Ignatian Leadership Award

Radhika Prakash, Education student
Ballwin, Mo.

Radhika Prakash truly loves working with children, especially those with disabilities. She is currently a Kindergarten teacher in a title 1 school in the city of St. Louis. In the fall, she will be attending Vanderbilt University as a student in the Masters in Early Childhood Special Education Program. She then hopes to earn a Ph.D. in special education so she can speak up for equity in special education. “She is a servant leader in the best sense. Not seeking recognition or power, she goes about life daily with a pleasant disposition and a willingness to serve,” says her nominator Dr. Teodora Cox.

Radhika brings magic and joy to underserved and medically vulnerable children by volunteering her time with the nonprofit A Moment of Magic. She serves children undergoing pediatric cancer and their siblings by facilitating creative, mental health workshops to support the children process what they are going through. Radhika looks forward to continuing to serve her community as she graduates from Marquette, remembering cura personalis, caring about each and every person she encounters even as she journeys away from Wisconsin Ave.