Rachael Kirkconnell (born September 26, 1996) is an American television personality, who is best known as the winner of

season 25 A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

of '' The Bachelor''.

Early life and education

Kirkconnell was born and raised in

Cumming, Georgia Cumming is a city in Forsyth County, Georgia, United States, and the sole incorporated area in the county. It is a suburban city, and part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In the 2020 census, the population is 7,318, up from 5,430 in 2010. Su ...

to parents Darrell and Kim Kirkconnell. She has a sister, Trinity, and a brother, Greyson. She is of Honduran descent on her father's side. She graduated from West Forsyth High School in 2015, and then from

Georgia College & State University Georgia College & State University (Georgia College or GC) is a public liberal arts university in Milledgeville, Georgia. The university enrolls approximately 7,000 students and is a member of the University System of Georgia and the Council o ...

in 2019 with a degree in marketing. While in college, she was a member of

Alpha Delta Pi Alpha Delta Pi (), commonly known as ADPi (pronounced "ay-dee-pye"), is an International Panhellenic sorority founded on May 15, 1851, at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia. It is the oldest secret society for women. Alpha Delta Pi is a mem ...

, but left the sorority after attending a controversial

Antebellum South In History of the Southern United States, the history of the Southern United States, the Antebellum Period (from la, ante bellum, lit=Status quo ante bellum, before the war) spanned the Treaty of Ghent, end of the War of 1812 to the start of ...

plantation themed formal. Prior to appearing on ''The Bachelor'', Kirkconnell was working as a graphic designer in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia.

''The Bachelor''

Kirkconnell was a contestant on Matt James' season of '' The Bachelor''. James, who was the first African American male lead in the show's history, chose her over fellow finalist Michelle Young. However, he did not propose. During the live ''After the Final Rose'' special in March 2021, it was revealed that James had made the decision to end his relationship with Kirkconnell after her racially insensitive past was brought to light.

Racism Controversy

While James' season was airing, Kirkconnell came under fire after she was accused of several racist actions, including liking racist social media posts and bullying girls in high school for their dating preferences. James was forced to address these allegations after a photo of Kirkconnell attending an

plantation themed fraternity formal in 2018 went viral. In February 2021, Kirkconnell issued a public apology for her past behavior, calling her actions "ignorant and racist" and pleaded with people not to defend her.

Personal life

Kirkconnell and James broke up while their season was airing, but got back together in April 2021.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkconnell, Rachael 1996 births Living people Bachelor Nation contestants Georgia College & State University alumni People from Cumming, Georgia