About Amie

Meet Amie, not a politician but an educator, advocate and mother.

Amie Baca-Oehlert knew she wanted to be a teacher from childhood, and has spent her career working to create opportunities for Colorado students and improve the lives of Colorado workers.

 Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Amie was raised in a working class family that relocated to Oak Ridge, TN when Amie was in middle school. Her father, a Vietnam veteran, worked for the Department of Energy as a truck driver, transporting nuclear materials around the country. Her mom worked odd jobs to help make ends meet, and went back to school for her Associate degree when Amie was in high school. Her dad’s experience facing discrimination due to the color of his skin led him to put great emphasis on the value of a college education for Amie and her siblings, believing it was key to a brighter future.

 Amie attended Clemson University, graduating with a degree in Secondary Education – English (and a whole lot of student loan debt). She promptly moved to Colorado, which she had fallen in love with while working at a summer camp, and began teaching at Adams City High School in Commerce City. 

 As a brand new teacher closer in age to her students than to many of her colleagues, Amie immediately saw the challenges that so many in the community were facing: the lack of affordable housing, not enough good, family-sustaining jobs, and skyrocketing costs that put even basic needs like food and health care out of reach for too many families. Realizing that students were carrying burdens that were impacting their work in the classroom, she went back to school for a Master’s in student counseling at University of Northern Colorado, and moved to Northglenn High School to work as a school counselor.

 Seeing dedicated teachers working two or three jobs to provide for their families and teaching in rundown schools with outdated textbooks and equipment spurred Amie to become more involved in her local union. Her passion for better learning conditions for students and better working conditions for teachers eventually led to leadership roles within the union.

 Amie served as President of the District 12 Educators’ Association and the ethnic minority member at-large on the Colorado Education Association Board of Directors before serving six years as Vice President and six years as President of CEA, which represents nearly 40,000 teachers and support professionals and is the largest union in the state of Colorado. She is currently the Executive Director of the Denver Classroom Teachers Association. Her husband, Matt, is a school principal, and their three children attend Adams 12 public schools.