FOR RURAL EDUCATION: MCGREW HONORED AS TEACHER OF THE YEAR

CHAFFEE -- Nancy McGrew, a reading teacher at Chaffee Elementary School, has again been honored for her efforts to help students and just about anyone else learn to read.

McGrew has been named the 1991 Elementary Teacher of the Year by the Missouri Association of Rural Educators.

She was nominated by Chaffee Elementary Principal J. Moore.

"Nancy has been doing the Chapter I (remedial reading) program at Chaffee for 24 years," Moore said. "She has built up a terrific program. She is the type of person who doesn't mind doing a lot of things to help young people in the area of reading."

Last year McGrew was honored by the U.S. secretary of education and by the Missouri General Assembly for her work.

This year McGrew has been instrumental in starting two new programs in Chaffee: an adult literacy program and a program to help students at risk of dropping out of school. Both programs she hopes will encourage students to become better readers and have greater success in school.

McGrew explained that the adult literacy project has been coordinated with the Chaffee Public Library. It began in January. Parents of children in McGrew's class are teamed with community volunteer tutors to improve reading skills. She said 10 parents are already participating and interest is mounting.

"Many of our parents now are able to improve their literacy skills," McGrew said.

"This works toward reaching one of my goals, which is family literacy," she said. "Many parents are really interested in improving their skills, and they want to be able to help their children with their work at school," she said.

As parents learn better reading skills, children also work harder, McGrew said.

"Once the children see that mom and dad think it's important to learn to read better, it definitely has an effect on their attitudes."

Chaffee has also started an at-risk program for students in grades four through 12.

"We work with those students who are possibly at risk of dropping out of school to help them improve self-esteem, study skills, organizational skills, attendance; those things that cause them to perhaps not succeed in school."

About 90 students are involved in the at-risk program.

McGrew is also one of the first 10 teachers in Missouri to be trained in Reading Recovery, a new method to intervene at the first-grade level with students having trouble learning to read. The program is being taught at Southeast Missouri State University.

These programs are in addition to the list of special projects she already has going for her students.

Moore said: "Through her Chapter 1 program, she has worked closely with the parents of the youngsters. One night a week parents with their youngsters come in to her classroom at night to check out materials they can use at home.

"She also is a parent liaison who goes and visits with parents in their homes.

"She is creating a closer working relationship between the parent and school," Moore said. "And she is making kids feel good about what they're doing."