Category

Awards

Jan 09
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Mountain Island Charter School Celebrates Its Principal of the Year

By Awards, News

Mountain Island Charter School has another reason to celebrate. The public charter school, home to the NC Charter School Teacher of the Year, also employs the NC Charter School Principal of the Year. Dr. Jacob Wilson, the middle/high school principal at MICS, recently earned the honor.

We share an excerpt below from the MICS announcement:

We are honored to announce that Dr. Jacob Wilson, MICS Middle/High School Principal has [been] named the North Carolina Charter School Principal of the Year! He was selected as the NC Charter School Principal of the Year out of more than 200 charter schools across the state.

Dr. Wilson has served in his current role at MICS for almost 2 years. Prior to his tenure at MICS, he held positions as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal at various levels of K-12 public education. Since Dr. Wilson became a Raptor, MICS has achieved the highest academic growth outcomes in school history and substantially expanded both academic and extracurricular programming.

… Dr. Wilson will now compete in the final state round alongside 8 other regional principals up for the 2025 Wells Fargo Principal of the Year. The state winner will be announced during an awards ceremony later this year.

Congratulations, Dr. Wilson and Mountain Island Charter School! See the video from WBTV. 

Photo of Dr. Wilson and his family: Mountain Island Charter School.

Dec 18
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Lindsay Phillips Named the 2025 NC Charter School Teacher of the Year

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Lindsay Phillips. Photo: Mountain Island Charter School/Facebook.

Lindsay Phillips, a kindergarten teacher at Mountain Island Charter School in Mount Holly, is the 2025 NC Charter School Teacher of the Year. The honor was announced last week. Congratulations, Mrs. Phillips!

Here’s the update on the award from Mountain Island Charter School’s Facebook page:

We are proud to announce that our very own, Lindsay Phillips, is the 2025 North Carolina Charter School Teacher of the year. She was selected as the NC Teacher of the Year out of more than 200 charter schools across the state. Mrs. Phillips has been at MICS for 9 years, serving as a kindergarten teacher since 2015.

… Lindsay will now compete in the final state round alongside 8 other regional educators up for the 2025 Burroughs Wellcome Fund North Carolina Teacher of the Year. The state winner will be announced during an awards ceremony later this year and will be livestreamed on NCDPI’s social media platforms. Learn more about the NC Teacher of the Year program on the NCDPI website, and follow along on social media at #NCTOY.

Learn more about Lindsay Phillips and her award from WBTV.

Oct 31
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Sup. Truitt Wins Champion for Charter Schools Award

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On Tuesday, state charter leaders presented Superintendent Catherine Truitt with a “Champion for Charter Schools” award. Lindalyn Kakadelis, executive director at the Coalition, and Rhonda Dillingham, the executive director for the NC Association for Public Charter Schools, presented Truitt with the award at the Department of Public Instruction in Raleigh.

Rhonda Dillingham (left) and Lindalyn Kakadelis (right) present State Superintendent Catherine Truitt (center) with a “Champion for Charter Schools” award on October 29, 2024.

A press release from the NC Association for Public Charter Schools noted:

This annual award honors bipartisan state policymakers who are making an exceptional difference for charter school families and communities in their state and who go above and beyond to shape students’ futures for the better.

…”Our state’s charter schools are grateful for Superintendent Truitt’s support, particularly her advocacy on behalf of charter schools with the State Board of Education and the General Assembly during her tenure,” said Rhonda Dillingham, Executive Director of NCAPCS.

“In both word and deed, Superintendent Truitt has supported the diversity of education options that public charter schools offer children and parents. We’re grateful for her partnership, and for helping create an environment in which parents can choose a school that best helps students meet their full potential,” said Lindalyn Kakadelis, Executive Director of the NCCS.

