Greeley West has been known to “raise” some successful people, and Theodore Johnson is one of them.
Johnson graduated from West in 1989 and is now the Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning at Pueblo District 60. This job didn’t come easy to Johnson, as he spent years in education getting to that point. He was an ESL teacher, a bilingual Educator, and an elementary school principal. Now he has risen to a greater leadership position. “I oversee the schools within our district as well as a team that focuses on school improvement, curriculum, assessment, career and technical education, and concurrent enrollment,” Johnson said.
Johnson credited his time at West for helping develop his character and work ethic. He said he learned teamwork and perseverance as a Spartan. “During my time at West, I was a member of the cross country and track teams. I was never the fastest runner, but I learned a lot about perseverance and teamwork through that experience,” Johnson said.
He felt as though he had a lot of support from not only his peers but also the teachers and counselors. “I also had a lot of great friends in high school and I think we supported one another along the way. I also really appreciated the help that many teachers provided along the way. My guidance counselor was especially supportive in helping me get accepted at CU Boulder,” Johnson stated.
As he went through life and got into education he would use his experiences at West as a “touchpoint” on how he sees and thinks about education today. “My first teaching job was working at a high school in Puebla, Mexico, Johnson said. “I taught American Literature, British Literature, and Social Studies. As a new teacher who was barely older than some of the students I was teaching, my experience at Greeley West made it easier for me to relate to them at that point in their lives,” Johnson said.
