At the second annual Classics & Archaeology Alumni event on September 5, 2024, Professor and Director of the Learning Community series Katerina Zacharia invited alumna Molly Lower ’10, ’21 to discuss her career in education and to launch the teacher credential track for LMU Classics & Archaeology students. Professor Zacharia worked with Annette Pijuan Hernandez, director of the Center for Undergraduate Teacher Preparation (CUTP), and invited Antonio Felix, associate dean for student success in the LMU School of Education, to provide further information on the teacher preparation academic program at LMU and discuss opportunities for current LMU undergraduates to pursue alongside their major studies.
Lower graduated from the LMU Honors program summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in classical civilizations and archaeology and a minor in theological studies. Growing up in Ventura County, Lower was always engrossed in fantasy books. She found the worlds of “The Hobbit,” “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,” and “A Wrinkle in Time” fascinating, as they allowed her to escape to another world. In college, she discovered that the ancient world also felt like another world and was drawn to classics and archaeology. Lower commented that it was much like a fantasy world. She took an “Ancient Epics” course with Prof. Zacharia and participated in a student panel on the topic in the spring of 2010 at the LMU Undergraduate Research Symposium. Channeling her interest in creative writing, Lower’s project was a parody of the 2008 U.S. presidential election in the style of epic poetry. Inspired by the epics of Homer, the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey,” and “Vergil’s conscious creation of the ‘Aeneid’ as a national epic to ground the rule of Augustus in Roman myth […] as a basis for cultural and political unity,” Lower created a commentary on American society in the twenty-first century, where Barack Obama was written as an epic hero, the likes of Achilles, Odysseus, and Aeneas, even possessing divine ancestry through his mother, the goddess Change. The fifty-page modern epic poem was published by Amazon Kindle in 2014, titled “The Obamanid: A Modern Epic.”
Lower served as the head curator of the LMU Archaeology Center from 2008 to 2010. During her undergraduate years, she participated in archaeological digs at excavation sites in the Khirbet Iskander Expedition in Jordan in 2007 and Megiddo in Israel in 2008. Although she appreciated the lessons she learned from the experience, Lower found archaeological work too solitary and decided she would find more fulfillment as a teacher. After graduating from LMU, Lower pursued her master’s degree in Middle Eastern and African History at Tel Aviv University, graduating magna cum laude in 2014. She faced challenges accessing education in Israel, including poor wi-fi connection and less-than-ideal dorm conditions. For the first time in her academic career, she felt she was not “part of the majority.”
Lower has been working in the field of education since 2016. She started her career as a history teacher at Bishop Alemany High School. In 2021, she returned to LMU and completed her master’s degree in school administration, graduating summa cum laude. Currently, she serves as the assistant principal at Redondo Union High School.
Guided by LMU’s commitment to social justice and holistic education, Lower supports student learning by ensuring equitable opportunities for all students, building meaningful relationships with families and community partners, and implementing restorative practices.
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the disparities in how students access education, which resonated with Lower due to her own experiences studying in Israel. This led her to focus on tracking as her capstone project, recognizing the privilege she had received from this practice. Having been educated in private Catholic schools throughout her life, Lower acknowledges that she had always been on track to excel academically, unlike many other students.
Understanding the importance of providing equal opportunities for all students, Lower now concentrates on expanding students’ access to Advanced Placement (AP) programs at Redondo Union High. Tanya Rasheesa ’25, a double major in English and Classics & Archaeology, expressed admiration for Lower’s commitment to positive change, saying, “I’ve always thought that I had to study medicine or law to help others, but Molly showed me that studying Classics can still help you make a difference in the world.”
As an educator, Lower emphasized the importance of student safety, wellness, and opportunity. She stated that one of the priorities of an administrator is to provide a culturally responsive pedagogy. Another aspect of her academic experience that Lower realized is that the curriculum always included her identity as a white, Catholic student. She always felt like she belonged in the classroom, but as she reminded the audience, “This is not the case for all students.” Lower also stressed the importance of having high expectations for all students, as that would encourage them to do their very best.
Antonio Felix, the associate dean of student success at the LMU School of Education, began his presentation by sharing what inspired his career in education. After earning a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, Felix initially planned to become a law enforcement officer. Instead, he became a teacher and later a principal at a Catholic school in Los Angeles. Felix presented on the LMU 4+1 teaching credential program. He explained that admitted students, along with earning a Bachelor of Arts or Science, can receive a teaching credential and enroll in the master’s degree program. This way, degrees that would otherwise take 6-7 years to complete can be earned in 5 years. Chase Haydel ’27, who is majoring in classics and archaeology, shared his excitement about being enrolled in the new teaching credential program: “I’m glad to have the opportunity to jumpstart my career while pursuing an education in a field that I’m passionate about.”
Lower emphasized how studying classics helps people understand and communicate with others. She mentioned that learning classics helps individuals think systematically and creatively, develop empathy and acceptance of other cultures, and empower others to share their stories. Lower shared her own story, tracing a connection between her early interest in Tolkien and C.S. Lewis to her passion for classics and archaeology in college and, eventually, her pursuit of a career in education. Guided by her liberal arts education, Lower is committed to positive change and reminded the audience that everyone has control and agency over their narrative. She recalled the advice she received as a young undergraduate from Father Bill Fulco: “Your life is like a mosaic; you choose how to arrange the tiles.” Lower stressed the power of narratives, highlighting that recognizing one’s story is recognizing one’s power to make a difference in the world. She concluded her presentation by asking the audience, “What is your story?”
Professor Zacharia invites students to take the 1-unit C/NC “Classics & Archaeology Learning Community” course (CLAR 4400). The course introduces students to the Department of Classics & Archaeology and the University more broadly and aims to enrich students’ experiences by connecting them with their peers, introducing them to the faculty, and exposing them to all the opportunities in the department and on campus.
The event was recorded and may be accessed here.
