TALLAHASSEE — The Florida Education Association (FEA) has honored Palm Beach County teacher and mentor Cartier Scott with the FEA Martin Luther King, Jr. Award, presented annually to recognize achievement in the areas of self-determination and civil rights.
A math teacher at Suncoast Community High School, in Riviera Beach, Fla., and a track coach at Keiser University, Scott is a co-founder and mentor for the nonprofit organization Connect to Greatness (C2G). Launched in 2016, C2G is dedicated to inspiring African American boys and their mothers to become leaders and changemakers in the world. The nonprofit has two tracks, the Boys to Men Leadership Academy and the Women of Boys Empowerment Program. Boys to Men focuses on exposing young men to new experiences and situations, ranging from tie tying to yoga to college tours, and on tough conversations about growing up. The women’s program seeks to empower the boys’ moms through first-time homebuyer classes, credit rebuilding classes, mental health counseling and discussions about raising African American boys.
Andre Thaddies, executive director of C2G, writes of Scott: “Cartier represents everything that our organization is built on, which is not fitting the traditional mold and/or stereotype and embracing the importance of education and being uniquely authentic about what you want to be. I am humbly submitting this recommendation for Cartier Scott because of his efforts as an educator, great mentor, great coach and a remarkable human being.”
Karen Whetsell, an instructional superintendent with the School District of Palm Beach County, writes: “Mr. Scott is the real deal, exactly the type of man that is needed for ALL students on a high school campus, but especially who is needed for black male students. … His passion for academics just ignites a spark in students. He believes in them, and in turn they learn to believe in themselves. As Dr. King said, life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’ Mr. Scott answers that question.”
Born and raised in Riviera Beach, Scott graduated from the high school where he now teaches. He earned a bachelor’s degree in middle level math education from Wilkes University, Wilkes Barre, Pa.
Scott is an active member of the Palm Beach County Classroom Teachers Association and the statewide union, FEA. On Oct. 14 at the annual FEA Delegate Assembly in Orlando, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the National Education Association (NEA) for Seat 4, representing Florida educators.
Scott was presented with the Martin Luther King, Jr. Award on Oct. 14 at the annual FEA Human and Civil Rights Awards Gala, held in Orlando in conjunction with the Delegate Assembly. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Award was one of five statewide awards presented to six recipients at the gala.
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CONTACT: Joni Branch, joni.branch@floridaea.org, (850) 201-3223
The Florida Education Association is the state’s largest association of professional employees, with 150,000 members. FEA represents PreK-12 teachers, higher education faculty, educational staff professionals, students at our colleges and universities preparing to become teachers and retired education employees.
