LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Molly Clapper was nominated by her colleague, Santana Koebele.

"It doesn't take long to see how essential Molly is to our school district and community. I have worked with Molly for about five months, and I've been nothing short of impressed with her effectiveness as a leader and agent of change in our local schools and community," said Koebele. "She advocates for students in need instead of delegating responsibilities to outside agencies. Molly utilizes school resources and communicates with staff in order to improve student situations and experiences. Her dedication to improving staff, student, and family experiences has led to improved relationships and atmospheres within and across our schools and community."

"As the Director of Student Services, Molly has more responsibilities than I could ever balance effectively. With that being said, Molly does this with a level of compassion and effectiveness that is rare," said Koebele. "She is dedicated to our district, and she always speaks highly of the district whenever she's presented with the opportunity. She supervises a number of employees in the district, including intervention specialists, related service staff such as speech-language pathologists, physical and occupational therapists, and the school psychologist and school social worker. Additionally, she is highly involved in improving our school systems and processes. The best way to describe Molly's work at Mount Gilead is that if a student's involved, it falls within the scope of her position."

Ms. Clapper integrates herself into her school district and plays an active role in more cases than one would expect. Her follow-through is amazing, and her willingness to help is genuine. While her role consists of working on a large number of cases involving students who could be considered "at-risk," Ms. Clapper treats students, guardians, and cases with compassion, respect, and dignity. She maintains confidentiality and doesn't gossip or share details which would violate her professional or personal ethics. Gaining and maintaining trust with others is something she takes seriously.

"I believe Molly feels that no situation is too big or too small when a student or family needs assistance. She understands that a school's duties don't stop at simply providing instruction from 8am to 3pm, Monday through Friday," said Koebele. "Molly is an excellent example of an educator who regularly changes the lives of others. I am beyond excited to continue working with her in an effort to serve students and families in the Mount Gilead District. With Molly's guidance and assistance, I have no doubt that our students are in good hands."