Ralston’s soul has ignited in her role as superintendent of Silver Creek Central Schools. In getting to the life-altering role she proudly claimed just over a year ago, the position could not fit her any better.

“It was really rewarding to get into a place where I felt like I belong. I feel like this is where I’m supposed to be and what I’m supposed to be doing,” Ralston said.

Ralston accepted the position as the district’s new superintendent in May 2023, with a smile from ear to ear that has become ever so familiar throughout the district ever since.

Prior to joining the Silver Creek family, she told a member of her own family, one of her two older brothers, “There is no way something feels that right if it’s not right.”

Submitted Photos Dr. Katie Ralston was hired as Silver Creek Superintendent in the summer of 2023. Despite the many duties of her new job, her smile is on display throughout the district on a daily basis.

More than a year later, Ralston is even more sure that she is right where she is supposed to be.

EARLY BEGINNINGS

Ralston grew up in Olean with her two older brothers, Adam and Joel. Her parents, Debbie and Scott, both grew up in Western New York and were married for over 30 years. “I was raised by the best, both of them,” Ralston said.

Working in education was never a question for Ralston. As a young child, Ralston’s imaginative play time was always centered around school, but not just in the traditional classroom setting most kids would have imagined.

“I played school before I went to school. I was not even in kindergarten yet. Then I went to school and I couldn’t believe that I didn’t have homework, so then I would pretend that I had homework,” Ralston said. “My parent’s basement was my classroom. They bought me a whiteboard for the wall. I would have fake fire drills down our neighborhood street.”

One of her brothers once joked, “People talk about kids having imaginary friends, but Katie has an entire imaginary school district and no one thinks it’s weird.” Ralston even created grade books, discipline slips, and lesson plans.

“When I interviewed for superintendent, I just thought I’m going to pretend like I’m playing school,” Ralston said. “Not everyone is that fortunate to say that a dream they grew up having is happening, and it’s so much bigger and so much better than I thought it would be.”

As a quote on her desk states, “Little girls with dreams become women of vision.” Ralston has definitely become that, as the State’s Principal of the Year before the age of 30, and then a Superintendent before the age of 40. Earlier this summer, Ralston’s contract as Silver Creek superintendent was extended five years on top of the existing terms of the deal, through June 30, 2030.

Fighting against the notion that administrators are too far removed from the students, Ralston believes it is up to an administrator to be involved with students as much as possible. She often walks throughout the halls to interact with students, attends events during and after school, and even takes photos of students and staff with matching outfits. She coined the phrase, “When we twin, we tweet,” and posts the photos on X, formerly Twitter.

“That’s why I’m doing what I’m doing, because I love kids, because I love education,” Ralston said. “To me, there is a difference between being visible and being present. … How can you be a leader that’s making decisions about things that you’re not in or things you’re not seeing?”

LEARNING NEVER STOPS

Ralston graduated from Olean High School as a member of the Class of 2004. She then attended Edinboro University in Pennsylvania for her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary and Special Education.

After receiving her degree, Ralston worked as a leadership consultant, traveling to colleges for leadership training centered around public speaking, self esteem and other valuable leadership techniques and qualities.

A year later, Ralston returned to her hometown school as a Middle School Special Education Teacher, a position she called her “whole heart.” Ralston’s customary smile spread across her face at the mention of the position. She spent five years in the role before taking a special assignment where she was tasked with curriculum and professional development for the district.

While on special assignment, the position of Middle School Principal at the Cuba-Rushford Central School District came open. Even though she was still in her 20s, Ralston took the leap and applied.

Not only did she get the position, but she excelled at it.

“I fell in love with it,” Ralston said. “I absolutely loved it.”

Through restructuring at the district, Ralston eventually became Grade 6-12 Principal at Cuba-Rushford, picking up the Principal of the Year honor from the School Administrators Association of New York State in 2023.

“I am just so excited to be at work every day. I can’t wait to get here, I love being here,” Ralston said. “… I’ve heard my whole life that no one is really that happy, but I’m really this happy. I really love what I’m doing this much.”

GROWING THROUGH GRIEF

In 2015, just a month before Ralston began the school year as a principal for the first time, her mother passed away after a battle with breast cancer. Debbie Ralston was told she had three months to live during the same week that her daughter was hired as a principal.

Ralston recalls telling her mother, “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to do this.” But without hesitation, Debbie Ralston reassured her daughter.

