CTAE April Newsletter
All Things CTE for Montana
Updates from OPI
Celebrating Montana Ready
March 26, 2021
HELENA – “With Montana high-school graduation just around the corner, Montana Ready recognizes the significance of employable skills earned with their diploma,” stated Superintendent Arntzen. “I am grateful to legislators for continuing to invest in our students from middle-school to high-school with the value of employable career technical education.” Celebrating Montana Ready with a Capitol event unites students with private sector partners representing hospitals, equipment dealers, construction, and the multiple small and large businesses representing the Montana Chamber of Commerce.
At the Office of Public Instruction, there are five units included in Career & Technical Education that are student career-focused engagement opportunities:
2019-2020 Student Enrollment Numbers
- Health Sciences (HOSA): 3,761 students
- Agricultural Education (FFA): 7,793 students
- Business/Marketing (BPA) (DECA): 23,113 students
- Family & Consumer Sciences (FCCLA): 13,811 students
- Industrial Tech/Trade (TSA) (SkillsUSA): 17,787 students
AIM CTE Collection Change
There have been several significant changes to the CTE Collection that historically would take place in March. Please note that the Spring CTE Collection is no longer taking place in March. It is now called the End of Year (EOY) CTE Collection and it will be opening in May.
We will send out new AIM resources pertaining to the new EOY CTE Collection including a new AIM User Guide and webinar information closer to the collection date.
AIM will be hosting Webinars May 5 and 6, 2021
Subscribe to AIM Updates here:
FY 20 Perkins Amendments and Cash Requests
June 1 - Final Grant Amendments for E-Grants
June 30 - Last day to obligate funds for projects ending June 30
July 31 - Last day to liquidate obligations for projects that ended June 30
August 10 - Final Expenditure Reports due for projects that ended June 30.
Upcoming CTE Event Schedule
April 15 - FCCLA State Conference (virtual)
April 19-23 - TSA State Conference (virtual)
The First Montana Dual Enrollment Summit!
Registration Now Open
Calling all educators, staff, and administrators of high schools and colleges (two-year or four-year)! The University of Montana Missoula College, along with the University of Montana Summer Office and Reach Higher Montana invites you to save the date and join us virtually for the first ever Montana Dual Enrollment Summit
taking place virtually on June 17, 2021!
As some of you know, we had originally planned this Summit for last summer and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, had decided to move it from 2020 to 2021 to ensure the health and safety of our participants, speakers and staff. In preparing for this year’s Summit, we received an overwhelming response to host it virtually for 2021, with the hopes of coming together in-person in 2022. We hope that by hosting it virtually this June, it will allow you the flexibility to attend from the comfort of your home or office.
The Dual Enrollment Summit is a professional development opportunity for the educators, staff, and administrators of high schools and colleges that aims to provide an opportunity for connections and networking between college and high school faculty, staff, and administrators to support continuous improvement, quality, and rigor in dual enrollment course offerings to Montana high school students. Registration is now open, and space is limited, so sign up today by clicking HERE. OPI Renewal Units will be available if requested.
The University of Montana also invites proposals for the Summit, with the sessions aimed at the professional development of others with the common goals of celebrating the current successes and highlighting the best practices of dual enrollment in Montana, as well as improving the quality of Montana dual enrollment. For information on submitting a proposal, please click HERE.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Jordan Patterson in the UM Dual Enrollment office at jordan.patterson@mso.umt.edu or to Becka Simons in the UM Summer Office at becka.simons@mso.umt.edu
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Career Spark:
College & Career Exploration for High School Students
Growing a Safer Montana Safety Equipment Grant Expanded to Include Middle Schools
 Montana State Fund is, again, offering High School PPE grants to schools for student Personal Protective Equipment in Industrial Technology labs.
Selected classrooms will be awarded a grant for $850 worth of PPE (personal protective equipment) for students. The PPE may include welding helmets, welding gloves, leather or rubber work gloves, safety glasses, earmuffs, ear plugs with dispenser, safety goggles, flame resistant clothing, high visibility vests and hardhats, etc. A list of items will be supplied to the teachers who are awarded the grants. Teachers may elect to use up to 50% of their grant funds to purchase equipment, tools, specific PPE, machine guards, etc. to make their classroom safer.
New this year, Middle School Industrial Technology programs also have the option to apply for a Middle School PPE grant!
Many thanks to Montana State Fund for promoting and growing Montana's Safety Culture.
Business Education Update:
Montana Business Educator Recognized for
Collaboration, Creativity, & Innovation
Stevensville Business Educator Jacki Bauman was recognized earlier this month by Youth Entrepreneurs for her extra efforts to ensure her students have a successful Market Day within the virtual classroom environment.
