DeHoff named 2025 K-State College of Education Secondary Distinguished Cooperating Teacher honoree

JUNCTION CITY, Kan. — Katie DeHoff, a teacher and coach at Junction City High School, has been named the 2025 K-State College of Education Secondary Distinguished Cooperating Teacher honoree.

DeHoff received the award at the Kansas State University Fall Education Symposium. The honor, presented annually by the K-State Student Affairs Committee, recognizes exemplary service to the profession in elementary, middle school or high school classrooms.

DeHoff serves as the comprehensive social science curriculum department head and volleyball coach at JCHS. She is only the second Blue Jay to receive the award. Patrick Hancock earned the distinction in 2020.

The award recognizes teachers who mentor student teachers transitioning into the profession. DeHoff said she is grateful for the opportunity to work with future educators.

"Hosting student teachers has been an incredible opportunity for our entire learning community to grow in new ways," DeHoff said. "My goal has always been to be a resource as pre-service students transition into a full-time role in the teaching profession."

DeHoff credited her own cooperating teacher, Jean Garvey, with demonstrating the importance of mentorship in the teaching profession. Garvey was DeHoff's cooperating teacher when DeHoff was a student teacher at Junction City High School.

"Having learned from my Cooperating Teacher at Junction City High School, Ms. Jean Garvey, I know how crucial the mentoring relationship with student teachers can be," DeHoff said.