Denville Township, NJ - Dr. Sandra L. Cullis was named incoming Superintendent of the Denville Township School District during the Monday, January 5, 2026, Board of Education Meeting. The unanimous vote, held during the Denville BOE’s first meeting of the calendar year, promotes Dr. Cullis from Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, to Superintendent of Schools. Dr. Cullis will step into the district’s top administrative position effective July 1, 2026, when the district's current Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Steven Forte, will retire.
Dr. Cullis, who has served as the Denville Township School District's Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment since 2013, is an accomplished educational leader with more than three decades of experience in teaching, curriculum leadership, and district administration.
“I know I speak for the entire Board of Education when I say how excited we are to welcome Dr. Sandra Cullis to the position of Superintendent of the Denville Township School District,” said Denville BOE President Dr. Clifford Moore. “For the past 13 years, as the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, Dr. Cullis has demonstrated success time and again. She is an educator of outstanding skill, knowledge, and innovation. She has helped to implement and lead significant districtwide initiatives, and is a highly regarded, and trusted member of the Denville Township community.
Dr. Cullis is dedicated to the district’s goals to support and guide the students and faculty of this community to achieve and succeed. During my years as a Board member, I have been honored to work with her, and, as a member of this board, and as a resident in this community, I am enthusiastically looking forward to working with her in her new role as the Superintendent of the Denville Township School District.”
Dr. Cullis, who grew up in Washington State, where she earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Washington and a Master’s degree in Secondary Science Education from Western Washington University, began her career in education in 1993, in Seattle, Washington. There she taught middle school science through 1999. While teaching science, Dr. Cullis also taught physical education and leadership, coached the softball and dance teams, and served as the Student Government Advisor. Her commitment to student leadership and engagement was recognized when she was named her school’s Teacher of the Year in 1996 and received the Washington State Middle School Student Government Advisor of the Year award in 1998.
In 1999, Dr. Cullis relocated to New Jersey and joined the Mendham Township School District, where she served as a teacher, Curriculum and Instruction Supervisor, and Principal of Mendham Township Elementary School (Grades K–4). While in Mendham Township she traveled with a United States School Leadership Cohort to China for an educational exchange, and taught one summer in a Himalayan village in Nepal.
Having earned her Master’s degree in Educational Administration in 2003, Dr. Cullis completed her Doctorate in Educational Administration from Rutgers University in 2009.
In her role as the Denville Township School District's Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment since 2013, Dr. Cullis has had an integral impact on the district’s goals, objectives, and operations, and has served in leadership roles in many districtwide initiatives, including the development and implementation of the district’s comprehensive 5-year strategic plans, which utilized broad community input to identify community priorities for Denville’s three K-8 schools. During Dr. Cullis’ time in the Denville district, strategic plans spanning the 2017–2028 school years have been developed. The district’s strategic plans serve as the road map for all initiatives implemented within a 5-year span.
Additionally, under Dr. Cullis’ shared leadership, all three district schools have been recognized as Future Ready Schools and have earned distinctions, including National and State Schools of Character, Bronze Sustainability Awards, and a National Blue Ribbon School recognition.
“I am excited to continue the vital work the district and community have begun,” Dr. Cullis said. “The goals and initiatives this community has prioritized and built upon will support our students and educators into the future. Denville is an amazing town with a strong commitment to community and education. I look forward to the next chapter as School Superintendent, and to continuing to build on that strong foundation of collaboration, innovation, and student-centered excellence.”
Dr. Cullis lives in Harding Township with her husband, Steve, a teacher, and their three children: Greyson, a recent college graduate, Sydney and Brennan, who are both currently college students. The district’s current Superintendent, Dr. Steven Forte, has served the Denville Township School District for twelve years, and is a long time resident of the community.
In March of 2025, Dr. Forte announced his retirement would be effective July 1, 2026.
“I am very excited for Dr. Cullis,” Dr. Forte, the district’s retiring Superintendent said. “It has been an honor to work with Sandy. I am grateful for her dedication, energy, vision and work ethic. I know she will do an outstanding job as the next Superintendent of the Denville Township School District. I want to congratulate her and wish her all the best.”
The Denville Board of Education launched a Superintendent search in June, 2025. Their search concluded on January 5, 2026, with the unanimous vote to appoint Dr. Sandra Cullis to the position of Superintendent of the Denville Township School District.
Dr. Cullis’ contract is for 3 years with a salary of $222,500. Dr. Cullis’ appointment to the administrative position of Superintendent of the Denville Township School District will officially take effect on July 1, 2026.
Also at the January 5, 2026, Denville Township Board of Education meeting, the Board Secretary, Damaris Gurowsky, swore in Don Casse and Andrea Zeydelis for another term, and the Board of Education elected Dr. Clifford Moore as the 2026 President and Andrea Zeydelis as the Vice President.