“It was just not a question to her,” Ralston said. She fondly remembers how proud her mother was to tell people that her daughter was a principal.

In a tragic turn reminiscent of her mother’s passing, Ralston’s father, Scott, also died from cancer, in January of 2023. Within months of his death, Ralston started the interview process for Silver Creek’s superintendent position. She was hired less than six months after his death.

Ralston felt the same trepidation as she felt about her first principal job, but the belief from her parents pushed her forward and encouraged her to believe in herself.

The loss of both of her parents were “obviously the hardest things I’ve ever been through,” Ralston said, but she still feels their presence every day. Family photos are placed in her office, along with inspirational quotes that she relates to.

Losing both of her parents gave Ralston a cruel glimpse into how every day is a gift, not that she needed any reason to be more appreciative or have a more positive outlook on the world each day.

“I love life, I have always loved life. I am excited about everything, I look forward to everything,” Ralston said. “But when I lost my mom, it was devastating. I thought that I don’t know how I’m going to be OK. This career that I love and I’m so passionate about made me come alive again.”

With her father’s passing, the new role at Silver Creek provided the same sort of comfort. “Silver Creek made me come alive again,” Ralston said.

FEARLESS PURSUIT

Even with a job in education, building upon her own experience remained a love of Ralston’s throughout her life. “I feel like I do my best work when I’m learning,” she said.

Ralston’s pursuit of higher education went far beyond her first degree, as she earned a Master’s Degree in Education from Gannon University and her New York School Building/School District Leader Certification from Canisius College. She also completed the Superintendent Development Program through SUNY Oswego.

Among the most impressive accolades to her name is her Doctor of Education in Organizational Learning and Leadership degree from Vanderbilt University, arguably the nation’s top institution for education. She received her Doctorate in 2021.

Ralston’s mother urged her to look into Vanderbilt when she was seeking a program for her Master’s Degree. As one of the top programs in the nation, Debbie Ralston urged her daughter to consider Vanderbilt, but the timing for a summer program didn’t line up with school schedules in Western New York.

Years later, when looking for a Doctorate program, Ralston discovered a new hybrid program at Vanderbilt. She applied in her mother’s memory, but she thought the odds were stacked against her.

“I didn’t think I would get in. It’s the top education school in the country,” Ralston said. “But I applied, I got in, and I (felt) this was meant to be.”

The program blended online classes with several in-person meetings, so Ralston took four trips to Tennessee to attend classes when required. The “intense” program included candidates from various industries, whether in the education field or not. Ralston feels the experience has influenced her work in that it rounded her in the aspects of the education field aside from just educating students.

“It wasn’t because I was focused on becoming a Superintendent. I just want to keep learning, and I want to learn from people in the field who love what they are doing and are really good at what they do,” Ralston said.

LEADING SILVER CREEK

In early 2023, Todd Crandall announced his plans to retire as Silver Creek Superintendent. Although Ralston had never even applied for the role of Superintendent at any district, she took a chance just to learn the process to see how the interviews went. Through the interview process, Ralston felt “ignited” and realized she was truly ready for the responsibility.

At a break in the interview process, Ralston called one of her brothers to say how badly she wanted the job and that she believed she was ready. When she received a call back with the news that she was the district’s selection, she said, “it was no questions asked.”

Ralston enjoyed the final few weeks at Cuba-Rushford before packing up for her new job, as she watched many of the things she put in place come together in the final days of the school year. She said, “I will always have a special place for Cuba-Rushford.”

Ralston’s ability to have a positive impact on a district carried over seamlessly to Silver Creek. As her second year at Silver Creek was set to begin, Silver Creek Board of Education President Martha Howard noted how after more than two decades on the Board, this school year is “maybe the first time I have ever seen the work done at this table pushed through admin., and down to staff. I know in my heart that our goals are not words on paper, but they are work that is going to be done, and we’re going to be successful.”

Throughout her many years of leadership training and experience, Ralston learned, “People follow people before they follow organizations.” She said, “It’s the people here that made me know this is where I want to be.”

Ralston says her biggest career goal is to impact education, no matter how that looks. Her mother’s impact on her has inspired her to leave an impact on others in the best way she knows how.

“I feel like the best compliment I get is when people say I’m just like my mom,” Ralston said.

From the photos by her desk to the way she carries herself as the district’s leader, smiling through it all, Ralston has become the leader her parents knew she would be, dating all the way back to her trial run in their basement as a child.

“They would be proud. I do believe that,” Ralston said.