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West Orange teacher Joy Burnett honored with Amistad Commission exemplary award
Summary
Joy Burnett of Redwood Elementary received a 2025 Amistad Commission exemplary award; the honor recognizes K–12 educators who integrate African and African-American history and includes a $2,500 award to the teacher and $2,500 to the district.
The West Orange Board of Education on Dec. 15 welcomed Patrick Lammy, executive director of the New Jersey Amistad Commission, who presented Joy Burnett of Redwood Elementary with the 2025 Amistad Commission exemplary award.
Lammy described the Amistad exemplary award as the commission’s highest teacher honor, created under state law and reauthorized with recent legislation. He said the selection process is competitive and governor-appointed, and that the award includes a $2,500 stipend to the teacher and a $2,500 grant to the district to support related work.
Burnett thanked her principal, colleagues and the district and said she intentionally infuses African-American history into her lessons across grades. Board and district leaders applauded her work and noted Redwood Elementary is the only school in the state to have two Amistad exemplary award winners, an achievement Lammy highlighted during his remarks.
The board publicly congratulated Burnett and other honorees during the meeting’s recognition segment.
