How this superintendent is breaking barriers with fewer resources

Even in a small community like the Sackets Harbor Central School District in New York, superintendents can drive meaningful change. Here’s how this superintendent is making award-winning progress for students.

Superintendent Jennifer Gaffney, who was recently named New York’s Superintendent of the Year, stands confident in her ability to improve student outcomes, despite having fewer resources than most districts around the country. She attributes her recent success to the buy-in mentality of her staff.

“I see [the award] as a reflection of the work that my colleagues and our school community as a whole have done over the last several years,” she says. “If you were to come and visit Sackets Harbor, you would see how interconnected and engaged everyone is around our school community. That’s what really stands out.”

Combatting mental health challenges

Foundational to Gaffney’s leadership philosophy is her focus on student mental health. Sackets Harbor partners with several local organizations to provide mental health services to students.

“Mental health has been a big focus following the COVID-19 pandemic,” Gaffney says. “We recognized that there was a significant need, so we developed a number of creative strategies and solutions.”

This includes creating the Sackets Support Center using American Rescue Plan funds. A coalition of special assignment teachers focused heavily on teaching life skills while also serving as liaisons between students and mental health support.

Now, the district relies on an organization called Pivot to deliver this service full-time, relieving the responsibilities once held by teachers on special assignment.

“It’s a great example of how our community and partnerships come together to nurture our students and ensure they have what they need to be successful,” she says.

For example, the district partners with the Children’s Home of Jefferson County to run a satellite mental health clinic on campus.

Sackets Harbor also boasts “the most amazing” parent-teacher organization, and music and athletic booster clubs.

“They’re just parent volunteers, parent-teacher staff and coaches who are working to raise funds and create opportunities to enhance the overall educational experience for our students,” she says. “We have so much going on.”

Achieving success with limited resources

Regardless of the district’s capacity, Gaffney says her team constantly asks, “How can we be better?” She says leadership is comfortable taking risks and trying new things.

This year, the district is launching a “Grow Your Own” program to identify students who are interested in becoming educators by giving them “on-the-job” experience.

“We’re targeting our 11th and 12th grade students for this opportunity,” she says. “We’ve identified a couple of future educators, and because of the limitations with the master schedule, we’re only able to work with just a few of them to launch the program, which is not a bad thing.”

She says she’d rather focus on the few students who are helping launch the program to ensure they “get it right.”

Sackets Harbor is considered “median needs” by state standards. Under-resourced districts are forced to be fiscally conservative and bound to their respective tax cap, limiting fundraising.

“We try to stay under the tax cap, so we struggle to have the resources we need to offer the best education,” she explains. “We are always looking for creative ways and bringing in the community to support us.”

Another bright spot is Sackets Harbor’s ability to deliver with fewer staff who are forced to wear multiple hats.

“Oftentimes, there’s so much work and not enough people to get it all done,” Gaffney says. “In addition to the superintendent role, I’m also the athletic director. Our principal also leads the technology department. She leads all curriculum pre-K through 12.”

“It’s definitely challenging and the demands are incredibly rigorous working in a small school district, but the rewards obviously outweigh that, because you get to know each one of your students personally, and you get to know their families.

“The culture and atmosphere make it all worth it.”