Daniel Holmberg

Introduction

Daniel Holmberg, a 63-year-old Lincoln man and former Lincoln Public Schools teacher, was sentenced to four years in prison for inappropriately touching female students in the English Learner program at Northeast High School . With the prosecutor calling his actions “predatory,” Holmberg learned his punishment at a November 13, 2026 hearing in Lancaster County District Court, roughly eleven months after multiple female teenage students reported him . He pleaded no contest to two counts of third-degree sexual abuse by a school worker and was found guilty before sentencing .

Background Information

Holmberg had spent more than two decades in Nebraska classrooms. He was certified as a Nebraska teacher in 2003 and spent most of that time at Nebraska City High School before joining Lincoln Public Schools, where he taught English Learner classes at Northeast High School beginning in fall 2023 . Outside of LPS, he volunteered as a tutor for Lincoln Literacy’s English language classes, a role he had held since 2016 — work that meant teaching adults to speak, read and write English and helping them prepare for GED and U.S. citizenship tests .

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Convicted and sentenced.

On December 2, 2025, Lincoln police were called to Northeast High School just before 3 p.m. after a report of sexual abuse by a school employee . According to the arrest affidavit, LPS employees interviewed Holmberg that day, and he reportedly admitted to inappropriately touching students but said his intentions were not sexual . Multiple female teenage students reported the touching, which court documents said often happened in view of their classmates; the affidavit showed Holmberg had learned phrases in his students’ native languages so he could give them inappropriate compliments . The girls told the Journal Star he grabbed their waists, stroked their hair and touched their hips and the sides of their breasts, grabbed one girl’s buttocks in front of the class, and told students they were his favorite or pretty using the phrases he had picked up in their languages; one girl recorded multiple incidents that semester . Over the following two weeks, LPD’s Special Victims Unit interviewed the female teenage victims — all of whom primarily speak languages other than English — and developed probable cause to arrest him . Holmberg was taken into custody at his home on December 16 and booked into the Lancaster County Jail on four felony counts of sexual abuse by a school worker . Northeast High’s principal, Liz Miller, notified families that administrators had received “reports of concerning behavior by a teacher towards English Learner students” and had contacted Lincoln Police for assistance . LPS placed him on leave the same day the report surfaced, and his employment ended January 2 . In late August 2026, court documents show, Holmberg pleaded no contest: the two second-degree sexual abuse counts he was initially charged with were amended as part of the plea deal, he pleaded no contest to two counts of third-degree sexual abuse by a school worker and was found guilty, and prosecutors dismissed two other third-degree counts .

Public Reaction and Consequences

At the November 13, 2026 sentencing, Lancaster County District Judge Lori Maret imposed four years in prison — the maximum on the two counts — for conduct involving allegations from four students, plus two years of post-release supervision with one day credited . The prosecutor called Holmberg’s actions “predatory” . In court, Holmberg said: “I’m sorry that I didn’t see the impacts my behaviors were having on the students. It pains me to know the distress and fear I caused you” . His defense attorney, Seth Morris, argued for probation, saying Holmberg had taken “100% responsibility” for his conduct . Judge Maret rejected that framing, noting he had spoken of being fully accountable “and yet, what I see, is frankly no acceptance of the actual criminal behavior” . “Not that that’s what they thought it was, but that’s what you were doing and intended to do… You haven’t accepted that,” she told him .

Current Status

Holmberg is serving his four-year prison term with two years of post-release supervision to follow . He is now a convicted felon, must register as a sex offender, and has given up his teaching license .

Impact on Their Career/Life

A teaching career that began with Nebraska certification in 2003, passed through most of a decade-plus at Nebraska City High School, and continued into Northeast High’s English Learner program from fall 2023 ended with a felony conviction and the surrender of his license . His LPS employment terminated on January 2, weeks after his arrest at home . His Lincoln Literacy volunteer role — teaching English to adults since 2016 — belonged to the same world as the classroom conduct: his victims were teenage students who primarily speak languages other than English .

Sources

• “At sentencing, prosecutor calls ex-Lincoln Northeast teacher’s actions ‘predatory’” — Lincoln Journal Star, November 2026: source
• “Former LPS teacher sentenced for inappropriately touching students” — KOLN 10/11 NOW, November 2026: source
• “Lincoln teacher arrested after multiple teens report sexual abuse” — KOLN 10/11 NOW, December 2025: source