The following article was published in Youth Entrepreneurs’ March 2021 edition of Community Connections. Congratulations Jacki and thank you for all you do for your students and SHS community.
Expanding Market Day Reach: Scott Hanson and Jacki Bauman
Two Montana YE teachers are expanding Market Day reach and proceeds online. Jacki Bauman of Stevensville High School (Stevensville, Mont.) used YE partner Shopify’s platform as well as support from a fellow teacher to help her student create and sell their work online.
Bauman, who teaches YE activities in Entrepreneurship classes, looked to Scott Hanson, who heads the remote learning group for the Billings Career Center of Billings Public Schools (Billings, Mont.), for support in executing the Market Day curriculum remotely and holding Market Day online.
Bauman is implementing Market Day virtually in 2021, too. Upcoming students will sell their products online twice – once early in the semester and again later to leverage their initial experience. Hanson, through our YE Partnership Team, has offered to help other teachers leverage Shopify for their Market Day activities.
Karel Con, the 3rd Annual CodeHS Teacher Conference
Being Held Virtually April 24
Karel Con is a FREE 3.5-hour virtual conference for computer science educators. It is a great opportunity to learn from other amazing computer science educators, network, and explore new ways to use the CodeHS platform.
Karel Con will be held Saturday, April 24, 2021, from 9:30 am to 1:00 pm (MDT). All conference events will be held via Zoom.
Karel Con includes three 45-minute breakout sessions of your choice and networking opportunities with other computer science teachers. Please register by April 9. Keep in mind, this is a FREE professional learning opportunity. Check with your district/school about receiving OPI Renewal Units for your participation.
Teachers can register for a FREE CodeHS account, if needed, before Karel Con begins.
Next Gen Personal Finance Virtual Financial Literacy Conference
The 2021 Next Gen Personal Finance (NGPF) Virtual FinLit Conference will be on April 24, 2021. The conference will showcase 18 new, timely, and updated Virtual PD sessions, with a bonus 1-hour session on the ‘State of Financial Education in the U.S.
NGPF is excited to gather educators from all around the country to learn and engage together on all things financial education—especially with April being Financial Literacy Month.
Come and join NGPF; as with all things at NGPF, the conference is free and open to all.
When registering for the 2021 Virtual FinLit Conference, please note:
- You must register for each session you want to attend, including the State of Financial Literacy Education session.
- Please do not register for more than one session in a single time slot.
- If you want to attend more than 1 session in the same hour, don’t worry - these sessions will be repeated through our regular NGPF VPD scheduling starting late April. To make for a cohesive and engaging experience, we ask that you don’t jump from session to session in the middle of an hour.
- For each session you attend, you will get 1 NGPF Academy credit; each session will also have a gift card raffle.
For a complete listing of session topics and to register to participate, please visit the
2021 NGPF Virtual Conference site.
Business Professionals of America:
State Leadership Conference
The 2021 Montana BPA State Leadership Conference was held virtually from March 15-March 29, 2021. Nine hundred and fifty-six students and local chapter advisors from the middle level and secondary level joined online in a spirit of friendship and goodwill as the Montana Association assisted the members through participation in the areas of competitive events, leadership, community development, and professionalism.
Students demonstrated their knowledge in business and technological skills and abilities in over 60 different competitive events from within the five core assessment areas of Finance, Business Administration, Management Information Systems, Digital Communication & Design, Management, Marketing & Communication and Health Administration. The top finalists in each event advance to compete at the BPA National Leadership Conference this spring which will be held virtually as well.
The state conference also included mentalist Brian Imbus as our keynote speaker. A special event was a BPA Trivia Kahoot Event which was won by Team Crayle of Circle High School. Additionally, local chapters donated over $6,753.00 to Special Olympics Montana as their state-wide philanthropic organization. Forsythe High School was recognized for their donation of $1000, which was the largest donation by one chapter.
Community members and Montana businesses also played a tremendous role in the success of the state conference by serving as judges for the competitive events. In addition, Montana BPA has received more than $10,000.00 in financial support and/or in-kind support Montana business and education institutions as part of the corporate sponsor and education partnership program.
During the state conference the following members were elected to office for the 2021-2022 school year:
- President: Breanna Blaine, Joliet High School
- Vice President: Macy Hill St. Regis High School
- Secretary: Dalton Sand, Glasgow High School
The 2022 Montana BPA State Leadership Conference again will be held in Billings
March 13-15, 2022. Business Professionals of America is the leading CTSO (Career Technical Student Organization) for students pursuing careers in business management, finance, office administration, information technology, health administration and other related career fields.
Montana HOSA Virtual State Leadership Conference
Montana HOSA is excited to host our State Leadership Conference in a virtual format this year and continue to empower the next generation of healthcare workers. Our competitive events program has spanned the months of February to April with students competing in technical skill events and showcasing their soft skills through virtual presentations.
