No matter who you are or what you do, each of our lives has been touched by a teacher. Teachers are the backbone of building the next generation, tasked with the important responsibility of stewarding and nurturing the minds of our community’s youth. While every teacher is a hero, some educators go above and beyond to show up for their students and make a difference in the lives of their pupils. From offering extra help on tricky subjects to reassuring their students that they’re capable of achieving their dreams, it is profound the impact that one teacher can have on the countless lives which pass through their classroom.

One such teacher is Nicole Hamlet, an honors Biology and advanced placement Biology Teacher at Trenton Central High School who was recently named Mercer County’s 2024 – 2025 Teacher of the Year. This award is presented to teachers throughout the State of New Jersey by the NJ Department of Education. Each year, the Governor’s Educator of the Year program selects county, as well as statewide honorees who exemplify what it means to represents excellence in education.

In celebration of her remarkable achievements both inside and outside the classroom, distinguished guests including Acting Mayor Kenneth Douglas, Trenton City Council, Mercer County Executive Dan Benson, Mercer County Commissioners, Legislative Districts 14 & 15 members, and representatives for Mercer County county’s various municipalities, gathered in the Council Chambers on Tuesday, September 3rd to bestow this title upon Ms. Hamlet, this year’s distinguished honoree.

Nicole Hamlet is an exemplary educational professional with an equally impressive resume to match. Prior to her almost two decades of service with Trenton Central High School. Ms. Hamlet was a student of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, where she earned her B.S. in biology. She later earned a post baccalaureate degree in Biotechnology, followed by a master’s degree in Developmental Biology from Jefferson University. Recently, Nicole received her master’s degree in administration and leadership from Georgian Court University.

For the last several years, Nicole has worked with rising sophomores in the Princeton University Preparatory Program, where she has created a six-week hands-on science curriculum that empowers students to work collaboratively, utilizing the scientific method, to explore scientific questions and work through experimental laboratory science. She has taken students to visit research facilities such as the Princeton Physics Plasma Laboratory, Rutgers University Protein Data Bank, and PTC Therapeutics Laboratory. Nicole’s ultimate goal is to start a high school biotechnology program for students to gain more exposure to opportunities in the ever-changing field of science.

In her remarks, Ms. Hamlet shared, “I have spent the last 19 years working in the City of Trenton and I love what I do. I love my students, under the direction of our superintendent and our amazing principal, Mrs. Mary Courtney. We absolutely love coming in every day and watching our students grow.” Continuing, she shared “Education, as my mother always taught us, is the most powerful thing. My background started long before I decided to become a teacher. I had a powerful mother that pushed us to excel, and that’s exactly what I do for my students – I push them to excel in their designated area. And that doesn’t have to be science – it could be businesses, it could be computer technology, but all of the students here in the City of Trenton are unique and powerful, and we need to empower them, because this is their future.”

To learn more about this year’s 2024-2025 County Teachers of the Year, please visit the Department of Education’s website, linked here: Teachers of the Year. Congratulations to Ms. Hamlet on this wonderful achievement and many thanks from all of us at the Trenton Daily team!

The post TCHS’s Nicole Hamlet Honored as Mercer County’s 2024-2025 Teacher of the Year first appeared on TrentonDaily.