Spaulding Family

At Spaulding Academy & Family Services, each member of our staff can make a difference in a child’s life. That is why we cherish our employees – we all share the same commitment to helping children and youth to achieve their full potential.

careers

Regardless of the role they play here on campus, Spaulding Academy & Family Services values each and every individual on our staff. Every day, our team works together to provide quality programs and services for our students and build strong, respectful relationships. In fact, many of our employees consider their Spaulding Academy & Family Services colleagues as family.

Below are just a few of our family members and staff events to provide insight to our culture here on campus. Check back often as we will continue showcasing more of our cherished staff and fun team activities.

Heather Max: Spending Time with Her Two Families Matters Most

Over 13 years ago, Heather Max discovered an opening for a residential program secretary at Spaulding Academy & Family Services. Heather always had an interest in special education, even using her high school study hall to volunteer in the special education classroom. As she read through the job posting, Spaulding’s mission resonated with her, and ...

It was just six years ago when Jennifer McAllister joined Spaulding Academy & Family Services as a staff accountant. She says, “I had held similar positions in other New Hampshire nonprofits and when I saw the job posting, I knew I had to apply. Having grown up in Northfield, I’ve always known about Spaulding Academy, their ...

Lara Woytowich: Nurturing Mission-Driven Excellence

Serendipity played a role in bringing Lara Woytowich, our amazing Controller, to Spaulding Academy & Family Services. Lara joined our family as a Senior Staff Accountant in 2017, becoming the second person for our newly-formed finance team. With 11 years as an accountant at a nonprofit, Lara was moving from upstate New York to New ...

Nicole Keefe: Making Impactful Connections

It’s been nearly five years since Nicole Keefe responded to a Spaulding Academy & Family Services job posting on Indeed.com seeking a paraprofessional – and she hasn’t looked back. Nicole holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Studio Art from Saint Anselm College. She always enjoyed working with children ...

Jason Sterner: Inspiring Adventure and Empowering Students

Jason Sterner is a long-time friendly face and enthusiastic advocate of adventure-based learning whether throughout our 500+-acre campus or in surrounding areas. In fact, he celebrated 25 years this year, with 23 years of these as the Outdoor Education Coordinator of the Experiential Challenges Outdoors (EChO) program at Spaulding Academy. EChO provides students the chance ...

Arthur Greenwood: Ensures Campuswide Safety Every Day

As a father of four and grandfather of seven, Arthur “Art” Greenwood takes his role as Safety Coordinator on the Support Services team very seriously. He is responsible for every aspect of campus safety and is celebrating ten years at Spaulding.

Cindy Kurahara: Leading Colleagues and Families with Care

It’s been nearly nine years since Cindy Kurahara, MSW, LICSW, left retirement to directly support families and staff of the Spaulding Academy & Family Services Community Based Programs. With years of experience working in foster care and adoption at Casey Family Services, she originally joined the team part-time as a Family Aide. However, a family ...

Nichole Brizer: Always Lending a Helping Hand

Anyone who knows Nichole Brizer would describe her as a helper. Every day, she looks for ways to improve the lives of those around her and jumps in whenever she can. As a Residential shift leader and counselor at Spaulding Academy & Family Services, this compassion is highly valued by her co-workers and the children ...

Kristin Cain: Building Positive Relationships Campuswide

Kristin Cain has a natural talent for connecting with others. Her positive outlook, combined with her caring personality, make her a trusted co-worker and adored counselor among the children she’s worked with over the years. Kristin began her journey on the Spaulding Academy & Family Services Residential team nearly 18 years ago. She worked as a ...

Donnelle Combs: A Compassionate Advocate for Children

It’s been 19 years since Donnelle Combs joined the staff of Spaulding Academy & Family Services after graduating from Plymouth State University with a degree in Psychology and Law. One of the few male employees on the Residential team at the time, he quickly became a go-to staff favorite for the children on campus. Today, Donnelle ...

Nick Silva is described by his colleagues as engaging and calming with Spaulding students, as well as respectful, a great listener and impactful in what he does every day. It truly is no wonder why he is so well-liked by students and staff members alike. Eight years ago, Nick Silva was interested in working for Spaulding ...

Stephanie Capen has always had a special place in her heart for children. She began her career in special education in 2008 and realized it was a perfect fit for her. After working in various paraprofessional roles, including at the Lighthouse School in Chelmsford, Massachusetts and at Easterseals in Manchester, New Hampshire, she was hired ...

If you ask Dawn Hinxman what she enjoys most about her role at Spaulding Academy & Family Services, one word comes to her mind: “family.” Dawn, who serves as office manager of the Support Services team, loves the supportive and caring family feeling that’s found campuswide. “Spaulding is a true family. The staff treat each other ...

