Section: Education & Learning

Build Montana program receives national recognition as it continues to grow

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

What do you do if you’ve got a demand for a particular skill but not enough people to do it? If you’re the Montana Equipment Dealer’s Association, you partner with private companies and a public school district and start training kids. In this case, the pilot project was for heavy equipment operators, and the success

Read & Share   sourced from: Billings Gazette

Inflation, salary increases top university presidents’ agenda before House Appropriations committee

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Yesterday, Minot State’s budget request and enrollment were in the news. Today, it’s the same story from around the State. Several of the state’s university presidents were in front of the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, January 11, to share what’s happening on their campuses and their funding needs. The story is similar to Minot’s.

Read & Share   sourced from: Dickinson Press

Amid Budget Request, Minot State Enrollment Trending Down With Possible Silver Linings Locally

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Minot State’s student enrollment has been trending down in recent years, but there’s an emerging silver lining — local numbers are up. Current enrollment shows 2,167 students with significant growth in freshman students from NW North Dakota. Jill Schramm with the Minot Daily News has the full story including comments from MSU President Dr. Steve

Read & Share   sourced from: Minot Daily News

ND bill aims to cap K-12 superintendent pay, merge leadership of small districts

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

House Bill 1251, if successful, would consolidate the administration of the state’s smaller school districts and put a cap on superintendent salaries. Controversy is sure to emerge anytime local control is challenged. C.S. Hagen’s writing for Inforum has the full story.

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Grand Forks Schools Investing in New Language Arts Curriculum & Data Monitoring With Community Partners

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

A new language arts curriculum for Grand Forks sixth graders has proven itself; the school board is approving a 10-year $320,000 investment that was previously piloted and found to be an improvement. Additionally, the school district is partnering in a data exchange with the Community Violence Intervention Center; the goal is to identify and monitor

Read & Share   sourced from: Grand Forks Herald

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Montana to explore free school meals

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

For two years during COVID, the federal government supported school lunch programs. And for one Montana legislator, Melissa Romano, what she saw were benefits that outweigh the costs. So much so that she’s introduced a bill to maintain the program statewide. Get the full story from The Missoulian.

Read & Share   sourced from: The Missoulian

Free Learning Series “Little Kids, Big World” Featured at North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum

by: MinotVoice  |  

Planning a day trip to Bismarck and taking your toddler? You may want to work around the calendar at the Heritage Center and State Museum. For the rest of January, their programming activities are focused on kids. Check out the new release below. — Official News Release, ND Heritage Center — Free Learning Series “Little

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Saving Snowflakes By Banning & Burning Books?

by: Jim Maxson  |  

I recently completed reading The 1619 Project. I may or may not have bothered, but the fact that many political types want to ban it from public schools piqued my curiosity. The book is a compilation of essays by a number of authors of African descent giving their opinions on race relations in the USA.

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International teachers complete their journey to Grand Forks

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

What do you do when you run a school district and finding teachers is tough? In Grand Forks, they cast their net beyond the U.S. borders, and on their first haul they brought in three new teachers from as far away as Zimbabwe and Ghana. And now that the district has been through the red

Read & Share   sourced from: Grand Forks Herald

NDSU to reconsider cuts to equine science program after petition gets over 4,000 signatures

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Who says citizens and students can’t make a difference? NDSU’s Agriculture Department is reconsidering a decision to cut a position after a well-organized, respectful effort provided some direct comment on the issue. Get the full story from C.S. Hagen writing at Inforum.com.

Read & Share   sourced from: InForum

The Culture Wars are Here, and They Didn’t Spare the Schools

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Race and racism, LGBTQ+, library books: they’re all hot-button cultural topics that evoke strong emotional responses, and often bad behavior by adults, as well. It’s created a hostile environment for our educators and many are sounding the alarm that if it doesn’t quit, they will. Get the full story from NPR.

Read & Share   sourced from: NPR

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Cognizant donates 37-Acre North Minot Campus to Minot Public Schools, School District intends to repurpose as 9-12 High School

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Minot Public Schools has announced the acquisition of 37-acres in North Minot from Cognizant. The plan is to repurpose the buildings and campus for a second high school. The School District’s full news release follows below. — Official News Release, Minot Public Schools — Minot Public School District #1, in conjunction with Cognizant, is thrilled

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Rural students often go unnoticed by colleges. Can virtual counseling put them on the map?

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

One perceived disadvantage we have in a rural place like North Dakota is that access to the best information, guidance, and practices is limited. In rural schools, this is often more than a perceived disadvantage, it’s an actual one. But what if schools provided these services in a virtual environment? Check out this story from

Read & Share   sourced from: The Hechinger Report

Oregon legislation to require Holocaust study in schools

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

When and where should state-level policy makers step in and mandate curriculum for students? It’s a question that’s being answered across the country in many forms and proposals, and one example out of Oregon is a requirement that schools deliver history lessons on the Holocaust. Get the full story from the Los Angeles Times.

Read & Share   sourced from: Los Angeles Times

#GoodTalking Minot Beer & Teaching Science

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Last week on the first hour of #GoodTalk Minot we were joined by Dr. Brian Schmidt. Brian’s an Associate Professor at Minot State and the Brewer at Souris River Brewing. What do these careers have in common and what’s the added value in drinking local beer? Find out in the conversation below.

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GF School Board team offers ‘unconventional’ contract

by: Josh Wolsky  |  

Across the state, school boards are in negotiations with teachers to secure contracts for the upcoming school year. And in Grand Forks, the school board put an offer on the table that included the district picking up 100% of the employee contribution to the retirement fund. Pamela Knudson with the Grand Forks Herald has the

Read & Share   sourced from: Grand Forks Herald