Lily K. Donaldson

Lily K. Donaldson (born September 17, 1999) is an American advocate for STEM and Arts education for disadvantaged K-12 students. She was crowned Miss United States 2022 with a charitable platform to promote arts and science education. She is the first Miss United States to visit all 50 U.S. states during her reign.

Donaldson was crowned Miss United States 2022 in her hometown (Memphis, Tennessee) on October 16, 2022.

Early life and education
Donaldson was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. She has a twin sister named Cara. She attended Newburgh Elementary School in Newburgh, Indiana, Bon Lin Middle School in Bartlett, Tennessee, and Bolton High School, a Title 1 school part of the Memphis-Shelby County school district which had defunded arts programs and a 95% math proficiency fail rate. Donaldson participated in student theatre programs while growing up. She is a first-generation college student.

Donaldson is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute studying controlled environment agriculture within a School of Architecture Built Ecologies program. Donaldson has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from American University and a Master of Science in Lighting from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. While at American University, she worked in vision scientist Arthur Shapiro's lab.

STEM and Arts Education Advocacy
Donaldson directs a nonprofit based in Memphis, Tennessee called Art Technically which promotes STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) and Arts education for disadvantaged students at Title 1 and rural K-12 schools. She was inspired to found Art Technically after attending Title 1 schools with underserved arts and science programs. Art Technically provides disadvantaged K-12 students with free STEM and Arts workshops, free STEM and STEAM books, STEM and Arts themed toy donations including teddy bears in scientist costumes, or "Science Bears", and a program called Love Letters, where students learn to code Valentine's Day cards for Meals on Wheels programs. Art Technically also hosted a science-journalism program for students funded by Society for Science in 2022.

In 2022, Donaldson guest-wrote an article about her work with Art Technically for the U.S. Department of Education. In 2023, Donaldson led an ISS Downlink with NASA where students at Brighton Elementary School in Tipton County, Tennessee asked questions to astronauts aboard the International Space Station. In 2024, Donaldson gave a keynote on the importance of STEM education at the AI Expo for National Competitiveness in Washington, DC.

Civil Service
While she was an undergraduate student at American University, Donaldson worked for the United States Department of Homeland Security as a Student Trainee, under grant from the NASA DC Space Grant Consortium, and on a capstone project with the United States Department of Energy.

In 2023, Donaldson became a research assistant at NASA's Climate Change Research Initiative at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies. The program has educators and graduate students work directly with NASA scientists to lead research teams in a NASA research project related to Climate Change. While at GISS, Donaldson led an ISS Downlink with NASA where students at Brighton Elementary School in Tipton County, Tennessee asked questions to astronauts aboard the International Space Station,  taught solar eclipse programming and distributed eclipse glasses to students in Auburn, New York,  and hosted an astrobotany workshop for students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Black Families Technology Awareness Day.

Year as Miss United States
Donaldson was crowned Miss United States 2022 in her hometown (Memphis, Tennessee) on October 16, 2022. She is the first Miss United States to visit all 50 U.S. states during her reign. During her year as Miss United States, Donaldson guest-wrote an article about her work with Art Technically for the U.S. Department of Education and was named to the Memphis Flyer's 2023 Memphis 20 under 30 list.

During her reign, Donaldson visited public libraries to donate books and present science storytimes in Hiawatha, Kansas, Hamburg, Iowa, Cokeville, Wyoming, Dearborn Heights, Michigan, Hankinson, North Dakota, Bozeman, Montana, and Lordsburg, New Mexico. She also visited students at the Kurn Hattin Children's Home for Valentine's Day and seniors at the Meals on Wheels program in Bennington, Vermont. She presented science storytimes at her alma mater, Newburgh Elementary School in Newburgh, Indiana.

Donaldson participated in the 2023 Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade, community Christmas festivities in Indianapolis, a Halloween parade in Menands, New York, a STEM festival and health fair in New Orleans, Louisiana, and the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade in Honolulu. She toured Kennedy Space Center facilities and attended NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 Launch in August 2023.

Pageantry
Donaldson has competed in the Miss United States, Miss America, and Miss USA pageant systems.

Within the Miss United States pageant system, Donaldson has held the titles of Miss Memphis US 2021, Miss Tennessee US 2021, Miss New York US 2022, and Miss United States 2022. On October 16, 2022, Donaldson was crowned Miss United States at the Cannon Center for the Performing Arts in Memphis, Tennessee. At Miss United States 2021, while representing Tennessee, Donaldson placed 2nd runner-up and received the People's Choice award.

Within the Miss America pageant system, Donaldson has held the titles of Miss Mid-South's Outstanding Teen 2015 (Tennessee), Miss Tipton County's Outstanding Teen 2016 (Tennessee), Miss District of Columbia State Finalist 2018 and 2019, and Miss Franklin County 2022 (Tennessee). She performed Irish Dance for her talent and won awards for charitable fundraising and the 3rd-place Women in Business interview award at Miss Tennessee 2022 and the STEM Award at Miss District of Columbia 2019.

Donaldson competed at Miss District of Columbia USA 2020 and placed top 12.