Caroline Ryan: Guiding Children with a Caring Heart

Caroline Ryan is no stranger to hard work. She successfully worked various jobs, including in retail services and as an overnight security guard, while paying for her college tuition. When a friend employed by Spaulding Academy & Family Services recommended she apply for an overnight Residential program position, Caroline was intrigued – although she had ...

Morgan Bailey: Creatively Communicating to Improve Lives

The career plan to become a teacher was forever altered the day Morgan Bailey, MS, CCC-SLP, observed a speech language pathologist (SLP) help a dying stroke patient say, “I love you” to his family. “That’s when I immediately decided I wanted to help people find their voice,” Morgan explains. After graduating from the University of New ...

It was 2016 when John Fallon fell in love with the campus—and the unique spirit that encompasses it—of Spaulding Academy & Family Services. The community-based clinician had recently worked in a methadone clinic and knew that an increasing number of children were being negatively affected by the opioid epidemic. He was drawn to the chance ...

Denise Elliott: Motivated by Enduring Relationships

In 1997, Denise Elliott learned that Spaulding Academy & Family Services was seeking part-time residential employees. She was employed at Franklin Regional Hospital, now Lakes Region General Hospital (LRGH), in the Central Sterile Department and received her LNA (licensed nursing assistant) license while working there. She was interested in adding a part-time job to her ...

Today, Bridget Desjardins is a Special Education Teacher at Spaulding Academy & Family Services, currently working with kindergarten through second grade students who inspire confidence that she made the right career choice. When Bridget was hired as a paraprofessional at Spaulding in 2015, she was a former preschool teacher seeking an opportunity to work in ...

When Brendan Donahue was in high school, he was inspired to teach children with physical disabilities how to sail because of his father who survived and thrived with only one leg. These experiences were very meaningful to him, so when he saw an online job posting for a Residential Assistant at Spaulding Academy & Family ...

Dennis Galimberti – Creatively and Expertly Improving the Campus Environment

At every point in his career, Dennis Galimberti has made an impactful difference. Upon graduating from high school, he joined the U.S. Army and was stationed in Germany for four years. He has served in the National Guard ever since, completing three international deployments over the past 12 years. Most recently, Dennis was instrumental in ...

Kori Kidder: Building and Modeling Healthy Relationships

Kori Kidder was still pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Human Development and Family Studies at the University of New Hampshire (UNH) when she applied for a position as a residential substitute in early August of 2019. Her degree, along with her interests and the connections made with students early on, assured her that Spaulding Academy ...

Cheryl Consoletti was introduced to Spaulding Academy & Family Services while she was an undergraduate student at Plymouth State College. She was minoring in Special Education and completed an internship in the residential team. At the time, there were no positions available to hire Cheryl after her internship ended. She was disappointed because she had ...

Kristine Groz: Inspiration Leads to Growth

It’s been almost 21 years since Kristine Groz of Northfield started her career at Spaulding Academy & Family Services. Her gentle and patient demeanor made her a great fit for her first position as associate teacher in the neurobehavioral classrooms. Her time working with now-retired teacher Theresa Hemmer served as a mentorship opportunity. Kristine credits her ...

Jesse Kosman‐Holland – Cooking Up A Recipe for Success

Jesse Kosman‐ Holland began her Spaulding journey 10 years ago after working as a cook at Campton Cupboard, a grocery store in Campton, New Hampshire. She learned there was a dining services opportunity at Spaulding and was immediately drawn to the position after hearing about the students and their touching life stories. Based on her ...

Doris Theberge – Four Decades of Making a Difference

Doris Theberge is described by her colleagues as skillful, compassionate and understanding, as well as a great listener with amazing clinical skills. She is always willing to lend a helping hand and cares deeply about the children she works with every day. Doris has led by example since her first day at Spaulding –almost 40 ...

A nursing veteran, Caroline Hanly has over twenty-seven years of nursing experience, including management, education and mentoring of nursing staff as well as facilitating the ongoing assessment of patient and family needs to implement a coordinated team care plan. Prior to joining Spaulding, she worked as Nursing Supervisor and an Emergency Department Registered Nurse at ...

Catrina Bosh began working as a Teaching Associate at Spaulding Youth Center in 2008. She was drawn to the position after learning about Spaulding’s unique students and knew she was up for the challenge. In her role, Catrina is responsible for assisting students in the classroom, orchestrating projects and leading various activities. Though it is ...

