Rensselaer City School District -

Jennifer Haggerty has lived in the City of Rensselaer for 25 years and is also married to a life long resident, Mr. John Haggerty. John and Jennifer have a 7 year old son Rocco who attends first grade at Van Rensselaer Elementary. She has been a member of the Rensselaer School Board since 2018. Jennifer currently works for New York State Office of Addictions Services and Supports and has 23 years of experience providing direct services to youth and families. She also serves as a board member of the Questar III BOCES school board and president of the Rensselaer Little League. She has always been passionate about children and education. Jennifer truly believes the children of Rensselaer are our most precious asset and that the world can be very challenging for them to navigate. School has the greatest responsibility and opportunity, second to families, to influence them. It is her highest priority to give them a solid educational base, foster growth and contribute to their success.

I believe in public schools, teachers and the potential of our children. I want Rensselaer children to have the best in classrooms, technology, buses, meals, teachers, special ed, mental health services and more. Board members must embrace a vision and help our school team bring it to reality. I have been an education advocate all my life and a leader in school bus safety at the state and national levels. I’ll put in the hard work for our children.

James Preston is a lifelong resident of Rensselaer, and wife Melissa has also lived here for the past 20 years. His two children Luke and Madeline both attend Van Rensselaer Elementary School in 4th and 2nd grades respectively. For the past 10 years he has served the Department of Homeland Security for TSA at 8 Airports as a Tier 2 Enterprise Network engineer. James served Honorably in both the United States Marine Corps (88-93) and United States Navy (95-96). Between 2004 and 2008 he supported The United States Army in Both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom for 3 Years, serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.
James has served on the Board since July of 2020, he ran for the seat because as a parent of students, a taxpayer and friend to many teachers and staff of the district he felt he could bring a well rounded perspective to the challenges we are currently facing.