“It is imperative for lawmakers at all levels of government to support policies to create and sustain high-quality charter schools if they want to make a difference for students and the future of our country. The National Alliance is grateful for the ways these elected officials have been responsive to the students and families they serve by promoting more public school options, robust flexibility and accountability for those options, and increased funding and resources for these unique public schools. Without their support, the charter school movement would not be where it is today. This year’s honorees have fought for our students and deserve our gratitude and praise,” said Todd Ziebarth, Senior Vice President for Advocacy and State Support at the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.

Sep 10
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NC Charter School NEAAAT Wins Prestigious National Prize

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A North Carolina charter school and Coalition member, Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT), has won a prestigious national award valued at more than $200,000. Known as the Yass Prize, the award honors education providers who fulfill the objectives of the STOP acronym by offering an education that is Sustainable, Transformational, Outstanding, and Permissionless.

The Yass Foundation, which administers the Yass Prize, announced the awards last week. Awardees were selected from thousands of applicants, with over 850 judges weighing in, according to Yass. Each semifinalist award is valued at a minimum of $200,000, and will be used to target growth and expansion efforts.

We congratulate each of the 25 semifinalists below, but especially NEAAAT. We’re so proud of your accomplishment!

Semifinalists include:

  • An Achievable Dream in Newport News, VA
  • Aurora Science & Technical School in Aurora, CO
  • Big Picture Learning Company in Providence, RI
  • Bob Hope School in Port Arthur, TX
  • Boddle Learning (National)
  • Bridgeway Academy in Columbus, OH
  • Cafe Momentum (National)
  • Earl Monroe New Renaissance Basketball Charter School in Bronx, NY
  • Freedom Institute of Collier County in Naples, FL
  • Freedom Preparatory Academy in Memphis, TN, and Birmingham, AL
  • Learning Center for the Deaf in Framingham, MA
  • Liberty STEAM Charter School in Sumter, SC
  • Liguori Academy in Philadelphia, PA
  • Northeast Academy for Aerospace & Advanced Technologies in Elizabeth City, NC
  • Notre Dame School of Milwaukee in Milwaukee, WI
  • Onward Learning in Martin, SD
  • Parents Challenge in Colorado Springs, CO
  • Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship in Pittsburgh, PA
  • Primer Microschools Foundation in Fort Lauderdale, FL
  • Rural Schools Innovation Zone in Premont, TX
  • Short Answer in Louisville, NE
  • Spark Academy of Advanced Technologies in Manchester, NH
  • St. Mary’s Academy in New Orleans, LA
  • Vimenti in San Juan, Puerto Rico
  • WIN Academy at Bridge Valley Community & Technical College in South Charleston, WV

Learn more about the 2024 Yass Prize Semifinalists here. View the list of awardees here. See NEAAAT’s Facebook post about the Yass Prize. Watch Thursday’s recorded livestream announcement below.

Photo credit above: NEAAAT/Facebook.

Jul 15
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Union Academy celebrates multiple student awards

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Congratulations to Union Academy‘s 2023-24 Varsity Cheer Team! The team at the Monroe, North Carolina, charter school recently celebrated winning the Commissioner’s Trophy from the NCHSAA (North Carolina High School Athletic Association). Presented in partnership with Truist, the NCHSAA trophy is awarded to high school sports teams that do outstanding community service work. Winning school teams receive a $1,000 stipend.

In a press release announcing the award, UA noted:

Union Academy’s Varsity Cheerleading Team was awarded the NCHSAA Commissioner’s Trophy for Community Service at the 2023-24 Awards Celebration held in Greensboro on June 12. The team created a service project called “Cardinals Helping Cardinals” that sponsors a mini food pantry on campus that provides emergency food supplies for students and their families that face food insecurities. The program helps provide 8-10 backpacks of food each week to the school’s counseling department which are then distributed to those in need. Cheerleaders contribute to the pantry, accept donations, and pack the bags each week. Additionally, the team volunteers with the Community Shelter of Union County, InReach, and Operation Christmas Child and contributes to the Stocking Project through Alliance for Children and to Turning Point.

This is the second time UA’s Varsity Cheer Team has won the NCHSAA Commissioner’s Trophy for Community Service (2018-19).  

