Lauren McCall, a Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) teacher at Four Oaks Elementary, has been awarded a 2026–2027 Kenan Fellowship supported by the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and The Ohio State University’s TARDISS program. In her 24th year of teaching elementary education, McCall has spent the last nine years teaching STEM to the students at Four Oaks Elementary.
McCall is one of just 36 teachers awarded Kenan Fellowships this year, and this summer, the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership at NCSU will give McCall the chance to deepen that work by immersing her in one of the nation’s top chemical engineering research labs.
The fellowship will take McCall into the labs of NCSU professor Gregory McKenna, Ph.D., where researchers are working to develop guayule, a plant grown in the American Southwest and Mexico, as a domestic alternative to natural rubber sourced from Southeast Asia. The research has implications for American supply chain security, agricultural development, and genetic engineering.
"This opportunity creates an atmosphere of consistent teamwork in my classroom,
which is critical for future success in the workplace."
- Lauren McCall
McCall will work with the graduate students in the lab to learn how rubber and rubber latex behave and why they are such important materials in our economy.
She will learn the techniques and methods for measuring the properties of rubber latex at the microscopic level and bring that knowledge back to her students at Four Oaks Elementary.
Where Educators Grow to Meet North Carolina’s Future
For McCall, the fellowship is as much about her students as it is about her professional growth. “This opportunity creates an atmosphere of consistent teamwork in my classroom, which is critical for future success in the workplace,” she said. “It also unlocks students’ interests and talents they may not have had another chance to explore.”
As part of the fellowship, McCall will receive 80 hours of professional development and a $5,000 stipend. She joins a statewide network of 680 Kenan Fellows alumni who support one another, share resources, and, as a result, stay in education longer.