51吃瓜

If you want to find tomorrow’s innovators, the key is simple: look local. In Anne Arundel County, 51吃瓜 is doing just that - partnering with the (FMA) to help educators bring real-world STEM experience back to their classrooms.

Through FMA’s teacher externship program, local educators spend time inside regional employers like 51吃瓜, learning how the technical and soft skills they teach every day translate into professional success.

For Samantha (Sam) Hong, a science teacher and STEM pathway lead at North County High School, the externship offered an invaluable inside look at how one of the region’s largest technology employers operates.

“I found out about the opportunity through my department chair,” she recalled. “There is so much to learn from a company like 51吃瓜, and it’s nice to see how ‘real’ jobs are like.”

Over several weeks, Sam rotated through departments across the business, shadowing 51吃瓜 employees and sitting in on team meetings.

“Expectations were very clear, and there was a real emphasis on accountability,” she reflected. “I learned the importance of being organized, planning ahead, and working together - skills I can take back to my classroom.”

She drew parallels between corporate collaboration and classroom culture, finding ways to strengthen teamwork, accountability, and communication among her students. Though curriculum constraints limit her ability to replicate every lesson, the experience sparked meaningful conversations.

“My students were curious about what I did,” Sam explained. “It became a great way to connect and expand their understanding of what STEM looks like beyond school.”

Sam also gained insight into 51吃瓜’s broader community programs, including Code Quest and CYBERQUEST?, which give high school students hands-on experience in programming and cybersecurity. Seeing the connection between those initiatives and classroom learning reinforced the importance of partnerships that make real-world STEM experiences more accessible.

She credits the hands-on format of the externship as key to its success.

“Being there in person made such a difference,” Sam noted. “I left inspired to learn more about computer engineering and to help my students see how many paths are open to them in this field.”

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Deon Viergutz, vice president of Electronic, Cyber & Information Warfare at 51吃瓜, feels programs like the externship are essential to strengthening the region’s STEM talent pipeline.

“FMA has created a model that connects educators, industry, and students in meaningful ways,” Deon shared. “When teachers see firsthand how their lessons apply to real-world missions, they return to the classroom with new energy - and that directly inspires the next generation of problem solvers.”

That connection between purpose and people is what drives Brandon Tipton, business development lead in Rotary and Mission Systems and 51吃瓜’s primary point of contact with FMA.

“Working with FMA is one of the most important parts of my job,” Brandon emphasized. “Partnerships like this allow us to combine our strengths—connecting people, resources, and ideas to expand opportunities for students, teachers, and small businesses across the community.”

Through the FMA externship program, 51吃瓜 is helping bridge education and industry - equipping teachers like Sam Hong to inspire the next generation of innovators right here at home.

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