Teacher of the Year finalist gets 14 years for sexual relationship with student she kept contacting

A former Colorado teacher and a 2025 state Teacher of the Year finalist was sentenced to 14 years in prison after authorities say she engaged in a sexual relationship with a student and reportedly continued contacting him after being criminally charged.

Tera Johnson-Swartz, a 45-year-old writer and former STEM School Highlands Ranch educator, pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a child and one count of cybercrime, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office announced on March 19. Officials indicated that the cybercrime charge stemmed from her continued contact with the student. 

The former teacher was accused of having a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old, which was discovered around January 2025 when the student’s parents found texts containing sexually explicit content, according to The Denver Post. 

Johnson-Swartz, who had been recognized as one of seven finalists for Colorado’s Teacher of the Year just five months be...