6th Grade

Welcome to 6th Grade Language Arts! I love teaching 6th-grade English Language Arts here at Lincoln Academy! This will be my 18th year of teaching and my 6th year at Lincoln Academy.  I am a teacher and a parent at Lincoln because I enjoy the community. I have lived and taught in Ohio, Georgia, Tennessee, and Colorado. 

I attended college at The Ohio State University. Go Bucks! At O.S.U., I received a Bachelor of Science degree in Early Childhood Development with a Minor in Education and a Masters in Elementary Education. I truly believe that learning is a lifelong process!  I continue to take classes and read to further my understanding of the best and current instructional practices.

I am so excited to empower your children to be recognized and advocate for their right and obligation to obtain a quality education.  This year will be filled with thought-provoking units that require students to critically read, write, think, and discuss the world around them. Our rich Core Knowledge curriculum will support me in doing this.  I look forward to getting to know the 6th graders this year.  Thank you for partnering with me this year as we learn and grow together!

My name is Maria Jelinek, and I am excited to be your child's science teacher! This is my fourth year teaching middle school science here at Lincoln. I have been teaching at Lincoln for 21 years. I began my teaching career here at Lincoln as a fourth grade teacher. I spent 7 years teaching fourth grade and 12 years teaching first grade.  I am also a coach for the middle school athletic program. I am a native of Colorado. I love sports, photography, outdoor activities, and am very active. Running and soccer are two of my favorite hobbies, along with being outside enjoying our beautiful state! I graduated from Regis University with a degree focused on education, psychology, special education, and physical education. I also have a masters in educational psychology from University of Northern Colorado. 

I love teaching science because of how hands-on students can be with the different principles and concepts we cover. My hope is that students find a love for inquiry and science. Providing a wonderful educational experience while helping each child develop a strong self-worth and reach their highest academic potential is my main goal as a teacher. I strongly believe that in order to provide your child with the best education possible, we need to work as a team. I will do my best to provide a classroom full of respect and success for every student. I am looking forward to meeting you and your child and am ready for a fantastic school year!

Hi, my name is Sarah Demers. I am originally from upstate New York and earned my bachelor’s degree in mathematics and my master’s degree in education from The University of New York at Buffalo. Before starting a family, I worked as a middle school math teacher in western New York, and since then I have continued to stay involved in education by volunteering in various capacities at my children's schools.

My husband and I have been married for twenty years, and we have three daughters in the Jefferson County school district. They are all active in sports, especially soccer and ice hockey here in Arvada.  Often you’ll find me at the Apex Center Ice Arena and at local soccer fields cheering them on.

In my free time, I enjoy cooking, fishing, and exercising, and our favorite family getaways are skiing or camping in the mountains.

Most of all, I love being a teacher and am excited for the opportunity to bring my experience, enthusiasm, and love of learning to Lincoln Academy!

I'm thrilled to be joining the Lincoln Academy community as your new 6th grade social studies teacher! My name is Jamie Sturos, a Lafayette local with 10+ years of experience teaching across K–12 settings. Most recently, I taught 5th grade literacy and social studies at Murphy Creek P-8 in Aurora, and before that I spent several years supporting students with diverse learning needs at Stanbridge Academy in California. I've also had the opportunity to teach in both Italy and China, experiences that gave me a deep appreciation for world cultures and perspectives that I love bringing into the social studies classroom.

I'm passionate about building structured, inclusive environments where every student feels curious and supported, and I believe social studies comes alive when students can connect history and geography to their own lives. I'm so looking forward to getting to know your families and working alongside such a wonderful staff. Please say hello anytime!

Debbie McNutt (5th-6th Technology) received her bachelor’s degree in Business Computer Systems from New Mexico State University in 1987 and worked for IBM Corporation for 11 years.  She received her Master's in Secondary Education at the University of Denver in 1997.  Mrs. McNutt came to Lincoln with 4 years of experience teaching high school in the Thornton area teaching digital media and math.  The 2026-27 school year will be Mrs. McNutt’s twenty-second year of teaching and her seventeenth year at Lincoln Academy.  She is excited to be teaching 5th - 6th grade technology.  Mrs. McNutt loves to spend her free time with her husband, 3 children, and 2 grandsons, as well as running, golfing, traveling, photography, scrap booking, visiting Disney, and watching movies.