Donna Clark, 6th grade teacher at Buena Vista Elementary in Imperial has been selected as the 2009 Teacher of the Year by the Odessa American Newspapers in Education, according to NIE Coordinator Sally Garcia.
 Donna, who has taught in Imperial for 15 years, uses the Odessa American in her classroom to teach a variety of subjects especially current events, social studies, science and math.
 "The students or I find a story we want to discuss," Donna says. "We often read an article and discuss the actions of the people involved. We think about whether or not this or that person did the right thing."
 A widely reported current events topic such as the swine flu really captures their attention, Donna says, but her seven students also enjoy the fun stuff, the horoscopes and the comics. Science topics frequently come up, and the stock market lets them practice their math skills.
 Kid Scoop, which runs every Thursday, is especially useful.
 "We find an article in the paper about the Kid Scoop topic of the day, discuss it and express our opinions," Donna says. "Often they will take the newspaper home to their parents so that the parents can see what they did that day."
 In a town of 400 with a total school population of 130, it might be easy to feel out of touch. Donna says reading the newspaper helps her students to feel part of the wider world.
Teaching in a small town also has its advantages.
 "Teaching in a small school has many great rewards because I can give more one on one attention to each student. It's like we're all a family," Donna says, adding "The parent cooperation is wonderful."
 Donna thanks the Odessa American for choosing her as the NIE Teacher of the Year. She says she tries by example to instill a hard work ethic in her students.
 "My students know that I do not accept ‘good enough' and, therefore, they perform on a higher level.  We work hard, but we also have adequate time for fun and enjoyment."
 For more information about Newspapers In Education, call Sally Garcia, (432) 333-7733.