Two of the five national grand prizes in the 2026 Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence went to Front Range classrooms. The program’s winners list names Frank Loeblein, who teaches welding at Warren Tech in Lakewood, and Jim Dosky, who teaches construction at Cherry Creek Innovation Campus in Centennial. The prizes were presented at surprise celebrations on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026, according to the program’s news release.
Each grand prize is worth $100,000, with $70,000 going to the school’s skilled trades program and $30,000 to the teacher, the release says. It adds that in some cases, because of school, district or state policy, the program receives the full amount.
By the numbers
- Harbor Freight Tools for Schools reports $2 million awarded this year to 25 teachers and their programs in 18 states, up from $1.5 million to mark the prize’s 10th anniversary.
- More than 550 teachers from 49 states applied, the program says. Five won grand prizes and 20 won prizes of $75,000.
- At Warren Tech, about 90% of Loeblein’s students earn college credit through Red Rocks Community College, and 44 students have passed 151 bend tests, according to his prize profile.
- Cherry Creek School District reports that Dosky’s program has grown from 60 to 150 students, that roughly 500 students have come through it since 2019 and that 72 of them landed jobs this summer.
- The district says Dosky is the third Cherry Creek Innovation Campus teacher to win the grand prize, and that his students are in the middle of building a modular home for Habitat for Humanity.
Why it matters locally
Warren Tech is part of Jeffco Public Schools and lists campuses in Lakewood, Arvada and Littleton. Cherry Creek Innovation Campus is at 8000 S. Chambers Road in Centennial. Under the prize rules described in the release, $70,000 of each grand prize is set aside for the school’s own skilled trades program. Both schools announced the awards on their websites.
How to take part
- Students and families can explore Warren Tech’s career and technical programs on the Warren Tech website.
- Cherry Creek Innovation Campus describes its construction pathway on its Construction Trades page.
- Skilled trades teachers can see all 25 winners and learn about the prize at Harbor Freight Tools for Schools.
More like this: Find the Good · Community Wins · Lakewood · Lakewood and Denver teachers named finalists for 2027 Colorado Teacher of the Year · Colorado School of Mines admission guarantee