Union Academy’s 2023-24 Varsity Cheer Team. Photo credit: Union Academy.

Read more about the award in The Enquirer Journal.

And in other UA good news, the school’s Senior A Team placed first in the state in the 4-H Poultry Judging contest.

A press release from UA noted:

Union Academy sent two Senior Teams and one Junior Team to the North Carolina 4-H State Poultry Judging Championships. The Senior A Team placed 1st in the state and received an invitation to compete for a National Championship in November to be held in Kentucky (Lindsay Van Art, Aubrey Mekus, Blake Carter, and Bella Mitchell). The Senior B Team placed 2nd in the State (Sofia Manriquez, Elizabeth Williams, and Levi Carter). The Junior Team placed 2nd in the State (Lacie Alexander, Colton Alexander, Bradley Carter).

Union Academy’s state champion Senior A Team. Photo credit: Union Academy.

Read more in Union County Weekly and The Enquirer Journal.

Congratulations to all of these award-winning Union Academy students!

 

 

 

Apr 18
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NEAAAT Earns Innovation Honors from the Canopy Project

By Awards
Congratulations to Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT)! The Elizabeth City public charter school and Coalition member school is one of 10 North Carolina public schools (including three charter schools) recently honored by the Canopy Project for innovation in education. Other honoree schools in North Carolina include lab and district schools.

About the Canopy Project

The Canopy Project is an initiative from the Center on Reinventing Public Education and Transcend Education. The 10 North Carolina schools are among 189 schools nationwide to make Canopy’s 2024 list and to be included in the project’s database.

NEAAAT students at work. Photo credit: Facebook, Northeast Academy for Aerospace and Advanced Technologies.

  • Click here to go to Canopy’s searchable database and learn more about NEAAAT’s achievements.
  • View the portal guide.
  • Read more from EdNC or The 74.
Congratulations to NEAAAT CEO Andrew Harris and to the entire NEAAAT school community! We’re proud of you and your achievement.
Mar 28
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Pine Lake Prep Student Wins Spectrum Scholar Award

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Ella Wilkinson, a senior at Pine Lake Prep, is a new recipient of the Spectrum High School Scholar Award. Ella plans to use the $1,000 award for college next year at Virginia Tech. A triple threat in sports (basketball, softball, and lacrosse), Ella hopes to study industrial design in college. Congratulations, Ella!

Spectrum describes Scholar Award eligibility this way:

Nominees must be high school seniors at public or private high schools in North Carolina. They must be involved in varsity athletics or have an excellent academic record, and be involved in extracurricular activities, such as band, newspaper, or yearbook, and be active in their local community, either through their school or volunteering on their own time.

Senator Vickie Sawyer presents PLP student Ella Wilkinson with the Spectrum High School Scholar Award. Photo/video credit: Spectrum News.

Here’s what Ella told Spectrum News, which featured her in a recent news story, about her future aspirations and plans:

I think every job needs to have a purpose, and so my purpose is helping others while incorporating other parts like the environment and just making sure that people are being able to get the products that they need … My friends would probably say I’m creative and definitely driven. I care a lot about what I do and like to do it well.

… When I leave Pine Lake, I hope that I can inspire others to kind of be able to do it… all sports, social life and getting good grades and focusing on school because that’s really important to me, and that’s what I have used to help me want to follow my dreams and creating my own sustainable products.

Pine Lake Prep is a public charter school (and Coalition member school) located in Mooresville, North Carolina. The school serves students in grades K-12, and is headed by Andrew Moceri, a member of the Coalition’s Board of Directors.

Mar 05
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North Carolina Award: Nominate Leaders in the Arts, Service or Science

By Awards
Did you know about the North Carolina Award? Established by the General Assembly more than 50 years ago, the North Carolina Award honors individuals who “have made significant contributions to the state and nation in the field of fine art, literature, public service, and science,” according to the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, which administers the award. It is the “highest civilian honor given by the state,” according to DNCR, and is conferred by the Governor. Past recipients include William Friday, Billy Graham, James Taylor, and Maya Angelou.

