08/19/2026
BOE Update: Superintendent Farewell Message
Dear Members of our New Hartford School Community,
With a full heart and an incredible sense of gratitude, I am writing to share that I have made the very difficult decision to resign from my position with the district, effective August 18, 2026.
There are moments in our professional lives when words seem inadequate to express what we are feeling. This is one of those moments. Serving this school community has been one of the greatest privileges of my professional life. Schools are not simply buildings, classrooms, schedules, programs, or budgets. Schools are people. They are children discovering who they are, teachers inspiring and challenging them, support staff making countless things possible behind the scenes, families entrusting us with what matters most, and a community coming together because it believes deeply in its children.
I have been extraordinarily fortunate to be part of such a community.
Students have been at the center of every decision, every conversation, every challenge, and every success. Their curiosity, humor, resilience, kindness, and determination are reminders of why we do this work. Watching students learn, grow, overcome obstacles, and discover their own strengths has been an honor I will carry with me. Our teachers cannot be thanked enough. Their dedication extends far beyond the school day and far beyond the responsibilities written in any job description. Teachers show up for children when they need someone to believe in them. They celebrate their successes, help them through their struggles, and continually work to make our schools better. I have tremendous respect for the professionalism, compassion, and commitment our teachers bring to this work every day.
Entrusting a child to a school is an extraordinary act of faith. I am grateful for the many conversations, partnerships, questions, ideas, encouragement, and even difficult moments that have made our community stronger. We may not always have agreed, but I have always appreciated the shared commitment of doing what is best for children. Public education is demanding work. It requires difficult decisions, thoughtful debate, patience, courage, and an unwavering belief that our children deserve our very best. I am grateful for the opportunity to have been part of that work.
Some professional relationships become friendships, and some experiences become memories that stay with us for a lifetime. I will remember the conversations in hallways and offices, the celebrations, the challenges we worked through together, the laughter, the long days, and the moments when we knew that, despite everything, we had made a difference. Leaving is never easy when you care deeply about the people and place you are leaving behind. That is what makes this decision so difficult. There is no perfect time to say goodbye, and there is no way to adequately capture in a letter what this community has meant to me. I leave with tremendous pride in what we have accomplished together, but even more importantly, I leave with tremendous faith in what lies ahead. I know that the work will continue. Our students will continue to learn. Our teachers will continue to inspire. Our families will continue to advocate. And this community will continue to evolve, grow, and strive for excellence.
Please know that my decision does not diminish in any way the gratitude I feel for having had the opportunity to serve. Quite the opposite. It is precisely because this community means so much to me that saying goodbye is so difficult. The greatest measure of a school is not found in its buildings, test scores, programs, or accomplishments. It is found in the lives it touches. I hope that, in some small way, my time here has made a positive difference in the lives of the students, staff, and families I have had the privilege to serve. I will carry those relationships and memories with me wherever the next chapter takes me.
Thank you for welcoming me, trusting me, challenging me, supporting me, and allowing me to be part of something much larger than myself. Most of all, thank you for allowing me to serve your children. It has been an honor. It has been a privilege. And it has been a chapter of my life for which I will always be profoundly grateful.
With sincere appreciation and a very full heart,
Jeffrey Sousa
