Page 40 - BusinessWest April 27, 2026

Danielle Delgado
Principal, Brightwood Elementary
School: Age 38
As a young child, Danielle Delgado gave herself
options.
“I always wanted to be either a teacher
or famous. And I learned right away you can’t be
famous for nothing, and I can’t sing, so teacher
it was,” she said. “When was little, I’d line up my
stuffed animals and make them my classroom, or
my great-grandmother would be my student — she
was 97 years old, and I’d send her to the principal’s
office, which was the bathroom, and she’d play along
with me, which was hysterical.”
As she got older, Delgado realized she had a
real heart for education. Her career began with an
internship and undergraduate work at Kensington
International School in Springfield, and she gradually
rose through the ranks to become principal at
Brightwood Elementary School.
“Springfield Public Schools offered so many
development opportunities for me. I became an
instructional leadership specialist, then I went into
administration and naturally progressed over time.”
Delgado is also committed to connecting Brightwood
to the community in some intriguing ways. She co-
founded the North End C3 Community Basketball League
in collaboration with the Hampden County Sheriff’s
Department, the Springfield C3 police unit, and the New
North Citizens Council, and she also established after-
school programs like a dance team and drama club,
and piloted a program to distribute fresh produce to
food-insecure families.
“By extending outside the school, we’re not just
serving students, but the whole child. By making
sure we are part of the community even beyond
the school day, we’re all taking care of each other,
supporting each other,” she explained. “We’re putting
mentors in different parts of the children’s lives, and
that’s incredibly special.”
Back at school, Delgado said, it’s a challenge, but a
rewarding one, to make sure all 450 students and 68 staff
members have what they need each day, and that the
school culture remains a positive one for all. “By the end
of the day, I’m exhausted, but it’s good. Thank goodness for
good coffee,” she joked.
“The most rewarding thing is getting to see the
excitement when students are learning and growing, and
seeing the same excitement from teachers when they see
their students learning, and as they grow and develop as
educators — to see the joy and pride on their faces,” she
added. “Educators are asked to do so much, and we can’t
do it alone. Speaking as a teacher, that proverb, it takes a
village to raise a child, is incredibly true.”
—Joseph Bednar
Sheriff Sheriff Nick Cocchi Nick Cocchi
Founded on access.
Driven by purpose.
the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office
& Congratulates
Congratulates
Defined
Principal
Principal
Danielle Delgado Danielle Delgado
and all 40 Under Forty honorees!
and all 40 Under Forty honorees!
by success.
Westfield State proudly congratulates
our alumni on their recognition in
BusinessWest’s 40 Under Forty
Class of 2026.
Lezlie Braton Campbell ’16
Danielle Delgado ’09
Angelle Lopez ’24
Yeselie Tulloch ’13
W E S T F I E L D . M A . E D U
A18 2026
Business W est