Microsoft Innovative Educator

The Microsoft Innovative Educator (MIE) Expert program is a selected global community through Microsoft. It was created to recognize passionate educators who are constantly learning, growing, and working together to change students’ lives and build a better world. Resourceful and entrepreneurial, MIE Experts relish the role of change agent, and work to achieve excellence in education using Microsoft technologies coupled with their innovative teaching practices. Julia Rowland and Mary Smith were selected as Microsoft Innovative Educator Experts for 2022-2023.

Julia Rowland, M.Ed., is an Instructional Designer and Training Specialist at MUSC. Her passion for education is centered in providing data-based support and resources to promote innovative thinking among faculty, staff, and students. Teaching and learning is always adapting, shifting, and evolving, and she is focused on staying up-to-date on instructional technologies that support student mastery. This is Julia's first year being selected as a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert.

Mary Smith, M.T. is the Director of Instructional Technology at MUSC. She is a passionate educator who is dedicated to supporting innovation in teaching and learning through technology. She believes in the importance of a pedagogy first mindset when it comes to how technology can impact and influence student success. This is Mary’s second consecutive year being selected as a MIE Expert.

MIE Experts are global educator visionaries who are using technology to pave the way for their peers for better learning and student outcomes. MIE Experts form a global, professional learning community of educators who are constantly pushing the boundaries of what a classroom looks and feels like through using Microsoft technologies coupled with innovative teaching practices. There were 830 educators across the U.S. who were selected for this honor with six here in South Carolina.