Greeley

Jack Annan
College High School, Greeley, CO

A graduate of Colorado State University in 1955, Annan, a native of LaSalle, Colorado, started his career in education as an agriculture teacher in New Raymer in 1957. In 1962 he moved to Grover, Colorado where he worked until 1965. In these early years, 1959-65, he was a supervising teacher for Colorado State University’s vocational agriculture student teachers—an arrangement that began his agriculture leadership career at the state level. In 1966 he received his master degree in education from CSU and it was then that he joined the agriculture department at NJC. Four years later, realizing his knack for working with students and parents, NJC named Jack a vocational counselor so that his expertise could be available to all students, not just those in agriculture. Annan has been fondly referred to as “Mr. NJC” for a number of years now.

In 1969, Jack helped bring the Colorado Young Farmers Educational Association into existence. For the past 33 years, Jack has worked diligently with this state organization as its’ only executive secretary, being the glue that has kept it together. Colorado Young Farmers now has more than 1,000 members and associate members state-wide.

Another organization that would not exist without the work of Annan is the Northeastern Junior College Alumni Association which was started in 1983. He organized a group of alumni to begin the association and has served as director. He has grown the association to now include more than 300 life-time members and hundreds of others who pay annual dues.

Today, Jack continues to work at the college, overseeing the alumni association and the Colorado Young Farmer Educational Association. Annan has received numerous awards over the years. He’s been named to the state’s vocational hall of fame, to the NJC Agriculture Hall of Fame and to the Colorado FFA Agriculture Hall of Fame plus a whole slew of other local, state and regional recognitions. He avoids public attention and goes about his day to day work in a most modest manner.