Hollister
– After five years under Kathy O’Donnell’s leadership, Sacred
Heart Parish School has hired Alaskan transplant Jennifer Smith as
its new principal.
Hollister – After five years under Kathy O’Donnell’s leadership, Sacred Heart Parish School has hired Alaskan transplant Jennifer Smith as its new principal.
Sacred Heart hired Smith, 36, to replace O’Donnell after she announced her retirement in the spring.
The longtime public school teacher and administrator said she’s excited about leading a small, private Catholic school where she’ll be given the opportunity to provide “education for the whole child.”
Although Smith taught for more than 10 years previously, most recently she attended law school and worked as a paralegal.
She soon realized, however, that practicing law was not for her. Smith hopes she learned something from her experience in law school and as a paralegal.
“I wanted to become a better advocate for kids, so hopefully I’ve learned something that I can use from that,” Smith said. “But I didn’t want to come to work and fight every day. I wanted to be around teachers and kids.”
Smith searched out administrative positions under the Monterey diocese and found that the Sacred Heart principal position would fit her perfectly.
She was looking for a small town with a tight-knit community and a strong Catholic base, she said.
“(Sacred Heart) met with all those criteria, so that’s what drew me here,” Smith said.
Parents are excited about that interest in the community. Mindy Scherr, president of the school’s parent organization, said she was sad O’Donnell left, but excited about opportunities under new leadership.
“I think Jen’s openness is going to be her strength,” Scherr said. “She has been very available and eager to meet everybody, and she has a lot of enthusiasm and energy she is putting out.”
Smith said she had been well received by the Hollister community and looks forward to working with and growing with the Sacred Heart family.
An ingrained camaraderie drew Smith to the Catholic school system – a change of pace from the public system in which she had worked previously.
The Catholic school system has the freedom to “teach the whole child equally,” Smith said. She wants to ensure all students leave the preschool through eighth-grade school not only with math and spelling skills, but also with the ability to empathize with other people.
“If we leave that social and emotional side out, we will end up with kids who are lacking that empathy,” Smith said. “I get very serious about making sure kids have the tools to be successful.”
Smith said she hopes to stick around for many years and already has made some long-term plans for the school.
This year, she plans to primarily get to the know the community, staff and children. From there, she expects to create a vision for the school’s future.
“I’m, above all, a servant,” Smith said. “We’re here to serve the children and work with the parents to raise the children.”
