Scholarship support shapes student’s service across rural Alabama

As a high school student, Clara Ragan planned to plow through college in two or three years, graduating as quickly as possible before going straight to law school. But the scholarships she received at Auburn changed those plans — and the course of her life.

“I decided that since the Auburn Family had been so generous to me, I was going to do all four years,” she said. “That opened up doors for me to add another major and explore my interests without being burdened by the cost.”

Now, as she prepares to graduate from the College of Liberal Arts in May, Ragan is wrapping up four years of an extraordinary student experience — including undergraduate research, meaningful student involvement, a White House internship and rigorous academic coursework — helping her launch a career she’d never even considered.  

Having grown up in Auburn, Ragan spent her high school years racking up college credit through a mix of AP and international baccalaureate coursework — enough to complete a bachelor’s degree in political science in as little as two years, which would ease the financial burden on her family and allow her to save for law school. But after receiving multiple scholarships that covered tuition, she decided to slow down and make the most of campus life, as well as tack on another degree.

“College is a time for people to explore not just what they think they want to do, but also other things that pique their interest,” she said. “Adding a philosophy major was one of the best decisions I made.”

She also took jobs as a resident advisor with University Housing and a student worker with Auburn Cares and Student Conduct. Still considering law school, she shadowed a district judge in North Alabama who runs a successful drug court that helps people convicted of non-violent crimes break the cycle of addiction. She was surprised to find how much she learned about public health.

“I didn’t realize that’s what I was getting into,” Ragan said. “I was shadowing a judge because I wanted to be a lawyer, but that really inspired me and made me think it was something I could see myself doing.”

Ragan decided to apply for an internship in the White House and was selected to work in the Office of National Drug Control Policy’s Public Health component. After a whirlwind summer in Washington, D.C., she returned to campus with the realization that she wanted to pursue a career in public health instead of law. After adding a minor in Public and One Health, Ragan was awarded an Honors College Undergraduate Research Fellowship to study and promote campus resources for student caregivers, including pregnant and parenting students.

She also joined Student Government Association’s Lobby Board, a group of students that lobbies state legislators to support Auburn while also holding weekly discussions on current events.

“Lobby Board is a great way to have civil conversations with my peers about really hard topics,” she said. “It has allowed me to learn to express what I believe in and listen to others talk about their beliefs, and then we all go to Momma Goldberg’s and have a sandwich and talk about normal college life.”

At the end of her junior year, Ragan was awarded a fellowship to help Auburn Outreach’s Rural Health Initiative grow the four West Alabama health and wellness centers it has launched over the last two years. She planned community events and developed a Health Ambassadors program at each of the four locations, visiting frequently and working with center administrators and county Extension directors to remove barriers that prevent local residents from accessing medical care.

“In public health and political science, your number one goal is to listen to the people you’re trying to help, but it can be really easy to hear that and not understand what it means,” Ragan said. “My time with the Rural Health Institute has been a difficult but rewarding lesson in what it means to really listen to the community.”

When her fellowship ended, support from 2025 Tiger Giving Day donors helped her continue working with the Rural Health Initiative. Her focus has shifted from working on the ground in West Alabama to compiling data, researching opportunities for expansion and keeping communities informed on how Auburn’s work is impacting residents.

After graduation, Ragan will pursue a Master of Public Health at Emory University, and she hopes to eventually return to rural communities in Alabama to apply data-driven solutions to improve health care access. Thanks to the generosity of the Auburn Family, her four years on campus were packed with meaningful experiences that paved the way for her to positively impact the state’s rural residents in the future.

“These jobs and activities gave me real-world skills I can take with me into my career, but that not only benefits me — it also benefits the state of Alabama,” she said. “As a land-grant institution, Auburn has a duty to serve the state, and it’s a real testament to Auburn’s mission that I’ve been able to do that as a student.”