The Charleston County Board of Trustees recognized several achievements at its meeting on February 25, 2026.
Bryan Coleman, principal of Thomas C. Cario Middle School, received the South Carolina Council for Exceptional Children Principal of the Year Award. This award highlights Coleman’s efforts to improve opportunities and outcomes for exceptional children and youth.
Under Coleman’s leadership, Thomas C. Cario Middle School has seen significant progress in supporting students with special needs. In the last three years, proficiency scores in English Language Arts for special education students have more than doubled based on SC READY assessments. Math proficiency nearly doubled as well, surpassing both district and state averages for this group.
Coleman will be honored at an awards luncheon in Myrtle Beach on Friday.
Wando High School Principal Chas Coker was also recognized after being named the 2026 Dr. Kay Phillips Administrator of the Year by the Southern Interscholastic Press Association (SIPA). The award acknowledges his support for student media programs and his role in developing student journalists.
Philip Caston, adviser for Wando’s student media programs, said: “Coker has continued the standard of Wando’s and the District’s commitment to outstanding student media and then some, and has worked with us to cultivate and build our student media programs into even stronger opportunities and learning experiences for our students.”
Coker is invited to attend SIPA’s annual convention in Columbia where he will receive his award and address attendees at a banquet on March 7, 2026.
Additionally, Military Magnet Academy’s FIRST Tech Challenge robotics team, TalonSkies, was recognized for representing South Carolina at the United States Governors Cup held at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., where they finished 22nd overall.
The team’s success was supported by coaches TSgt. Ferrette-Clark; Darwin Shorters, Computer Science Teacher; TSgt. Jerry White, Middle School Leadership Instructor; and mentor Sally-Ann Archie from BAE Systems. These mentors work together to provide real-world STEM experiences that help prepare students for future careers.
FIRST South Carolina is part of a global organization that encourages young people to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics through mentor-based robotics programs.
