MILWAUKEE — A Bay View High School industrial technology teacher was awarded a $100,000 grant for teaching excellence, bringing new opportunities and resources to Milwaukee Public Schools students.
Michael Driscoll received the Harbor Freight 'Tools for Schools' Grand Prize for Teaching Excellence in a celebration attended by his students, colleagues, and family. The surprise announcement left Driscoll shocked and emotional.
"I've never received an award like this," Driscoll said.
With the substantial money, Driscoll hopes the school will look for additional staffing to allow for smaller group work with students, along with new tools for the industrial technology program. Driscoll hopes the money will enable students to turn their ideas into reality through hands-on learning experiences.
"I just love the idea that they get an opportunity to take something that's in their head and no one empowered them like this, and turn that into a real thing," Driscoll said.
Senior Elijah Green, who has been Driscoll's student on and off for two years and now mentors other students interested in engineering, praised his teacher's approach.
"Driscoll is a great teacher; he has more of a hands-on approach, showing kids how to do all the assignments," Green said.
Green believes the grant will significantly transform the program's future.
"I think that means that the program is really going to develop, and in a few years, I really believe it can become something a lot more than it is currently," Green said.
Watch: Bay View High School teacher receives $100,000 grant for teaching excellence in Milwaukee
For Driscoll, the recognition represents more than just funding - it's validation for Milwaukee Public Schools students who he believes are often overlooked.
"There's sort of a skewed perspective of what Milwaukee looks like as a school district, and the kids are capable of incredible things, and I just really want people to notice that and see that and see that we're being touted for really great things in the community… not just locally but nationwide," Driscoll said.
This story was reported on-air by Brendyn Jones and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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