Four Alabama undergraduate students are leading the next generation of aspiring educators through statewide service and policy advocacy.

Holding four out of the five state executive board positions on the Student Alabama Education Association, or SAEA, seniors Heaven Thomas and Emma Dagley, alongside juniors Isabella Nguyen and Ivy Grace Smith are leading the state’s largest professional organization for education students.

Governing over 8,300 members across 32 schools, these women are building a brighter future for Alabama’s education system. Members are provided with educational training at annual conferences, free professional liability insurance for student teaching and experience networking opportunities with both experienced and up and coming educators.

Fighting for change

One of the most prominent ways these UA students are making positive change is through promoting educational policy reform. Last month, Thomas, who serves as president, presented five resolutions to the SAEA state board, which were unanimously approved. These resolutions will move forward in November for consideration on the 2027 SAEA agenda with the goals of protecting the rights of student educators and improving the quality of teacher education.

Throughout each policy proposal, the board remains focused on increasing accessibility to impactful education preparation. As they complete their clinical field experience, these leaders are promoting policy to compensate students for the estimated 2,000 required hours of student teaching.

“Our biggest goal with that is to increase our ability for future educators to be able to student teach because accessibility is a really big thing. Because people from low-income families that come to college, they have to work to pay their tuition. You have to pay your tuition during your student teaching semester. But student teaching from seven to three every day doesn’t leave you with a lot of time to work… It just is an accessibility thing. We need more teachers and that’s a way to lower the barrier,” stressed Dagley, who serves as second vice president.

For Smith, who serves as secretary, its policy reform that motivated her to run for the SAEA state board. After volunteering in a Tuscaloosa school, she was motivated to use her classroom experiences as a foundation for meaningful policy change.

“I decided to do leadership in this capacity because I see my future going beyond the classroom. I want to work in education law and policy, potentially on Capitol Hill one day. So, getting any kind of experience that I can just support that positive change, especially at AEA conferences and at the national level with people from other states, that’s been kind of the goal and what I want to do,” explained Smith.

First Vice President Nguyen’s experience demonstrates the value of these opportunities. Over the past summer, she traveled to Denver to attend eight workshops on writing resolutions, grant applications and contacting elected representatives to equip her to help improve the state of Alabama through policy development.

The Alabama Impact

The commitment to leadership is not limited to helping shape statewide policy, as these women are setting an example among peers in the Tuscaloosa community.

While Nguyen serves on SAEA’s state board, she is also president of The University of Alabama’s local chapter. Nguyen’s ambition and resilience is a key factor in connecting College of Education students with state and national leadership opportunities. In 2023, Nguyen and her peers revitalized UA’s SAEA chapter following a period of inactivity, creating new leadership opportunities for aspiring educators.

Nguyen has also connected UA students with local nonprofits Schoolyard Roots and the Tuscaloosa Public Library during her time as an assistant team lead at Serving Bama. Continuously finding ways to help improve state education, she also interns at the United Way of West Alabama’s Success By 6 where she supports early childhood development programs.

The commitment to service is also shared by Thomas, who previously served as the treasurer for UA’s chapter, where she fundraised for chapter programming and managed the local budget. Thomas’s drive is also displayed though her work as a College of Education ambassador and peer educator at the Career Center.

Reflecting on her experience in SAEA, Thomas said, “It just showed me I can do a lot more if I just go and do it. Don’t just sit there and wait for somebody else to do it. Because if there’s one thing that Alabama taught me, if you don’t go and ask for this, and just put in the work, it’s not going to be done for you. There’s no one that is as passionate about the things that you care about than you.”

Smith also served on the executive board for other on-campus education organizations before election to SAEA state leadership. Her impact extends beyond SAEA through her membership in Kappa Delta Pi and three semesters as a grade group leader and mentor in Al’s Pals.

With the next SAEA conference being hosted at the Bryant Conference Center in February, these board members are encouraging aspiring educators to join SAEA to take advantage of opportunities to connect with fellow students, learn from education professionals and explore leadership roles that stretch far beyond the classroom.

“It’s not just about your state. What can you do for the country when it comes to education? Because it really does all get intertwined. This isn’t just one state for itself. We’re just trying to spread the initiative of education everywhere,” asserted Thomas.

Career Readiness

As Thomas, Nguyen, Dagley and Smith begin thinking about career readiness, they are prepared to strengthen communities through the leadership skills developed at the Capstone.

Thomas, who is originally from Chicago, plans to stay in Alabama immediately after graduating in May to continue fostering the relationships she has made through SAEA. Further into her career, she plans to transition into instructional coaching to develop upper grade level curriculum.

While Nguyen still has another year to complete the four certifications in the multiple abilities program — general education, collaborative education, elementary education and special education — she plans to stay at UA to pursue a Master of Arts in either educational leadership or special education. Looking ahead, she is working to become an elementary school principal. Eventually, it’s her dream to become the Alabama Education Association’s aspiring education coordinator, a role currently held by her mentor, Suzzanne Clemmons.

Also staying at UA to continue her education is Dagley, who plans to pursue of Master of Arts in elementary education. Her career path has been shaped by her current student teaching placement, where she works with a student who does not speak or read English. To ensure that language is not a barrier to a student’s education, Dagley has been inspired to pursue an English as a Second Language Endorsement in addition to a master’s degree.

While Dagley’s experience has given her a clear focus in the classroom, Smith has found purpose in both educating students and shaping the systems around them. Her studies in the multiple abilities program have cultivated her heart for special education alongside an interest in educational law and policy fostered through SAEA and the pre-law track. While exploring careers in policy, Smith is also passionate about early intervention to provide social and behavioral support to young children.

These students are showcasing the best of Alabama, not only displaying leadership in the classroom, but in a career field that impacts the future of the nation.

Dagley encourages other students to steward their passions toward community development.

“If you say things loud enough and often enough, eventually change will happen. That’s what we’re really working to do throughout the state of Alabama and then eventually nationally.”

Courtesy of The University of Alabama