Cindy Dillard: Live Life, Enjoy Life, Give Back
“I’m extremely curious, I want to learn about other cultures and places and meet new people…I do enjoy that!”
Cindy Dillard says she’s not interesting, but she’s actually quite the opposite. For example, she has visited Las Vegas, New York City, and Hawaii, and ridden her bike regularly on the bikeway, occasionally as far as Troy and Dayton, a 35-mile trip. She plans to visit Virginia and Vermont in the fall to see all the changing colors. Cindy has volunteered at Child Care Choices as a “Story Lady,” visiting childcare centers, volunteers at her local church, and at the Clothesline in Tipp, a clothing resale shop. She has a WSET Level 2 accreditation for wine knowledge and has taught wine appreciation courses. She presently serves on the Tipp City Board of Education and notes, “I volunteer as much as possible.”
Cindy Dillard was born in Tipp City and attended Tipp schools, going to high school in the building which is now the Tippecanoe Middle School. She went to college in Cincinnati, at UC, took an education course, and “fell in love with education.” She did her undergraduate work in Early Childhood, and after graduating, taught first and second grade students in the Princeton suburb of Cincinnati. She then moved to what she described as “inner city teaching” in Cincinnati for eight years, then got married and taught in Dallas and Houston, Texas, St. Paul, Minnesota, and returned to Cincinnati for 10 more years. Along the way, she moved to Hawaii and worked in Hawaiian public schools for a short time but was “pulled back home because some of my family members were sick.” Cindy has seven sisters and a brother, all of whom graduated from Tipp schools, and a son, Nate. During those teaching years, Cindy had decided she wanted to be a school Principal, so she went back to school and earned a Master’s degree, completing her educational career as a Principal in Springfield. She says, “You know what? Once you become an inner-city teacher, it’s hard to go back; it’s quite addictive and challenging, but exciting. I’ve had a great career, for 33 years!” After retiring from education, Cindy worked at Bodega in downtown Tipp for almost six years.
Speaking as a Board member and Tipp citizen, Cindy says she really likes the flexibility in the design of the new PK-8 elementary school building. She notes that “Educators have to be futuristic thinkers, because kids start in kindergarten and things change a lot in their 12 years in school. You can’t purchase every new thing every year, but you can design with flexibility to prepare for what’s coming down the road. With all the new houses being built on Hyatt and elsewhere, we may need more room in the future. There’s always change. I’m excited about it!”
Cindy sums up her approach to life at 65, “I’m of the age, if I find something I want to do, if I can find someone to do it with, but if not, I go ahead and do it myself!”
