Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, April 10, 1995                   TAG: 9504120005
SECTION: NEWSFUN                    PAGE: NF-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

TEACHER OF THE WEEK

Many of the ideas and and much of the training she has received have come, she says, through her involvement in the Roanoke Education Association. Cooper is a past president and is now vice president in charge of membership.

"I'm proud of how [her involvement] has helped in my classroom," she said. "The REA is not only active politically, but we're active with sharing our ideas. The REA is on the cutting edge of the latest in education."

Cooper says she likes to relate her travel experiences, many of which have come as a result of representing the REA, with her pupils.

"They love the stories I tell," Cooper said. Some of her stories revolve around the places in Virginia she has been. And she admits, Virginia history has a special place in her heart.

"If you're proud of your state, you'll be proud of your nation. If you don't know anything about your state, you can't be proud of it," she said. "Virginia has one of the richest histories of any state."

Cooper lives in Franklin County with her husband, who is a teacher in Botetourt County. She enjoys crafts and spending time with her granddaughter and dogs.