Announcing the 2024 Founder’s Award Winner: Military Magnet Academy

The Microsoft TEALS (Technology Education and Learning Support) Program is thrilled to announce that the winner of the 2024 Founder’s Award is Military Magnet Academy. The TEALS Founder's Award was established in 2019 and is presented annually to a partner high school with a teaching team and administration that has gone above and beyond to build and grow a sustainable, diverse, and inclusive computer science (CS) program, as advocated by TEALS Program founder Kevin Wang . 

The team at Military Magnet has consistently worked together to provide students with an exceptional CS experience and to lay a foundation that the school can continue to expand long after their partnership with TEALS has concluded. “They worked hard to increase the number of CS courses that they offer and because of this, students are able to build their skills and knowledge,” said Robin Willis Matthews , TEALS Program Regional Manager. “The volunteers, both in-person and remote, are completely engaged--everyone is contributing, teaching, building industry knowledge and having an impact on students. The volunteers on this team share not only their time and skills with students, but also their genuine enjoyment of the tech industry. Together, this team is showing students what a 'lifelong learner' looks like.” 

Richard Gordon, Executive Director of Career and Technology Education for Charleston County School District , is impressed with the CS pathway that Military Magnet Academy has achieved. "Military Magnet's efforts in creating a top-notch CS program have changed the lives of countless students and positively affected educational opportunities for years to come.  It starts at the top. Dr. Perrineau's focus on future readiness has resulted in outsized student success and accomplishment!  But of course, it cannot happen without a competent, caring, and committed teacher in the classroom.  We are so honored and fortunate to have Carla Ferrette-Clark as our computer science teacher!"

The “secret sauce” of the TEALS Program is the partnership between classroom teachers and tech industry volunteers. Teachers contribute their deep expertise of classroom pedagogy, classroom management skills, and enthusiasm to learn a new subject area, while volunteers impart their knowledge of CS, real world examples and a passion for the field to their partner teacher and students. Volunteer, Tucker Morris, shared that Carla has been a wonderful partner in this experience. “She is encouraging to the volunteers and the students, but she runs a tight class and doesn’t take any guff from the students either,” he said. “She has a technical background, and while she's building the coding skills the TEALS program pursues, she has adopted the mentality of a lifelong learner which is essential in this field.”  

JP Fasano, remote volunteer, noted that Carla is compassionate and nurturing, yet sets a high bar for excellence. “She has a special ability to establish great rapport with her students, motivating them to meet her high expectations. Her classes are enjoyable and engaging, making the learning process fun for everyone."

“It is definitely an incredible honor to be selected from hundreds of schools across the country to receive the 2024 TEALS Founder Award. I'm thrilled to share how being in partnership with Microsoft TEALS allow me to demonstrate the power of collaboration to my students,” said Carla. “It's a privilege to work alongside these professionals and witness the positive impact they have on our learning community. Here’s to a future filled with even more innovation, learning, and success!” 

The strong CS program at Military Magnet Academy is a testament to the efforts of many contributors:

Military Magnet Academy and Charleston County School District (CCSD) staff

Dr. Robert L. Perrineau, Jr. , Principal and TEALS partnership coordinator

Carla Clark (Carla Ferrette-Clark), TEALS partner teacher

Richard Gordon, CCSD Career and Technical Education Executive Director

Chad Vail , CCSE Work Based Learning Coordinator

Andy Pruitt , CCSD Media Relations

2023-24 school year TEALS volunteers

JP Fasano , Intro to CS

James "Tucker" Morris, Intro to CS

Christian Williams II , Intro to CS

Vesh Bhatt , Cyber Security

Ken B., Cyber Security

James Craig , Cyber Security

Past TEALS volunteers

Brian Atkins

Brian Vazquez

Carolyn M. Wallace

Learn more about the Microsoft Philanthropies TEALS Program at Microsoft.com/TEALS.