ALTUS -- Newspapers in Education (NIE) is a program for schools committed to assisting teachers in the development of reading, math, language and life skills using the top source of media today that youths are most likely to read as adults -- their local newspaper.

The Altus Times participates annually in NIE. Circulation Manager Sandy Graham is in charge of the program at the Times.

"The NIE program is a program that we started a few years ago where we get newspapers into the classrooms," Graham said. "The teachers can use this as a learning tool for different subjects -- the teachers sign up for how many papers they need each week in the classroom and then the Altus Times gets sponsors to pay for those."

"It gets the children used to reading a newspaper, whereas now a lot of them just use the computer and the Internet. This way they can adapt it to their everyday life, whether it's the classifieds or the comics."

NIE is a partnership between the newspaper, local businesses and schools that encourages daily reading habits by providing newspapers and other support materials to classroom teachers.

The newspapers help to bridge the gap between classroom reading and the real world in which the students' live. This helps students relate better to their world.

On a national level, more than 700 newspapers participate in NIE.

Forty-five Altus teachers use more than 1,100 newspapers in the classroom through the generosity of the local business sponsors.

Through the year, the Altus Times supports the educational program and provides curriculum activity ideas aimed to help teachers. The newspapers also help teachers with classroom assignments, special projects and reading projects.

There is still time for teachers to enroll and for businesses to sponsor classrooms. For more information, contact Graham at 482-1221.