WKU News

Ayana Taylor, a WKU Counseling and Student Affairs masters student manages many roles in her everyday life. Whether she’s assisting students at Louisville’s Shawnee High School who have fallen behind during their NTI studies, singing, or hanging out with her son, she’s constantly thinking of new goals to achieve and milestones to surpass. “I’m always figuring out what’s next,” Taylor said. “This pandemic has showed me who I really am; a goal oriented person. If one door closes… open another.”

So, when a peer mentioned Commercial Driver’s Licensure school as a way to support her family and better serve her community, Taylor jumped at the opportunity. “I have said over the years that I could see myself being a professional driver, but I did not know it would actually become reality. Someone gave me a number to a CDL school, and I leapt without fear,” Taylor said.

Now, each week, Taylor treks across the United States transporting parcels of perishable goods including anything from steak, to cheese, to plants.

To some, trucking may sound like long hours and the open road, but Taylor relishes the opportunity to travel places she’d never otherwise have the chance to see. “It is a different experience when you are in a different state every day; it’s really amazing,” Taylor said.

Additionally, as a professional driver during the COVID 19 pandemic, Taylor now serves within the ranks of our nation’s essential workers. Just another feather in her cap. “I am treated with the utmost respect by so many just because of my profession – I, too, have a different respect for professional drivers now that I know what I know,” Taylor said.

Taylor has also gained many skills during her time as a professional driver; however, she mentions the most important take-away are ones that can be obtained from any career venture, which is to remain professional and to remember that first impressions always matter.

Taylor hopes to eventually work in the education field upon her graduation in 2022. For now, she sees herself continuing the essential services of a professional driver… but regardless of her current job or project, Taylor will always strive to remain unforgettable. “To me this means in whatever you do [whether it’s] careers, relationships, friendships, etc. - leave your footprints,” Taylor said.