If you know of an individual you believe is deserving of this honor, please use this link to fill out a nomination form.

The application closes April 1.
May 19
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Nine N.C. Charter Schools Win 2023 Purple Star Awards

By Awards, News

Nine North Carolina charter schools have won 2023 Purple Star Awards, the N.C. Department of Public Instruction announced yesterday. These awards, which recognize service to military-affiliated students and their families, went to 336 public charter and public district schools across the state. The Purple Star Award program began in 2019-20, so this its fourth year of operation. Congratulations to all of these public schools for their exemplary service to military families!

The charter schools winning 2023 Purple Star awards are:

  • Alpha Academy
  • Anderson Creek Academy
  • Northeast Academy for Aerospace & Advanced Technologies (NEAAAT)
  • North Carolina Cyber Academy
  • Pine Springs Preparatory Academy
  • The Academy of Moore County
  • Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy
  • Southern Wake Academy
  • Wayne Preparatory Academy

Of these nine charter schools, five are Coalition member schools (in bold).

Superintendent Catherine Truitt and Brigadier General Colin P. Tuley at a ceremony this week recognizing 2023 Purple Star Award winners. Photo credit: N.C. DPI.

In a Department of Public Instruction press release yesterday, State Superintendent Catherine Truitt said:

These Purple Star Awardees have gone beyond the standard call of duty to ensure their school and classroom environments accommodate military-connected students. Their dedication to these students allows them to be seen, heard, and valued in their new school and feel supported as they adjust to their new surroundings. The growth this program has seen in its few short years of existence is incredibly promising and something I am especially grateful for.

Here is how DPI summarized the requirements for the Purple Star Award:

Schools earning the Purple Star Award were required to have a staff member as a designated point of contact for military students and families, a designated central administration staff member supporting the point of contact in the school and also the provision of annual professional development addressing special considerations for military students and families. Purple Star schools also provide a dedicated page on their websites for military family resources or links to the district’s webpage with military family resources as well as a transition program to support inbound and outbound military students and families, along with a checklist for their use.

Click here to see the full list of 2023 Purple Star Award winners. Congratulations, Purple Star Award winners–and especially, to Coalition member schools!

May 21
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A North Carolina charter student is named a 2021 Presidential Scholar

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A NC charter school student is a Presidential Scholar

Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona has announced the 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholars. Nationwide, 161 high school seniors will receive the award. Six recipients are public charter school students. One Presidential Scholar, Pratyush Seshadri, attends a North Carolina charter school: Raleigh Charter High School in Cary. Congratulations to Pratyush and Raleigh Charter High School!

Two other NC high school students are 2021 Presidential Scholars: Ijay  Narang, of Charlotte, from Ardrey Kell High School, and Nrithya P. Renganathan, of Cary, from The North Carolina School of Science & Mathematics.

About the Presidential Scholars Program

Selection criteria for this award are especially rigorous. As a result, the program recognizes the most outstanding students nationwide, in achievement and service. A press release from the U.S. Department of Education explains:

The White House Commission on Presidential Scholars selects scholars annually based on their academic success, artistic and technical excellence, essays, school evaluations and transcripts, as well as evidence of community service, leadership and demonstrated commitment to high ideals.

Secretary Miguel Cardona expressed his congratulations:

“The 2021 Presidential Scholars represent extraordinary achievements for our extraordinary times,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “I am delighted to join President Biden in saluting these outstanding young people for their achievements, service, character and continued pursuit of excellence. Their examples make me proud and hopeful about the future. Honoring them can remind us all of the great potential in each new generation and renew our commitment to helping them achieve their dreams.”

In a press release, Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt praised the NC recipients:

“They’ve all done amazing things during their time in school, and especially during a trying year for all North Carolinians, they continued to demonstrate excellence,” Truitt said. “They have much to be proud of, and they represent the best of North Carolina’s youth.”

Read a press release about the charter scholars from the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools here.