Meet Janet Damon, 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year

Web Banner with Janet Damon, 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year

Janet Damon, a history teacher at DELTA High School in Denver Public Schools, was named the 2025 Colorado Teacher of the Year on Oct. 3, 2024, in a surprise ceremony at her school, which is a – pathway high school within George Washington High School.

Damon graduated from DPS, where for more than 25 years she has spent her entire educational career in a variety of roles, including as a history teacher, literacy interventionist, library specialist and trainer, and K-12 school librarian. She has won numerous awards for her work and helps students look objectively at their world through the issues that matter most to them. In her classroom, students brainstorm solutions to major issues such as homelessness, gun violence, incarceration, inflation, immigration, racism, health disparities, and drug addiction in Colorado.

She is the co-founder of Afros and Books, a book club focused on literacy and empowerment that promotes equal access to books in underserved communities. She also organizes outdoor activities for families, such as hiking, kayaking, archery, yoga, fly fishing, and birding, while providing more than 1,000 new books to youth for summer reading.

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.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from Metropolitan State University, a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Denver, and an educational specialist degree in leadership for educational organizations from the University of Colorado at Denver.

"Janet is an educator who remains deeply student-centered and grounds her practice in the needs and experiences of the students she serves," said Colorado Education Commissioner Susana Córdova. "She creates a safe and supportive learning community in her classroom where students feel empowered to own and drive their own learning.”

As Teacher of the Year, Damon will represent the entire profession in Colorado and will be the public face of Colorado’s teachers. She will be entered as Colorado’s nominee for the National Teacher of the Year Program competition. Damon, along with the country’s other teachers of the year, will be honored at a special ceremony at the White House and get the opportunity to go to NASA’s Space Camp. She will also become a member of the Colorado Education Commissioner’s Teacher Cabinet.

“I could not be more proud of Janet for being named the Colorado Teacher of the Year,” said DPS Superintendent Alex Marrero. “In her classroom, students use inquiry, research, digital storytelling, and culturally sustaining learning to attack their learning. After more than 25 years in DPS, she continues to find innovative ways to teach her scholars and they are better prepared for whatever is next after being in her classroom.”

The Colorado Teacher of the Year program is supported by Denver7 and the Boettcher Foundation. Program partners include the Colorado Education Association, Adams State University and Blue Bell Ice Cream.

Read the full CDE news release in English and Spanish.

Jessica can be reached at:

DELTA High School

655 S Monaco St Pkwy

Denver, CO 80224

Janet Damon and FamilyJanet Damon and Family