KSSB wins 2023 TEALS Program Founder’s Award?

Each year the Microsoft Philanthropies Technology Education and Learning Support (TEALS) Program celebrates one partner school with the TEALS Founder’s Award. This award honors founder Kevin Wang ’s vision for increasing access to computer science (CS) education and recognizes exceptional progress towards building a sustainable, diverse, and inclusive CS program. This year’s winner is Kansas State School for the Blind (KSSB), TEALS partner since 2019. The superintendent Jon Harding , principal Deb Howser, school administrators, and volunteers Elyssa Jozefowski , Albert V. , Felix Tse , Shaina K. , Pradnya Desai , Paul Thompson, Michael Scaman, and Síle Ekaterin Liszka, have gone above and beyond to support the TEALS partner teachers Kimberly Rhea and Christian Puett over the years. ?

“Our partnership with TEALS has challenged our own expectations and taught us that students who are Blind or Low Vision can master rigorous CS content when accessibility is built in. TEALS volunteers and team have had an unwavering belief in our students and our school from day one,” said Superintendent Harding. “We are humbled, honored and thrilled to be a part of this ground-breaking partnership.”

In fact, KSSB was highlighted for their pioneering CS education accomplishments at the most recent Council of Schools and Services for the Blind Leadership Institute and inspired several schools to partner with TEALS, including Washington State School for the Blind and Maryland School for the Blind.? ?

At KSSB, the teaching team embraced inclusive practices like describing themselves during introductions and utilizing everything in their wheelhouse to help students engage with the content and the tasks at hand. The TEALS partner teachers also took full advantage of their access to technology professionals who were willing to meet with them 1:1 to problem solve and innovate solutions for the CS class. "Students who are blind or have a visual impairment, like myself, historically could not gain access to STEM topics like CS,” Christian shared. “During the 2022-2023 school year I saw students gain essential CS skills using screen reading software while learning the Python coding language. These students enjoyed learning how to run a program and debug errors (which are skills that students with typical vision have greater access to through traditional CS electives)." Kimberly adds, “Giving blind and vision impaired students the ability to learn to code is giving them skills to beat the odds and become gainfully employed, productive adults.”?

The volunteers who have supported KSSB have been exceptionally dedicated. They have helped students create tools, run coding clubs, start podcasts and more. ?You can read about how volunteers supported student Patrick Wilson and learn how his CS aspirations led all the way to college here. ?

Elyssa shared that she donates her time to KSSB due to a simple question posed at a conference: “Technology will shape the world, so who will shape technology?” Elyssa said, “I started volunteering because I want to live in a world that is shaped by the full spectrum of the people living in it and that mission starts with education.”?

For Felix, TEALS has been an outlet for him to share his skills with others. “TEALS has provided a great way to show students how a career in technology can be and to encourage them to pursue it in the future. I am glad to be one of the thousands of volunteers to help spread literacy in computers and technology.”?

Pradnya offered a reflection on one of her most meaningful experiences as a remote volunteer: “I was in a breakout room with one of the students; this was a student I had been working with 1:1 for the past few months. We were solving one of the hardest problems that had been presented to her that year, and suddenly she goes, ‘Why are the problems getting easier?’ After a moment, I said it wasn't the problems getting easier, but it was her growing so much that difficult problems felt easier.”?

She went on to share what she’s learned from volunteering: “Talent can be anywhere, but not everyone has the resources to make use of that talent and create something new with it. If any one of these students makes the next big thing that can solve a problem the world is facing today, it will benefit everyone that idea impacts. And all this wouldn't have been possible if that student had not been given an opportunity. I am so proud to be part of this mission!”?

The small group of individuals involved with the CS courses at KSSB have made a huge impact and embody the ethos of the TEALS Program. They have uplifted every student and ensured that they can imagine their future selves in technology careers, creating the world of tomorrow.?

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