Dan Carsen

In 2011, Alabama passed what was considered the nation's strictest immigration law. Much of it was later struck down. Now, it offers a snapshot into the challenges ahead for the Trump administration.

Alabama boosted its graduation rate with questionable methods and now faces federal and state audits. It's hard to know yet how far off the rate is.

One school in Sumter County, Ala., is so underfunded, the principal says there's no money for badly needed repairs. And something else is missing from the schools: the county's white residents.

How much money a school can spend on its students still depends, in large part, on local property taxes. And many states aren't doing much to level the field for poor kids.

How much money a school can spend on its students still depends, in large part, on local property taxes. And many states aren't doing much to level the field for poor kids.

The 2016 teacher of the year in that state decided it was about time the people who write the laws that affect schools actually see the inside of a classroom.

Alabama's Board of Education voted Thursday to adopt new science standards. The state's current standards have been in place for a decade, and many teachers are looking forward to the updates.

In rural Alabama, HIV infection rates are among the highest in the nation, but talk of the virus is largely taboo. One researcher is hoping to break through the stigma with a video game.

The state has some of the country's most overcrowded — and troubled — prisons. Alabama is also home to a thriving life skills program that prison officials are fighting to save from budget slashes.

Dustin Jones is visually impaired, but after he got a bioptic telescope he started driving. About 40 states allow severely nearsighted drivers to use this technology on the road.