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Janet Damon (EdS ‘10), teacher at DELTA High School in Denver Public Schools (DPS), has earned Colorado’s 2025 Teacher of the Year Award. DELTA High School is an alternative high school that serves students who have faced challenges in life and in traditional school settings.

The announcement took place on October 3, during a surprise ceremony attended by more than 100 students, teachers, and staff of DELTA High School. It was followed up with an official ceremony hosted by the Colorado Department of Education.

Damon accepted the official award while holding her one-year-old granddaughter, Mila Lavender, who revitalizes her commitment to the K-12 experience. “People told me that grandparenting would be so good, and that it is so different than being a parent; but I did not appreciate this fully until her arrival. She is sacred and beautiful and is already learning to advocate for herself.”

Another highlight of the ceremony was having her dad, Joseph Damon, and mom, Kim Damon, in the audience. Her father’s pride and emotion were evident. He was a former educator and Denver Public Library employee. “The greatest gift to give our parents is to let them see us making an impact in the world,” said Damon.

At DELTA High School, Damon loves working with students from different walks of life. Her students are approximately 80 percent male and from places like Sudan, Syria, Indigenous tribal lands, and others who lived in Denver neighborhoods all their lives. This gives her opportunities to make a pivotal difference in their lives and to help them reach their fullest potential with post-secondary planning.

My students were so happy and excited to know that their teacher, whom they get to see almost every day, is going to be making an impact across the state,” she said. “We are very much a family here. I love being here for my students, the families who sent them to my classroom, and the ancestral lineage of everyone who led to students being in my room. I believe we should speak to students as if their ancestors are present. And we should co-create with students to make sure the learning is relevant. Those are the things that have guided my practice over the years.

Damon described participating in CU Denver’s Educational Specialist in Leadership for Educational Organizations degree with principal licensure program as a “synthesis of culture, community, and opportunity.” She participated in the Denver Public Schools cohort. She loved that CU faculty members and participants had “rigorous attention to excellence.” Many members of her cohort are still great friends. “I highly recommend the experience because it really prepared me to view educational environments as systems and lead in multiple kinds of environments,” she said.

As Colorado’s 2025 Teacher of the Year, Damon will receive:

• A gift of $5,000 from the Boettcher Foundation;
• Funding from Colorado Department of Education totaling $5,000 to support Teacher of the Year events and activities through the 2025 calendar year; and
• Continuing education credit and a student scholarship

As Colorado’s 2025 Teacher of the Year, Damon also becomes the state’s candidate for the Council of Chief State School Officers’ National Teacher of the Year Award and will participate in national program activities that include attending a special ceremony at the White House and a trip to NASA’s Space Camp. Her term as Colorado Teacher of the Year begins in January 2025.

Damon has won numerous awards for her work and helps students look objectively at their world through the issues that matter most to them. Damon received the 2024 Extraordinary Teacher Award from Suntec Concrete, the 2023 African Americans Who are Making a Difference Award, the 2022 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award, the 2022 Inaugural Making Our Futures Brighter Award, and the 2020 Library Journal Mover and Shaker Award. She has also earned fellowships from Facing History and Fund for Teachers.

In her free time, she teaches yoga and leads a literacy advocacy group called Afros and Books. The group provides free books to teens and youth all around the city and features nature and outdoor experiences for families such as ziplining, kayaking, fly-fishing, and bird watching.

In 2025, Damon is looking forward to inspiring and supporting educators during her speaking engagements and mentoring activities as Colorado Teacher of the Year. “My family used education to access full self-actualization and social mobility,” said Damon. “I want my students and other educators to know that we do not ever have to stop learning. We have an obligation to ourselves to continue our learning path so that we can continue to grow and not become stagnant.”