RALEIGH, N.C. ⸺ Lauren McCall has spent the past nine years making STEM meaningful for students. This summer, the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership at N.C. State University is giving her the chance to deepen that work by immersing her in one of the nation’s top chemical engineering research labs.

McCall is now in her 24th year of teaching elementary education. She is currently a STEM teacher at Four Oaks Elementary School in Johnston County Schools, and has been awarded a 2026–27 Kenan Fellowship supported by the N.C. State University Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and The Ohio State University’s TARDISS program. She is one of 36 teachers awarded Kenan Fellowships this year.

Her fellowship will take her into the labs of Gregory McKenna, Ph.D., at NC State, 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.

McCall will learn the techniques of rheology and nanoindentation, methods used to measure the properties of rubber latex at a microscopic level, and bring that knowledge back to her students in Johnston County.

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. It also unlocks students’ interests and talents they may not have had another chance to explore,” she said.

This is the first time the NC State Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and TARDISS have supported a Kenan Fellowship. The partnership reflects a shared belief that when teachers become immersed in cutting-edge research, students gain a window into careers and fields they may never have considered.

Sustained Investment in Teachers Delivers Statewide Return

Professor Greg McKenna, who is leading the TARDISS activities in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NC State, describes the project as an opportunity to engage with STEM teachers. TARDISS is the acronym for the Transformation of American Rubber through Domestic Innovation for Supply Security, an engineering research center. McKenna’s lab focuses on characterizing rubber from different sources and seeks to benchmark behavior against the traditional natural rubber source, Hevea brasiliensis. The alternative rubber being studied comes from the Russian dandelion and guayule plant, both of which can be grown in the U.S. 

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. As part of the fellowship, she 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 stay in education longer as a result.

“This fellowship connects elementary students to significant research happening at the national level, and that investment shows up directly in primary schools and the future careers elementary students can begin to imagine for themselves,” said Vance Kite, director of the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership.

About the Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership

The Kenan Fellows Program for Teacher Leadership is a statewide force for teacher leadership and growth in North Carolina. Founded in 2000 and based at the Kenan Institute for Engineering, Technology & Science at N.C. State University, the program invests in teachers through immersive industry experiences, professional development, and a strong, enduring community. Every investment returns to classrooms, schools and communities, advancing education and our communities’ future together. Learn more at kenanfellows.org.