Approximately 200 graduates.

That is the number of atrisk students who have earned their high school diploma in the last 20 years with the help of the staff at Jacket Academy.

Lynn Barnett has led the Kingfisher Public School alternative education program since shortly after its inception in 1998.

But that will end in May when Barnett steps into retirement.

“It was not an easy decision,” said Barnett. “It’s difficult because some of the kids I work with today will still be here next year, but I won’t. It is hard to turn it off when I go home because I care about them.”

Barnett took over the helm of the alternative education program in 2000.

She has since become a mentor to countless high school and a few middle school students who fell behind their peers academically for one reason or another.

“I don’t know if anyone can completely understand what Lynn has done for Kingfisher schools for the last 20 years,” Jason Sternberger, Kingfisher Public Schools superintendent said. “She has a special way of reaching out and convincing students how important it is to get a high school diploma.”

Barnett attended Connors State College in Warner, where she met her husband of almost 40 years, Desmond.

She graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelor of science in family and consumer sciences and has been an educator for 38 years.

She started her educational career at Mabel Bassett Correctional Center for women in McLoud where she taught for 17 years.

Barnett not only taught classes to help women in the prison earn a high school diploma but also life skills, parenting, decision-making and literacy.

She then taught one year of family and consumer science at Enid High School before accepting the director position at Jacket Academy.

The Kingfisher alternative education program was established to serve students who are at-risk of not completing their secondary education and receiving a high school diploma.

Barnett said students may be struggling academically for a variety of reasons.

Sometimes parents relocate in the middle of a semester and the classes may be structured differently in the school where they came from.

Others may have had a death in the family or other catastrophic event. Some students may lack basic necessities, like sufficient food, and if basic needs are not being met then school is not a priority.

“There is often a misconception that alternative education is for students with behavior problems, but it is really a program to help students get caught up academically and help them complete their high school education,” Barnett said.

She said, the reason students are in the program is not necessarily because of poor choices. They often need more flexibility over issues that are out of their control.

“Often when students get behind they just give up,” Barnett said. “We try to keep them in school and help kids so they are not trying to dog-paddle for the next several years.”

All school districts are required to have access to an alternative education program in order to meet the needs of all students.

Kingfisher Jacket Academy currently also has students from Okarche and Lomega, who formed a cooperative with Kingfisher to accommodate their students. Cashion also used to co-op with Kingfisher Jacket Academy but is now affiliated with Francis Tuttle Technology Center.

Currently assisting Barnett at the program are Ruthie Bengs and Vicky Allen.

Along with providing the academic instruction for core subjects, art, life skills and group counseling are part of the program.

The seating is limited and accommodates about 16 students. Each student is working to accomplish individualized curriculum and goals.

In addition to the classroom, a kitchen with a washer and dryer is available to teach life skills.

Some of the students take classes at Chisholm Trail Technology Center or classes at the high school. It requires some juggling and flexibility to meet the student’s individual needs, Barnett said.

Some of the bigger school districts have waiting lists for their alternative education program, Barnett said. “Sometimes we have to prioritize so seniors can graduate on time, but we work to help every student.”

Everyone needs the right to try to succeed and the students must also be willing to participate in the solution, Barnett said.

“I think students seem to respond so well to Lynn because they see how much she cares about their personal well-being,” Sternberger said. “It takes a special person to work with the kids and truly believe in them and their abilities.”

Barnett sees something special in every student and considers them family.

“I tell them we are a family and we need to be supportive and respectful of each other. Maybe you had a bad day yesterday but we are starting over today,” she said.

“What a huge blessing Lynn has been to Kingfisher Public Schools,” Paula Leffingwell, KHS counselor, said. “The students in her program are extremely lucky because she genuinely cares for their well-being while they are with her and way beyond after they’ve graduated. Lynn not only teaches those kids classwork, she also teaches them life lessons that will benefit them once they leave her.”

Adjacent to Jacket Academy is the Kingfisher School Food Pantry which was started and is supervised by Kingfisher school counselors, with the help of Barnett. It serves families of eligible students within the Kingfisher School District who are experiencing hunger.

“Many in the community didn’t recognize the need for a food pantry at the school. But once they learned students were experiencing hunger and lack of food, the community has been very supportive,” Barnett said.

It operates through donations from corporations and private citizens, and receives a monthly delivery from the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.

Barnett said the Jacket Academy students help unload the monthly truck delivery and stock the shelves of the pantry as a service project.

As for retirement, Barnett said she is looking forward to spending more time with her family.

Desmond is retired from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol after 32 years of service. He now works as a deputy at the Kingfisher County Courthouse.

Their oldest daughter, Caitlyn and husband, David Flesher live in Florida and work at Walt Disney World.

Hannah, their youngest daughter, and her husband, Adam Post, live in Chandler where she works as a nurse and he is an OHP trooper. They are expecting a baby in August.

“Our school is fortunate to have had Lynn as the alternative education director and I know I for one will miss her tremendously,” Leffingwell said.

As for the void left to be filled, Sternberger said, “We will make sure we find someone, like Lynn, who is the right fit and wants to foster confidence in the students and help them to achieve success.”