CONTRIBUTED — Amy Ensor, second grade teacher at West Side Elementary, is the latest Northeast Community Credit Union Helping Teacher’s Teach winner.

Ensor applied for the Helping Teachers Teach grant to purchase Seat Sacks for each of her students. The seat sacks go on the back of the student’s chair and will be used to store the students’ Accelerated Reading Program books, keeping them in reach for when they are needed. Currently, the AR books are kept in lockers in the hallway outside the classroom.

“Each day we spend 30-45 minutes independently reading at our desks for the Accelerated Reading Program,” Ensor said. “If the students have access to their books, they can spend more time reading without interruption. Research has shown that reading increases learning and will drastically improve comprehension.”

Northeast Community Credit Union awards $300 every month to a classroom to be utilized for classroom needs, classroom activities, and academic enrichment. Helping Teachers Teach is open to teachers within Carter, Johnson, Unicoi, Sullivan and Washington counties who are members of Northeast Community Credit Union. Area teachers may become members at any NCCU location and can download the grant application on the credit union’s website: www.BeMyCU.org.