 After two years, she met with the principal of Elkins High school and persuaded him to allow her to join her age-group class and graduate with that original class, but only if she could make up the classwork.After graduating from Elkins High school, McClung attended Davis and Elkins College on a full scholarship and went on to earn a bachelor's degree in journalism from West Virginia University.While writing for the Lorain Journal, she met and married another reporter, Robert J. Siegel.