Sara T. Jackson Award
After her retirement, associate dean of students emerita Sara T.—Sally to her friends—Jackson established a scholarship that recognizes an outstanding student during their junior year.
Ms. Jackson joined the faculty at Brockport in 1921, teaching Biology, Elementary Education, and Home Economics. She previously taught in her hometown of Groton, NY, after graduating in 1915 from Cornell University. She earned her master’s degree from Columbia University in 1927.
In 1945, she became associate dean of students, serving as Dean of Women at the request of then president Dr. Ernest Hartwell. As dean, she continued to teach biology. She was also the first woman member of the College’s Administrative Council.
Dr. Margaret Preska ’57, retired president of the Minnesota State University, Mankato, and former member of the Brockport Foundation Board of Directors, noted that Ms. Jackson’s “door was always open….she encouraged all who entered to be all that they could be.”
Ms. Jackson explained her philosophy for working with a variety of students, saying, “There are no cut-and-dried roles for handling people. I try to handle everyone alike [something that] is not always easy because personalities differ.”
In 1956, she announced her retirement at the end of the spring term. The College hired a replacement for the fall 1956 semester; however, the new dean resigned before then end of that term. Ms. Jackson was asked to return during a second search for a new Dean of Women, and she returned as interim associate dean from January through October 1957.
She remained in the Brockport community after she retired and volunteered with the Red Cross and the Twig Association of Lakeside Hospital. In 1973, the College conferred the emerita distinction on her. She established the scholarship in her name in 1983. And, in 1988 she passed away just before her 98th birthday.
Students who qualify for the Sara T. Jackson Award have completed their freshman year at Brockport and are completing their sophomore years at the College at the time of application. They need to demonstrate academic achievement through a GPA of 3.0 or better and involvement in activities that serve the College and the community.