2012 - Regional Classified School Employee of the Year - Susan Gifford

Susan worked as a journalist for over two decades before moving into her current role as a school public relations professional in 2003. As a Communications Specialist in Puyallup, her duties are varied and include photographer, writer, back-up for the Executive Director and even back-up webmaster.



When she arrived in Puyallup, Susan immediately tackled the district’s outdated newsletter and transformed it into an engaging and relevant publication that highlighted more student achievement and featured an alumni column. Susan has continued to be a leader in improving school communications. Under her leadership, Puyallup was an early adopter of social media channels and strategies and now has an extensive network of followers.



Because her work is often focused on administrative tasks, Susan actively seeks out ways to stay connected to the students she serves. Mentoring students through their community service requirements and sitting on the board for the district’s successful “Giftmakers” program are just two of the many ways Susan personally supports individual students. Susan’s numerous awards for both writing and photography also make her a much sought after job shadow.



Students especially respond to her belief in their abilities and her genuine desire to celebrate the accomplishments. Whether she’s tasking a student to take photos at a school board meeting or featuring student artwork on the district Web site, Susan is always focused on the power that recognition and positive reinforcement can have on the path a student chooses.



Susan’s incredible talent as a writer and voice for students is a unique gift to her district and community. Executive Director of Communications, Karen Hanson, shares one example of this gift in action. “Recently, Susan wrote a series of stories about homeless students in the Puyallup School District. It was a touching story that described the lives of several homeless students (she also connected with one of the students who loved to write and worked with her and her mother to make a job shadow happen). For months after the story ran, I received comments from the public about how the story touched the hearts of many as they didn’t know about the homelessness of our students. This is what Susan does best . . . telling stories that make a difference.”