Tahj leaves behind a legacy that TJHS will never forget. photo by Evelyn Jackson
Beloved mentor shaping kids’ futures one student at a time.
Tahj Dillard-Watkins has been a steady, grounding presence here at Thomas Jefferson High School for nine years. Anyone who has spent time in TJ’s hallways, gym, or restorative spaces has likely seen him in his element: checking in with students, coaching from the sidelines, or quietly helping someone find their footing on a difficult day.
Originally from Charleston, South Carolina, Dillard-Watkins has called Denver his home since he was five-years-old. Originally, he had an opportunity to coach basketball but that grew into something far greater. Today, he has many roles at TJ: Restorative Justice Coordinator, varsity assistant basketball coach, and counseling intern. Dillard-Watkins’ main priority is helping students grow into the best versions of themselves, and each of his jobs here align closely with this goal.
When asked what he wants seniors to take with them when they leave high school, Dillard-Watkins responded that he hopes they “find something you like and do it.” It’s advice shaped by experience, reflection, and the winding path that led him to education. When he looks back on his own high school years, the message he’d give his younger self is just as direct. “Be confident, stay on the right path, and don’t let distractions take away from your goals.”
Dillard-Watkins graduated from Montbello High School before spending a year at Tuskegee University in Alabama, where he studied aerospace engineering. He recalls that it was “the hardest thing I’ve ever started in my life.” The culture at Tuskegee University ultimately wasn’t the right fit, but the experience taught him that it’s okay to pivot. He returned to Colorado, earned his bachelor’s degree at Metropolitan State University of Denver, and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in counseling at Adams State University.
Like many students he now mentors, Dillard-Watkins didn’t always know where he was headed. Coming out of high school, he admits he had no clear plan, only a desire to succeed and make his mother proud. That motivation, rooted in family and perseverance, still drives him today. It’s also part of what makes his presence at TJ so meaningful, especially considering he works alongside his mother, Office Manager Danyelle Charles.
What Dillard-Watkins loves most about TJ isn’t any single program or position, it’s the growth of the students he encounters each and every year and watching the progression and character development they go through. He has helped lead the varsity boys basketball team toward a wonderful 13-win streak this past season. One of the parts of his job that he is most passionate about is getting to watch students arrive as freshmen and leave as seniors, transformed not just academically, but personally. Seeing how students mature, how their confidence develops, how they begin to understand who they are and who they can become is what keeps him invested.
While Dillard-Watkins’ impact on Thomas Jefferson High School is enduring, his chapter here is unfortunately coming to a close. At the end of the 2025-26 school year, he will leave TJ to begin a new professional journey elsewhere. It’s a decision made with intention and growth in mind. This choice mirrors the very lessons he’s spent years encouraging students to embrace, although that doesn’t make the goodbye any easier.
For students, athletes, and colleagues alike, Dillard-Watkins has been more than a staff member. He’s been a listener and a motivator, a calm presence in moments of conflict, and someone who believed in students even when they struggled to believe in themselves. His influence lives among the ever-growing legacy here at TJ.
As he prepares to move on, the TJ community is left with gratitude for the amount of time, care, dedication, and heart he has poured into this school. Though his physical presence may soon be absent from the halls, the impact of his work will continue to show up in the students he helped guide and the culture of compassion he helped strengthen. Goodbyes are never easy, especially when they involve someone who has given so much of themselves to a place. But if Dillard-Watkins has taught TJ anything, it’s that growth often requires courage, and that the right path sometimes leads us somewhere new. Wherever he goes next, there’s no doubt he’ll continue doing what he’s always done best: helping people become who they’re meant to be.
