Jay Ciraco Selected As Harrison Varsity Football Coach

The Harrison Central School District is pleased to announce that following a comprehensive search process, Mr. Jay Ciraco has been selected to serve as the Harrison High School Varsity Football Coach. Mr. Ciraco’s selection as the head coach included a process that sought feedback from student-athletes, parents and community members. The Athletic Director and Assistant Athletic Director surveyed and met with stakeholder groups including varsity, junior varsity, and modified football players; parents of student-athletes; alumni; members of the Harrison Husky Football Hall of Fame; and community members. Input from these stakeholder groups helped to refine the qualities sought in the head coach, which include:

• Knowledge and respect of the rich history of Harrison football.
• Instilling a winning mindset that emphasizes skill-building, effort and progress.
• Extensive football knowledge and the ability to teach proper techniques and schemes, to adjust and adapt to maximize player performance, and to increase team success.
• Leadership that promotes a culture of respect, ethical behavior, accountability, and high expectations.
• Holding stakeholders (athletes, coaching staff, families, alumni) accountable for exemplifying the mission and core values of the program.
• Developing a systemic approach beginning in youth football through the varsity program that promotes student participation across all grade levels.
• Leading safety/skill-based workshops to parents and the community to promote the game of football.
• Overseeing and implementing a year-round strength and conditioning program.

Candidates were evaluated according to these criteria in screening and committee interviews. The interview committee included the Athletic Director and Assistant Athletic Director, the High School Principal and Assistant Principal, current coaches, and football players.

Through this rigorous review process, Mr. Ciraco emerged as the unanimous choice to lead the Harrison Husky football team. Mr. Ciraco graduated from Harrison High School in 2002 as a three-sport captain (football, basketball, baseball) and helped to lead the Harrison football team to three sectional titles, two state championships, and one state title in 1999. As an accomplished football player, Mr. Ciraco was named an all-section player for two years and a member of the All New York State Team and a Con Edison Award winner in his senior year. For the past two years, Mr. Ciraco has served as an assistant varsity football coach in Harrison and previously served as the assistant varsity football coach in Scarsdale from 2005 to 2016, where he helped lead the team to the section AA finals in 2016.

Mr. Ciraco also serves as a physical education teacher at Louis M. Klein Middle School and coaches varsity baseball and girls basketball. He attended George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, where he played baseball and was named a conference player of the week. As an accomplished Harrison student-athlete and a respected teacher and coach, Mr. Ciraco exemplifies the values that the Harrison community holds for its football program.

According to Mr. Ciraco, “It has always been a lifelong dream to be an educator and the head football coach of the Harrison Huskies. My experience as a Husky has prepared me to promote a positive culture around respect, accountability, commitment, and development for our students.”