BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Dawn Cullingford has made an impact in a short time at Starke Elementary School, and people have noticed.
In just her second year manning the front desk, Cullingford was voted as the school’s Employee of the Year. Shortly after that, she was announced as the Employee of the Year for the entire school district.
“You know, I’m just up here doing my job,” Cullingford said. “That’s all I’m doing, but I guess it’s a great job that I’m doing. People are seeing that and noticing that. That’s very special to me. That means a lot.”
Cullingford worked various jobs in which she didn’t feel appreciated prior to becoming a stay-at-home mom. She’s found a different atmosphere at Starke Elementary.
“Just being here at Starke Elementary — it’s so rewarding,” Cullingford said. “I feel valued. My opinion matters. I’m seen. I’m heard.
“It feels like a big family — like an extension of family.”
Principal Laurén Morgan said, “I don’t think there’s anybody on this campus who doesn’t have love in their heart for Miss Dawn.”
Cullingford hadn’t been in a work setting for 19 years. When she returned in 2023, she was the aftercare program coordinator at Bradford Elementary School for one year.
“They did away with that program,” Cullingford said. “Then this position (at Starke Elementary) came open last year.”
Morgan said interviewing Cullingford left her with no doubts that she had found the right person for the job. Nothing since her hiring has proved otherwise.
“She was an immediate fit for the front desk,” Morgan said, adding, “You want folks to be welcomed and greeted on the phone. She’s got a positive attitude. The reality is sometimes people are a little bit unhappy about something, but she’s very good about calming them and saying, ‘How can I assist you? What can I do to help? Let me get you to the right person.’ De-escalating any situation — she’s got a knack for it. I just think it’s her personality.”
Cullingford said she loves smiling and enjoys helping people, which have obviously been a plus for the school.
“If I interact with someone, I want it to be a good interaction,” Cullingford said.
Multi-tasker
It isn’t just Cullingford’s personality that’s made her a good fit for her position. The job allows her to put her previous work experience to use. It’s often hectic — Morgan described the job to Cullingford as being an air-traffic controller — but Cullingford has been able to handle it.
“Sometimes I feel like an octopus,” Cullingford said, adding, “I kind of feel like I thrive on it almost. When I started here, I felt like I was jumping right back into all my other jobs.”
Morgan is impressed with Cullingford’s ability to juggle all her duties, saying, “She’s able to multi-task with the best of them.”
Despite all the facets of the position, the one that stands out is answering the phone.
“That thing will ring off the hook all day sometimes,” Cullingford said.
Cullingford said the end of the workday often brings a sigh of relief as well as decompression time on the way home.
“I usually ride home in silence,” she said. “No radio. No anything. It’s just quiet time in my car. That gives me a 20-, 30-minute drive that I can just have to myself. Maybe roll down the window, get some fresh air.”
When the next day rolls around, she’s ready to go back to work.
“I love my job,” Cullingford said. “I love coming here. I love the people. I wish everyone had the same experience.”
Morgan sees that love for the job, noting that Cullingford goes above and beyond.
“She’ll do anything that you ask and even things that you don’t ask,” Morgan said, adding, “One Sunday, she texted me. She was up here decorating a bulletin board on her own free time. I didn’t ask her to do that. She decorates our front office for every holiday, and she does it with love and care and pure joy.”
Life away from work
Cullingford and her husband, Derrick, have been together 38 years.
“He is my best friend,” Cullingford said.
They raised two sons: Dakota, who’s 25, and Riley, who’s 18.
“We adore them both,” Cullingford said. “We just like to try to spend time with them and our grand-dog.”
The family enjoys camping and hiking in the mountains. Cullingford said their favorite places to camp are “anywhere there’s hiking and cool weather.”
After raising two boys, Cullingford is enjoying having a female around in Riley’s girlfriend.
“I have had so much fun buying presents for a girl finally,” Cullingford said regarding her Christmas shopping. She added, “If I could’ve picked anybody for him, it would have been her. She’s amazing.”
A surprise announcement
Cullingford normally makes school-wide announcements, so it surprised her one day when she heard someone else’s voice come on over the intercom system.
“I’m working away, and I hear this very deep voice come on,” Cullingford said. “I was like, ‘Who is that? Why is somebody else on the intercom?’”
That deep voice belonged to Superintendent of Schools Will Hartley, who was on campus to announce Cullingford as the district’s School-Related Employee of the Year.
“We snuck him in,” Morgan said. “He came in through the side because if he would’ve walked in the front, (Cullingford) would’ve seen him.”
In hindsight, teacher Amber Hartley’s presence at the front desk should’ve tipped Cullingford off that something was up.
“I didn’t think anything about Mrs. Hartley being up there,” Cullingford said. “The whole time she was filming me, and I didn’t even know because I was so involved in what I was trying to do and focus on my work.”
Amber Hartley (the superintendent’s wife) had her phone out and was taking video, which you can view on the Starke Elementary School – Bradford County School District Facebook page. It captures Cullingford’s reaction to hearing that she was the district’s top employee: “Are you seriously kidding me? Oh, my gosh. That is crazy news.”
“She was so stunned and shocked,” Morgan said. “It was quite a priceless moment.”
Cullingford said, “I’m still shocked.”
Morgan will tell you the honor is a confirmation of what she and everyone else at Starke Elementary already know — that Cullingford has been an asset to the school.
“I feel like she does make Starke Elementary a brighter, better place,” Morgan said.
