The Raymond R. Delaney Memorial Scholarship was inaugurated during the centennial year of The Council in 1983 in honor of "100 Years of Educational Leadership." In 1990, it was renamed as the Raymond R. Delaney Annual Memorial Scholarship in memory of a past president of NYSCOSS.
2025 Raymond R. Delaney Annual Memorial Scholarship Award
The Distinguished Service Committee selected
Jessica Hutchings, a School Social Worker and Family Support Services Coordinator, in the Grand Island Central School District. Jessica said her “leadership style is one rooted in empathy, collaboration and problem-solving.”
“I also believe that school’s function best when we focus on not only what students learn but how they feel while they are learning,” she continued. Jessica is pursuing a Certificate of Advanced Study in Education Leadership at Buffalo State University while working full-time and raising two young children.
Grand Island Superintendent Dr. Brian Graham explained “What sets Jessica apart is her unwavering dedication to supporting the whole child. Her philosophy isn’t theoretical – it’s lived out every day in our district . . . she is exactly the kind of leader our schools, and our students urgently need.”
The scholarship will be presented at our Tuesday Morning Keynote on September 30, 2025. Thanks to
Partner Utica National Insurance Group for sponsoring this year's award.
2026 Scholarship Process
The scholarship is awarded annually to one individual enrolled in a graduate study program through which a School District Administrator Certificate or Doctoral Degree may be earned. Applicants must be nominated by an active superintendent of The Council with this nomination form. Please complete the nomination form and e-mail to Deidre Hungerford at deidre@nyscoss.org by June 26, 2026. NYSCOSS will contact each applicant directly. Candidates are responsible for sending their completed applications in by July 24, 2026.
The Distinguished Service Committee, composed of current Council presidents and past presidents who are active superintendents, screens all applications and credentials for selection of one candidate. The scholarship winner will be recognized in-person at our 2026 Fall Leadership Summit.
Special thanks to Partner Utica National Insurance Group for their sponsorship of this scholarship.
Selection Criteria:
1. Promise for continued success as a school or district administrator or leader, as evidenced by the quality of the candidate's education, references, and previous or current experience in an administrative or supervisory role.
2. Readiness to grow administratively in the field of education and the likelihood that the candidate may serve in the superintendency during his/her career.
3. Enrollment in a graduate study program leading to the School District Administrator Certificate or Doctor Degree.
4. Currently employed teachers are eligible under some, but not all circumstances. Teachers who work part time in administrative or leadership roles may be considered. For example, teachers who serve as department chairs, academic facilitators, summer school or program principals or directors, coordinators and/or directors of adult or continuing education. Teachers who have assumed a leadership role such as a staff developer, full-time technology support staff or coordinator, or full-time subject matter specialists who works as a department chairs may also be considered. Teachers who have no track record in a continuing administrative or leadership role will not be eligible.
5. Financial need.
6. Superintendents are not eligible.