Rockleigh and Wood-Ridge. June fit in quickly by establishing rapport with staff and students alike, where she grew into her new leadership role.

The board of education then transferred June to the Autism Program at Washington School in New Milford for the 1983-1984 school year. June acclimated to her new assignment as quickly as her last one. She once again used her skills to establish a rapport with her staff and students, and demonstrated confident decision making while providing strong support to her Program Director.

June's success in the district led to her appointment as Acting Program Director of the Rockleigh Life Skills and Rehabilitation Program in July 1985 and to her permanent appointment to the position in August. An unanticipated administration resignation brought June back to the Washington School Autism Program as Program Director in December of that year.

After just six months in the role of Program Director at the Washington School, June was appointed to the position of Assistant to the Superintendent in July 1986. In 1990, she was promoted to Assistant of Schools and served with distinction in this position for many years, including the assumption of central office administrative responsibility for the school district's "personnel" functions. For a brief time in late 1994 and early 1995 June also served the district as Acting Superintendent of Schools during an extended absence of the Superintendent.

In December of 2002, June was reassigned as Assistant Superintendent back to a leadership position in the Millburn Regional Day School. June retired July 2007, after an illustrious career that spanned more than 25 years.

June's greatest joy came from being a devoted and loving daughter to her parents. She is predeceased by her parents, John who passed away February 1992 and Marie Zabchin who passed away May 2020, her grandmother Rosina Parisi, and paternal grandparents Capiton and Mary Zabchin. June retired to care for her mother and spent many years selflessly tending to her. June was an outstanding daughter, making sure her mother wanted for nothing, attending to all of her medical needs while providing companionship and endless compassion. June was a source of happiness and comfort to her mother throughout her life.

June was a beloved cousin and friend to many and was loved by all. She was always interested in what was going on in the lives of the people she cared about and enjoyed lifelong friendships because of her kindness.

Being both brilliant and talented, June had many interests. She was a voracious reader, and also loved the theatre and music concerts. She was a talented writer and was gifted at writing poetry. June also enjoyed planting flowers and maintained a vegetable garden. The flowers brought beautiful birds to her backyard, and she and her mother could watch the cardinals that came to the yard.

The family would like to thank all of the health care professionals that cared for her during this most difficult time. Although our hearts are heavy, we will celebrate her wonderful life and find comfort that she is now at peace.

Please consider a donation to the Carol G. Simon Cancer Center at Morristown Medical Center for pancreatic research. Checks can be made payable to the Foundation for Morristown Medical Center, 475 South St., Morristown, NJ 07960 or online at www.f4mmc.org. Another option is to donate to your favorite charity.

Private services were held on June 13, 2020. A memorial is planned for June and Marie for a later date. Bizub-Quinlan Funeral Home, 1313 Van Houten Avenue, Clifton handled arrangements. Visit www.bizubquinlan.com for online condolences.