Mike Culliver, At-Risk Coordinator, Albion Public Schools, Albion, Michigan
IEE coach Jennie Kay has this to say about Mike Culliver:
He is the person you see greeting every student by name as they enter the cafeteria for breakfast. He is the person you see high-fiving the first graders for following the Wildcat Way procedures as they walk down the hallway. He is the person students ask to talk to when they have accomplished something big in their classes or if they are having a bad day. When students bring in cupcakes to celebrate their birthdays, they always ask to take one to him. His name is Mike Culliver, and he is the At-Risk Coordinator for Albion Public Schools (a single-school K-8 district).
Mike is the embodiment of what it means to be a champion for students. Passion? He has it in spades. All day, every day he is focused on assisting individual students to be successful learners and positive members of the school. He talks to students, and he listens to them. Â Really listens to them. Every decision he makes is based on what will allow them to be the best version of themselves.
Having grown up in Albion, graduated from Albion High School and attended Albion College, Mike is an example of how a community can thrive when it nurtures and mentors its youth and allows them opportunities to utilize their expertise within the community. Mike realizes that it is now his turn to inspire and empower the students who are currently attending Albion Public Schools, and he seeks every avenue available to do so. Sometimes this means assisting students’ parents to better understand how to help their children succeed. Sometimes this means mobilizing community resources to help families. But most of all, this means connecting with students. Although he aspires to become a principal one day, Mike will always be an advocate for kids, no matter his role because this is his calling.
