Sixth-grader named Scholastic News Reporter

Demarian Williams, 12, of Steele, Mo., covers a political event for Scholastic News at the World Wide Technology Warehouse where President George Bush recently spoke about the economy. [Click to enlarge]

A sixth grader at South Pemiscot Schools in Steele, Mo., has some pretty notable accomplishments under his belt.

Besides being the head reporter for his school's newspaper, Demarian Williams, 12, has also been given the prestigious title of Scholastic News Reporter, after being selected among hundreds of other youth chasing their journalistic dreams.

Williams, who has already penned 32 front page news stories for his school's publication, submitted an essay entry into the Scholastic sponsored competition in an attempt to be chosen to join the Scholastic Kids Press Corps.

His endeavor turned out to be successful, standing out among hundreds of applicants and earning him the distinguished spot.

The youthful author was chosen from a vast group of other student applicants to write for Scholastic because of his two part essay which talked about his community being "surrounded by agricultural land, mostly cotton and corn" and discussed the importance of the Mississippi River.Williams even interviewed his mayor about future plans for the city.

The essay also told readers why Williams was the obvious choice for reporter.

According to Williams, who works for Scholastic under an editor by the name of Suzanne Freeman, the first assignment he received as a scholastic news reporter was to interview young adult author Ted Bell, which Williams was psyched about doing.

"I love to read and really enjoyed reading his book before I interviewed him," Williams said. "The book was called 'Nick of Time' and was pretty interesting."

Following the success associated with his first interview, Williams was challenged to cover an event that many adult reporters never get the chance to attend-- a political-themed meeting featuring the President of the United States of America.

Williams' visited the Maryland Heights area of St. Louis, Mo., during a political event at the World Wide Technology Warehouse where President George Bush recently spoke about the economy.

"That was a once in a lifetime opportunity," said the young writer. "Something I will never forget."

According to Williams, the political assignment allowed him to become more confident in his role with Scholastic News, learn more about politics and global issues, and motivated him to continue pursing his passion for journalism.

Williams reports are featured on the Scholastic News Online Web site (www.scholastic.com/news) and in classroom magazines, just like the one Williams read months ago that advertised Scholastic was seeking talented kid reporters to share their take on real-life, news worthy issues.

The Scholastic Kids Press Corps is a team of about 80 hard-working, articulate kids, ages 9-14, who are chosen to report from their hometowns across the country.

Through this unique program, Scholastic's award-winning magazine editors teach the kid reporters like Williams how to research information, conduct interviews, and write articles.

According to Scholastic, Williams and other kid reporters cover the news from their youthful perspectives, which helps other kids see the relevance of current events to their own lives.