Minium: Former ODU Lacrosse Player Sarah Damato to Be Honored as Nation's Best Teacher at CFP Championship Game

By Harry Minium

NORFOLK, Va. – Growing up with an older sister who is autistic, Sarah Damato was often disappointed at how her sibling, Lauren, was treated by others.

“When I was younger, I would sometimes see the way she was treated and the opportunities that she didn’t have,” Sarah said. “I wanted to change that. She brings joy to everyone’s life. She’s the light for our family.”

So, when she enrolled at Old Dominion University in the fall of 2007, Sarah decided to become a special education teacher, someone who teaches young people with emotional, mental or physical disabilities how to cope in the real world.

“We give students the skills so that they can go out and get a job,” she said.

Now 15 years into her teaching career, the 37-year-old Pennsylvania native has proven to be an outstanding teacher.

So good that on, Monday night, prior to the College Football Playoff national championship game between Indiana and Miami, Sarah will be honored as the Eckrich National Teacher of the Year.

Eckrich, the official smoked sausage and deli meat sponsor of the CFP, is a division of Smithfield Foods, which is headquartered 26 miles west of ODU’s campus in Smithfield, Virginia.

Nominated by her students, Sarah was judged by Eckrich to be the very best of the four million or so teachers in America.

“I was excited to receive this award because teaching is so hard, but so rewarding at the same time,” she said. “Everything I do is for the students, and when people recognize that, they are recognizing the students.”

Sarah has a compelling life story. Sarah Geary, as she was then known, came to ODU from Springfield, Pennsylvania, where she was a three-sport star at Springfield High School, to play lacrosse. After redshirting in 2008, she started the next four seasons for ODU in goal. She was the 2009 Colonial Athletic Association Rookie of the Year and ended her career with a school-record 567 saves.

While at ODU, she met football player Tyler Damato, whom she later married. She earned an undergraduate degree in special education and a master’s degree in special education research.

She taught at Portsmouth’s Norcom High before moving onto the Philadelphia school system for several years. She then returned home to Springfield High, located in the Philly suburb of Delaware County, where she poured herself into making the lives of special ed students better.

She’s the mother of three girls – Isabella, Riley and Sophia – who manages to be a mom and wife while also giving her all to her students.

She began an innovative program called the Springfield Buddies Club in which hundreds of students join with dozens of special ed students and engage together in after-school activities, ranging from attending football or basketball games together or going on a hayride.

She and Tyler began the Support A Sport program which provides special needs students with a chance to participate in after-school athletics, an activity unavailable for special ed students at many high schools.

She has recruited dozens of student assistants, who help work with her students and provide each with more individual attention. Over the years she’s also recruited major personalities to come read to her students, including the mayor of Philadelphia and members of the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.

Her parents dress up as Santa and Mrs. Claus at Christmas because autistic kids often have a difficult time getting photos with Santa.

Online testimonials indicate that she fosters individual relationships with each of her students and stays in touch with students long after they have left Springfield.

And somehow, she also finds time to coach the Springfield lacrosse team and has also coached tennis, bocce and field hockey.

She already had won five teaching awards prior to the latest, including the Outstanding Special Education Teacher Award given by the National Association of Special Education Teachers in 2023.

“And she deserved every one of them,” Tyler said.

Her husband nominated her as the LifeChanger of the Year a year ago and the online petition drew hundreds of signers, including 62 who penned testimonials to her.

“I know people who move into this district so that their child can have Sarah as a teacher,” wrote Pete Witz. “Sarah understands what it’s like to have a family member with a disability. I hope she never leaves so our son can have her as a teacher.”

Tyler said she somehow manages to be a great mother and wife while spending more time with students and expending much more emotional energy than any teacher he's ever known.

“Everything Sarah does, she takes it to the next level,” he said. “Her work ethic is pretty much unmatched. Our three girls at home, to do everything she does and school and then everything she gives to us, it’s a lot on her. Everyone asks her, how do you have time for yourself?”

You could ask Tyler the same thing. He is a corrections officer at a Pennsylvania prison and is also an assistant football coach at Springfield, in addition to being a husband and father of three.

Ashley Waters, an athletic donor relations and special events manager for the Old Dominion Athletic Foundation, played lacrosse with Sarah at ODU and against her in high school – she attended Downingtown High School West in Chester County – and is not surprised at how successful she’s been as a teacher.

“Sarah’s relationship with Lauren has been a top priority for her as long as I’ve known her,” Waters said. “This award is a reflection of the passion Sarah brings to everything she does and the testament to the positive impact she has had on those around her.”

Sarah and Tyler depart for Miami, Florida on Saturday – the game is being played in Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida and will be televised on ESPN.

She will receive a $5,000 check, which she will use to make classroom improvements at Springfield.

She will have a busy schedule this weekend, including a teachers summit, but she and Tyler hope to get in some beach time, and then enjoy watching the national championship game.

“My kids are all going to be watching to see me on the field,” she said. “They think it’s so cool.

“They’re so excited and that makes me so happy. My students, they bring me so much joy. It’s easy to come to work each day because of them.”

Minium is ODU's Senior Executive Writer for Athletics. Contact him at hminium@odu.edu or follow him on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram

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