Our event will culminate on April 14th with student workshops and a live awards ceremony. Over 340 students and advisors from across the state are registered for our conference, and thanks to our healthcare partnerships and sponsors we were able to mail out kits that include hands-on learning for some of our virtual workshops.
Students will have the opportunity to choose from 6 different break out sessions being offered throughout the day.
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Montana FFA State Convention
400 members and guests attended Montana FFA’s 91st Annual State Convention April 7th- 10th in Billings, Montana. The Montana FFA State Convention hosted numerous career development events, general sessions and workshops during the four-day event. The winning teams earn the opportunity to compete at the National FFA Convention which will take place this fall in Indianapolis, IN. New State FFA Officers were selected and are as follows: Joe Lackman – President from Forsyth, Colton Young - 1st VP from Absarokee, Danielle Horan - 2nd VP from Moore, Riley Prather - Secretary from Big Timber, Matthew Slivka - Treasurer from Winifred, Cody Johannes - Reporter from Huntley Project, Allison Denton - Sentinel from Lewistown, and Sydney Kirschten - Parliamentarian from Baker.
The Beaverhead chapter from Dillon took home the title of Star Chapter. Coleton Sherman of Mission Valley of Ronan was named Star Greenhand with Emily Niebur from Big Timber being announced as the Star in Agribusiness. Montana’s Star in Agriculture Placement went to Matthew Slivka of Winifred, Bailey Lake from Kalispell earned the title of Star Farmer, and Braelyn LaRue from Big Timber earned the Star in Agriscience award. Finally, the team sweepstakes title went to the Miles City FFA Chapter followed by Kalispell in second and Missoula in third. The sweepstakes award recognizes the chapter who places highest in four of the five major state convention competitions. The individual sweepstakes winner was Claire Standley from Missoula followed by Raey Hanke from Belgrade in second and Miles Graveley from Deer Lodge in third.
Montana Business and Industry representatives sponsored the event as well as promoted their businesses on the virtual platform FFA Tradeshow. The Montana FFA makes a positive difference in the lives of students by developing their potential for premier leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education. For more information please contact the Montana FFA Association for upcoming events and ways to get involved.
For contact information visit the Montana FFA website at https://montanaffa.org/
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Alpha Gamma Rho Fraternity
“Better Future” Scholarship Application Form
This is a $250 to $500 general scholarship application for incoming freshmen at Montana State University who come from an agricultural background with preference given towards those active in FFA, 4-H, or any other agricultural oriented organization. Please type the answers to the following questions on a separate sheet of paper. Sign and date this paper at the bottom to recognize that you understand the requirements of this scholarship and attach this paper to your application.
Due/Postmarked by: April 23, 2021
- Applicant’s Full Name
- Applicant’s Date of Birth
- Applicant’s Address and Phone Number
- Father’s Full Name and Occupation
- Mother’s Full Name and Occupation
- Why You Demonstrate Financial Need
- Proposed Major and Proof of Acceptance
- Cumulative High School GPA (4.0 scale)
- High School Activities (list membership, offices, awards, extra-curricular)
- List Community Activities (FFA, 4-H, etc.)
- List any Active or Alumni members of AGR or Rhomates that you know.
- Copy of Official High School Transcript
- At least one Sealed Letter of Recommendation from a non-relative Ag Leader. (Ex. FFA Advisor, local 4-H Extension Agent, Ag Teacher, AGR Alumni)
- Write an essay, 500 words or less, on one of the following topics:
- How you plan to correlate your degree at Montana State University to Ag in your future.
- Your view on the future of Agriculture and its role in the 21st
- What impact has Agriculture had on your life?
Date: _______________ Signature: __________________________
Mail this form and attached information to:
Alpha Gamma Rho
ATTN: Nolan Nansel, VNR Scholarship
1707 Greek Way
Bozeman, MT 59715
Harbor Freight Tools for Schools
 Over a MILLION dollars will be given away to 18 deserving skilled trades programs across the country, with some of the money going directly to the teacher! I was a grand prize winner ($100,000) back in 2017 and I know first hand how it can impact a CTE program and community.
This is our 5th year of the prize and we just launched the 2021 prize application today on our website. I would love to see more Montana teachers get recognized for all their hard work. I hope you will pass along the information to all of your Montana programs!
If I can answer any questions, please don't hesitate to reach back.
Let's get a winner from the "Big Sky Country!"
Sincerely,
Bob Kilmer - Education Consultant
bkilmer@hftforschools.org
bkilmer3222@gmail.com
Cell: 360-367-1601
NACEP Offers Dual Enrollment Survey
Hello NACEP Members!
