That project has resulted in relationships forming between the elementary and college students, with Madison Elementary and WLU sharing a regional “School-Business Partnership of the Year” award from the West Virginia Education Alliance.

Jeanie Prince, partnership coordinator for the Education Alliance, told students at Madison on Monday the award includes a $2,000 “celebration grant” to use as they wish.

She also presented banners to both Madison and WLU to commemorate the award.

As regional winners, the Madison-WLU partnership will compete at the state level, where it could win a $25,000 prize for Madison from the Education Alliance. There are eight regional winning partnerships competing for the top prize.

Photo by Joselyn King Jeanie Prince, left, partnership coordinator for the Education Alliance, and Andrea Trio, address education students and instructors from West Liberty University, as well as those from Madison Elementary, after a partnership between the schools netted them a regional “School-Business Partnership of the Year” from the West Virginia Education Alliance

West Liberty University associate professor Angela Curfman explained how the program works and how the partnership began.

She contacted Olivia Beihl, a fifth-grade teacher at Madison and one of her former students, to suggest the schools work together on a project.

Beihl said the idea could work but suggested the program focus on identifying and providing support for fifth grade students ahead of standardized testing.

The pen pal program resulted, with students sending letters back and forth once a week. Each fifth-grade student is paired with a WLU student, and Curfman personally transports the “snail mail” between the schools.

The WLU education students read the letters and analyze them for strengths and weaknesses, Curfman said. Everything from penmanship to phrasing is reviewed.

Photo by Joselyn King Education students and instructors from West Liberty University join those from Madison Elementary as a partnership between the schools netted them a regional “School-Business Partnership of the Year” from the West Virginia Education Alliance.

The analysis is then used by Madison teachers as they prepare students for annual standardized testing.

“With the digital world around us, sometimes that can replace old-fashioned paper and pencil,” Principal Andrea Trio said. “This project has really allowed them to communicate with each other via writing.”

The WLU students reading the letters “dive into the fifth-grade data” to determine what is expected of students and “help them to grow,” she said.

Madison students also were presented Monday with gifts from their WLU pen pals to thank them for their participation this semester. They received books, stickers and two pens — one with regular ink and a second with “invisible” ink that can only be seen when they write to each other and use a black light to read it.