3 additional School District Five students receive SC Teaching Fellowships

For Immediate Release – May 18, 2026

3 additional School District Five students receive SC Teaching Fellowships

IRMO – Three additional Lexington-Richland School District Five students have been awarded the prestigious South Carolina Teaching Fellowship.

The students include: Tiger Long (Spring Hill High, Coastal Carolina University), Mariah Montgomery (Dutch Fork High, Coastal Carolina University), and Matthew Rikard (Spring Hill High, Lander University).

The students will receive up to $24,000 in yearly scholarships (up to $6000 a year for four years) to attend a Teaching Fellows Institution in South Carolina. Each Fellow agrees to teach in South Carolina one year for every year he or she receives the Fellowship.

They join Aiden Allen (Irmo High, College of Charleston), Brynne Barnaby (Chapin High, University of South Carolina), Brooklyn DeWitt (Chapin High, North Greenville University), Ezelle Sternenberg (Chapin High, University of South Carolina), and Samantha Wilkerson (Irmo High, Coastal Carolina University) whose names were announced earlier by CERRA. 

Applicants for the program undergo a rigorous selection process that includes an online application, an interview and presentation in front of a team of three educators, and a scored response.

The state’s Teaching Fellows Program, operated by the Center for Educator Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement (CERRA), was established in 1999 by the SC General Assembly. The mission of the program is to recruit talented high school seniors into the teaching profession and help them develop leadership qualities. Each year, the program provides Fellowships for up to 215 high school seniors who have exhibited high academic achievement, a history of service to their school and community, and a desire to teach in South Carolina.

For more information about the South Carolina Teaching Fellows Program, visit teachingfellowsc.com.

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