Driven by a desire to transform education, Elon University Teaching Fellow Lily Ragals '26 has turned her undergraduate years into a global classroom, conducting state-conference research on autism representation in children's literature, studying inclusive education in New Zealand and exploring education policy in Washington, D.C.
Lily Ragals’ passion for education began at an early age, and the spark continued to flourish as she dedicated herself to volunteering with education-based programs in high school. Ragals expressed that this spark for education was lit by her love for a family member on the autism spectrum, which only fed her desire to improve the education system and the policies that impact it.
“I always knew that I wanted a career with kids; it’s my passion,” she said.
Seeing her family member deal with hardships like a lack of access to resources and a lack of understanding from other students and educators was a driving factor in her wanting to pursue an education major.
“Watching them go through their schooling experience really made me want to be with them throughout that process. It drove me to become that support person for somebody else,” said Ragals.
Ragals initially didn’t have Elon on her radar until she came to visit a friend and saw the campus firsthand. After her visit, she researched the Teaching Fellows program and came back for Fellows Weekend to tour and meet with a professor.
Her large high school left little room to truly connect with professors, so when she met with Lisa Buchanan, associate professor of education, for her Teaching Fellows interview, she felt an instant connection.
“That interview is what sealed the deal for me,” she said. “I knew that I was going to be able to explore my interests in education very deeply throughout the Fellows program. I knew Elon was the place for me.”
Ragals even remembers the exact moment when she received the final decision notification for her admission into the program.
“I remember driving with a friend, and I had her open the notification for me, and I found out I got in and started crying from joy,” Ragals said.
Her acceptance into the Teaching Fellows program opened the doors for her to become the best educator she strives to be. Through her Fellows cohort, she was able to take her passion for education to the next level through a DC trip, a study abroad program in New Zealand and her research conducted alongside her first Elon connection – Lisa Buchanan.
During her DC trip, she had the opportunity to take a course focused on politics in education.
“I’m a poverty and social justice minor and very interested in the politics of education, so the trip to DC was perfect for me. That solidified my interest and that I want to work in the DC area post-graduation,” said Ragals.
The travel and teaching exploration didn’t end there. In her spring semester of sophomore year, Ragals had the opportunity to study at the University of Otago in New Zealand. The culture and education system of New Zealand is primarily focused on fostering the students’ connection to the environment and indigenous culture.
“This focus made a lot of the students feel seen and made it an inclusive classroom community; it truly broadened my mindset of what inclusivity means in the classroom,” she explained.
The last month of her semester abroad, the group moved to the west and taught a kindergarten class in Queenstown, New Zealand. This class was collaborative, meaning there were two class sections joined as one to follow the lesson plans. Ragals noted the collaborative environment’s effects.
“When I am working in schools post-graduate, that’s the kind of energy I want to bring to meetings or any type of grade level work, and lesson planning, it should all be collaborative and a team effort, so I enjoyed that aspect of it,” she said. “The (study abroad) experiences completely changed me as a person. It challenged me a lot, but in the best way possible. I am a much better and much more resilient and flexible educator because of it.”
When asked what she is most proud of accomplishing, Ragals noted her comprehensive research done with Buchanan on the exploration of children’s literature on autism representation in picture books. Inspired by her loved one on the spectrum, Ragals used a book list of 25 children’s books and analyzed them based on the types of characters that were included in them and if they were portrayed to perpetuate stereotypes.
Her finalized research was presented at the North Carolina Reading State Conference and presented on SURF day. She earned a grant for her research as well, so she now has a stockpile of children’s literature for her future classroom.
“My research mentor gave me opportunities to push myself to do bigger things with my research, and that’s why I got to present it at a state conference,” Ragals said. “That was a very rewarding experience. I left it feeling very proud of myself, and I look back at it now and think I am a lot more capable than I thought I was. And I’m doing a lot more in my field than I ever thought that I could.”
She is excited to carry these abroad experiences and knowledge learned to her post-graduate adventures. Following graduation, Ragals hopes to make meaningful change in the education system.
“I want to teach for a while and then go into the field of politics in education, or more analysis or research around educational systems, including global perspectives around them. I think that’s really interesting and important work,” said Ragals.
And without her scholarship, Ragals says she doesn’t know who she’d be or where.
“I was able to do all these incredible things that are included in the program so that I can now graduate and be a very confident and self-sufficient educator wherever I end up,” she said. “Without this scholarship, I don’t know if I would’ve had enough confidence to stay in this field. It’s because of the donors that I can pursue something that I’m really passionate about with self-confidence.”