What is NIE?
The Newspaper in Education program's mission is to promote and support the use of newspapers as an educational resource. NIE collaborates with area schools to provide timely newspaper-based curriculum materials and special projects to support educational needs and objectives.

What resources does NIE offer?
Click here to find out.

What does NIE cost?
5¢ per paper for full-year orders (10 or more papers, delivered one or more times per week throughout the school year, excluding holidays)
9¢ per paper for weekly, monthly, and semester orders and special advertised packages

Full year NIE teachers automatically receive all resource guides that are relevant to their grade-level and subjects, including any new resources introduced during the year. There is no cost for resource materials.

The Free Lance-Star provides classroom sets of weekday newspapers for approximately one-fourth of the home subscription rate. The cost is further reduced with funding from the Vacation Donation Program and from area business sponsors.

What is The Vacation Donation Program?
When subscribers call to temporarily stop or cancel newspaper deliveries, they are invited to donate the value of these newspapers to NIE. Their donations help subsidize the reduced rates for NIE papers.

How do I get started?
You may order an advertised NIE package with specific delivery dates and curriculum, or you may design your own NIE package consisting of at least 100 newspapers, with a minimum of 10 papers per delivery.
Teachers who order classroom sets of newspapers delivered once a week for the entire school year automatically receive all relevant NIE materials introduced during the year.

What Delivery Day is Best?
You'll find News, Region, Sports and Feature sections every day. An abbreviated stock market review is in the daily paper with a full review in Saturday's paper. Weekday NIE rates are 9¢ per paper; Sunday rates are 48¢ per paper.

Tuesday's paper includes MyLine, the page written by and for area teens; Kids Book Corner by librarian Caroline Parr; and Extra sections for Spotsylvania and Fredericksburg and Stafford Counties. Feature section focus is Family.
Wednesday's paper includes Swap Shop. The Feature section focus is Food.
Thursday's paper includes it!, Weekender and Business sections.
Friday's paper provides a nice way to end the week. Includes House and Home section. Feature section focus is Life.

How will I get my papers?
Please alert your school office that you are expecting deliveries of The Free Lance–Star.

Newspapers are delivered to your school before 6:00 a.m. Papers will be bundled with your name on top. To assure that you get your full bundle of papers, get them when you first arrive at school on your delivery days.

What if I do not receive my papers?
If you do not receive newspapers on a scheduled delivery day, call the circulation department at 540/374-5002 before 9:00 a.m. We will do our best to get papers to you –if you call before 9:00 a.m. All other NIE inquiries or delivery concerns should be directed to the Newspaper in Education office at 374-5000, ext. 5676.

Before you call about missed papers, please make sure they are not "misplaced" at your school. If we have made a mistake, we will do everything within our power to make a correction. However, taking papers to a school when they have been delivered earlier is very costly and time-consuming.

Before calling, check all entrances to see if papers were left in the wrong spot. Possibly papers were delivered by a new or substitute driver who is not familiar with your school. Also check with other teachers who receive papers to make sure someone else has not picked up your newspapers. The BEST way to assure that YOU get YOUR papers is to ask your custodian (if he or she arrives before school opens) to take your papers to the school office and put them behind the counter for you.

How will I be Billed?
NIE orders must include a purchase order number or they must be paid in advance. Bills are sent to your school to the attention of accounts payable, unless you direct us otherwise. Bills are due within 30 days of receipt. Call to pay by credit card.

What do I do with used newspapers?
Read. Then Recycle.
...and earn money for your school!

Southeast Paper Recycling Company will provide –at NO cost– a newspaper recycling bin. They will pay your school $25 per ton. All you need to do is call when the bin is full. To participate, call Southeast Recycling at 703/794-9198.

Before you toss newspapers in the recycling bin, offer (fresh) papers for students to take home to share with their families; offer (fresh) newspapers to another class; save a few papers (old is okay) for cutting and pasting activities, language arts or math lessons.

Help! How do I introduce my students to the newspaper?
Click on the links below:

  Introducing Students to Newspapers
 Tips for managing newspapers in the classroom

Ask for help: jgibson@freelancestar.com

Click on the link below to find out about scheduling an NIE workshop at your school:
  Workshops