Carol Sanborn – A True Go-Getter for Almost 35 Years

Carol Sanborn is described by her colleagues as a creative, wise and positive go-getter and problem solver. While some say time changes everything, that is certainly not the case for Carol’s work ethic – she has been part of the Spaulding Youth Center family for almost 35 years! Carol began her journey at Spaulding thirty-four years ...

Kevin Flanagan – Making the Most out of Life at Spaulding

Kevin Flanagan spent the last sixteen years working as a Health & Risk Management Advisor for a public risk pool, a nonprofit organization that provides health and safety benefits to New Hampshire public schools and municipalities. After careful consideration, Kevin decided to leave his job and take some time off to explore his options and ...

Ashley Donahue – The Place She is Meant to Be

Ashley Donahue knew her professional interest was niche. She always wanted to work with children with emotional and behavioral disorders and wanted to make a difference in the lives of those who were not fortunate enough to have a caring, loving childhood. Ashley had spent time working at the Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) clinic for ...

Linda Pletch – A Past, Present & Future Impact

As one of the organization’s longest-tenured employees, Linda Pletch knows Spaulding Youth Center inside and out. Her experience working in the organization’s clinical services, educational and residential programs for the past thirty years make her nothing short of an expert on all things Spaulding. This knowledge combined with her positive and insightful personality led her ...

Michael Schaffnit – Supporting Exceptional Kids for 10 Years

Michael Schaffnit began working at Spaulding Youth Center as a 1:1 aide in 2009. He had been looking for a new job and was convinced by his brother (also a Spaulding employee) to join the organization. Michael told himself his employment at Spaulding would only be temporary. However, once he started working with the students ...

Scott Dunlop – 2018 Spaulding Teacher of the Year

Scott Dunlop is no stranger to Spaulding Youth Center. In fact, he grew up in Northfield, New Hampshire right next door to the organization’s scenic campus. Scott joined Spaulding Youth Center in 1995 as a Special Education Teacher following his time as a student teacher. While he was familiar with the organization’s campus and mission, he ...

Joyce McKenney – Memories for a Lifetime

Joyce McKenney is no stranger to working with children or to Spaulding Youth Center. In fact, she worked at Spaulding for 23 years prior to departing the organization in 2005 to accept a position as Student Support Center Coordinator at Newfound Regional High School. In 2017, Joyce rejoined Spaulding Youth Center and was pleased to ...

Russ Wiles – 2017 Q4 Spaulding Spirit Award Winner The Spaulding Spirit Award is a peer‐nominated award given to a staff member who exemplifies Spaulding Spirit and makes peers proud to be working by their side. We are thrilled to announce that Russ Wiles was chosen to receive the Spaulding Spirit Award for Quarter 4 of ...

Moss Hartwell, Residential Counselor After working as an overnight supervisor at an assisted living facility for the elderly, Moss Hartwell knew he needed a change. He applied to work as a Residential Counselor in Spaulding Youth Center’s Young House in 2008. After his time observing the students there, he knew it was a perfect fit. Moss spent three ...

Dan ‘Doc’ Jenifer – 2017 Spaulding Spirit Award Winner The Spaulding Spirit Award is a peer‐nominated award given to a staff member who exemplifies Spaulding Spirit and makes peers proud to be working by their side. We are thrilled to announce that Doc Jenifer was chosen to receive the Spaulding Spirit Award for Quarter 3 of ...

Tonya Splett – Spaulding Spirit Award Winner The Spaulding Spirit Award is a peer‐nominated award given to a staff member who exemplifies Spaulding Spirit and makes peers proud to be working by their side. We are thrilled to announce that Tonya Splett has been chosen for the Spaulding Spirit Award for Quarter 2 of 2017! Tonya ...

Nicole Hilliker – Our First Spaulding Spirit Award Winner!

Nicole Hilliker, First Spaulding Spirit Award Winner The Spaulding Spirit Award is a peer‐nominated award given to a staff member who exemplifies Spaulding Spirit and makes peers proud to be working by their side. We are so excited that Nicole Hilliker has been chosen as the first Spaulding Spirit Winner! Nicole has been at SYC for ...

Jason Perkins, Overnight Residential Assistant, Residential After returning from active duty in Iraq and then spending a few years as a correctional officer, Jason Perkins started at Spaulding Youth Center in 2010 as a Residential Assistant in Cutter-Wiggins. Since then, his work ethic and accountability has enabled him to transition into an overnight role. Once the students ...

Interested in Learning More About Our Vibrant Campus?

If you are interested in an insider’s view of a day in the life of Spaulding Academy & Family Services, we recommend visiting our online photo gallery or our video gallery. These are updated weekly so keep checking back for more great Spaulding moments!