Melissa Boyd, Fellow

Bruce Randolph School

Denver, CO

Melissa Boyd is an equity focused leader who served as the proud Principal of Bruce Randolph School in Denver. She led a talented community of educators as they provided culturally sustaining and rigorous instruction to students in grades six through 12. Melissa was uniquely positioned to lead as the Principal at Bruce Randolph School, as she is a former middle school teacher, instructional coach, assistant principal, and Middle School Director all at Bruce Randolph School. As a leader, Melissa believes in the power of strong school culture, relationships with students and families, and strategic teacher support and coaching to impact student learning. Coaching is an area of passion for Melissa at both the teacher and leader level. She mentors fellow new principals, aspiring principals, and aspiring assistant principals. As the principal at Bruce Randolph, Melissa remained committed to enhancing STEM opportunities and College and Career Readiness experiences. This impact is seen through the school’s STEM lab and programming, development of the first urban agriculture program, AgConnect, and experiential learning and work-force readiness through an on-site hydroponic farm and learning garden. Prior to her tenure in Denver, Melissa was an educator in New York City and Connecticut where she utilized her background in mathematics and literacy to serve students with a variety of academic needs across the K-12 continuum. Melissa received her Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Saint Joseph University and a Master of Arts from Columbia University - Teachers College with a focus as a Reading Specialist. Melissa was recently promoted to Director of Secondary Schools.

Juanita Valdez, Ally

Assistant Principal
Bruce Randolph School

Denver, CO

While participating in the Cahn Fellows Program as an Ally, Juanita Valdez was an Assistant Principal at Bruce Randolph School in Denver, CO.  She grew up in Denver’s Five Points neighborhood to a family of warrior women.  Juanita is a committed transformative leader that advocates for more equitable outcomes for BIPOC and students that have been historically disenfranchised.  At DPS, she continues to challenge mindsets by leading anti-racist and anti-bias professional developments and coaching.  Juanita consistently models and builds adult capacity in these areas as a means to improve educational outcomes for each student.  Juanita’s overall goal is to empower students and teachers to be active agents of change within their local and global communities.

Juanita is now the Principal at Bruce Randolph School.