The first in her family to graduate from high school, Donna Taylor knew she wanted to help younger generations accomplish the same.
Bledsoe County born and raised, Ms. Taylor has been teaching English and drama at the local high school for 21 years. Growing up in poverty, she had little going for her beyond her high school classes, she said, and realizes it is probably the same for many of her students.
“I know what a difference teachers made in my life, and I know about what these students have going against them,” she said.
A recent report by the Alliance for Excellent Education in Washington, D.C., says what Ms. Taylor has experienced for more than two decades: Teaching in a rural high school comes with a host of unique challenges.
Rural areas have more limited access to educational resources, and it’s harder to recruit teachers, the report says.