Ann Arbor’s Burns Park Elementary School has been named the 2009-10 DTE Energy Foundation School of the Year of by the University Musical Society.

In addition, Washtenaw Intermediate School District administrator Deb Clancy has been named the 2009-10 DTE Energy Foundation Educator of the Year.

The awards will be formally presented to the school and Clancy during the 15th annual Ford Honor Program on March 20.

UMS representatives were on hand at Wednesday night’s Ann Arbor school board meeting to make the announcement to the board.

“The DTE Energy Foundation School of the Year award honors Burns Park Elementary School for its dedication and commitment to arts education,” UMS said in a press release announcing the honor. “Through a myriad of activities and relationships, including its partnership with UMS’s K-12 Education Program, Burns Park Elementary School's community of educators and students consistently seek out new opportunities to discover and explore arts and culture. 

"Recently members of the Burns Park Elementary community have participated in a UMS-sponsored cultural immersion of Detroit's Mexicantown, a hip hop performance by Montreal's Rubberbandance Group, and in a workshop that demonstrated how theater and drama can be used as pedagogical tools to teach tolerance. Burns Park Elementary has made an impressive commitment to engaging its students and educators in a diverse world both in the classroom and beyond.”

Burns Park Principal Kathy Morhous thanked UMS for the award and said without the various workshops UMS offers, her teachers wouldn’t be able to offer such a rich program.

David Jesse covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at davidjesse@annarbor.com or at 734-623-2534.