The finalists for Palm Beach Illustrated’s 2025 Educator of the Year Award are outside-the-box thinkers who challenge their students to ever-expanding opportunities and successes.
Rebecca Donovan-Bain
Theater Director
Palm Beach Lakes Community High School
“Sometimes, teaching Shakespeare to a high-school student starts with a TikTok,” says Rebecca Donovan-Bain, theater director at Palm Beach Lakes Community High School.
A veteran teacher, Donovan-Bain taught English and theater to students in the Caribbean as well as theater and special education in Kentucky and Florida before committing totally to theater. She notes that “this generation is into anything quick.” The works of Shakespeare, however, require slowing down and figuring things out. So, she challenges her kids to teach her the social media trends…