I am reaching out to offer you the opportunity to help contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of dual and concurrent enrollment program experiences during the pandemic.
NACEP, as part of our work with the College in High School Alliance (CHSA), is leading a national effort to gather input from across the field to help better assess and understand the pandemic's impact on programs. We invite you to complete our survey and help inform this work by sharing your experience. The survey will be accepting responses through May 11th.
We are eager to learn more about the impact of the pandemic, changes to policy and practice that the pandemic has caused, and how COVID-19 has changed the status quo for these programs moving forward. Our intent is to use this survey data and follow-up interviews to inform the development of a resource highlighting the long-term challenges and opportunities created by the pandemic for dual and concurrent enrollment programs.
The survey seeks perspectives from a variety of individuals engaged in and supporting our field including secondary, postsecondary, state agency/system office, and partner organization professionals engaged in this work. Please share the survey widely. All responses are confidential unless explicit permission is granted for publication from the respondent(s).
I know we are all tired of talking about it, thinking about it, and dealing with it but I hope that you will help us capture a more informed picture of how the field has adjusted to the unprecedented challenges presented by the pandemic.
As always, thank you for all you do for students and for NACEP!
AMY WILLIAMS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP)
Advancing quality college courses for high school students
PO Box 578, Chapel Hill, NC 27514
O: (919) 935-9570
http://www.nacep.org [nacep.org]
American Jobs for America's Youth:
Helena Area Summer Jobs Program
High School students Earn and Learn
Now in its third year, the Helena Area Summer Jobs Program helps students “earn and learn” through paid summer positions, mentorships, and professional development.
Last summer Anthony secured an internship in a local bank, and he said, “I learned how to work in customer service, and how an entire company can work together.” Anthony is now in his first year of college, and his Summer Jobs Program experience solidified his choice to study finance. The program enables students to develop their work skills and explore career options.
Another student, JoElla, had never held a formal job and was overwhelmed with the process of seeking and applying for jobs. Through the Summer Jobs Program, she had support creating a resume and practicing interview skills. JoElla was matched with a position that fit her skills and interests of working with people. Throughout the summer, she met with a volunteer adult mentor. The mentor guided JoElla through conversations about how to handle angry customers, working in a team, and how to gain confidence at work. JoElla said, “I would absolutely recommend this program because it gives you work experience while also giving you a mentor to help guide you through the process.”
The summer jobs program:
- connects high school students with a paid internship or job,
- provides a paid work skills training, and
- matches students with an adult mentor for the summer.
Despite Covid-19 and high unemployment, the Helena Summer Jobs Program (SJP) connected 32 Helena-area high school students with employment opportunities in 2020.
American Jobs for America’s Youth Montana (AJAY MT) and Helena Workforce Innovation Networks (Helena WINS), an initiative of the Helena Area Chamber of Commerce, collaborated to create the program. In 2021, the Helena Area Summer Jobs Program will include the East Helena, Helena, and Townsend communities, in partnership with the nonprofit STOKE. Additionally, AJAY MT received a Helena City of Service grant in partnership with Helena College and Reach Higher Montana which will support SJP initiatives this coming summer.
Volunteer community partners – schools, businesses, organizations, and citizen mentors – are central to the success of the program. School staff help recruit students. Employers offer on-the-job training and coaching. Mentors meet with students to discuss what they are learning at work and how it can serve them in their future academic and job options.
These partners also reinforce the work-skills training that students complete prior to the summer. The four-hour work-skills training focuses on fundamental job skills, also called 21st century skills, such as time management, communication, conflict management, and customer service. iGraduate, an initiative of the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education, Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation, the Office of Public Instruction and the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, provided grant funding for the Summer Jobs Program in 2019, 2020, and 2021. The grant funds stipends, which students receive upon successful completion of the work skills training.
In 2020, students and employers were very satisfied with the program - 100% of the students said they would recommend the program to others and over 95% of employers said they would like to host students again in the future! Partner employers include governmental, nonprofit and for-profit organizations. “Internships are important for our business and we love to help students,” said a supervisor from Lewis & Clark County offices.
If you are a community member or school staff that would like to learn more about implementing a Summer Jobs Program in your community, please contact Gabrielle at gerowley@americanjobs4youth.org.
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Montana Organizations Seek Solutions to
Statewide Skills Gap issue
HELENA — A skills gap is referred to a disconnection between an employer and a job candidate because of a lack of skills needed to perform the duties. The Montana Chamber of Commerce released their 2020 survey results and discovered that the skills gap is a statewide issue.
Jacob Bartow works as a Technician at a Helena dealership often handling oil changes and vehicle recalls. He enjoys his job.
“I really like plugging away at stuff, trying to figure what I can do to fix stuff," says Bartow.
It may come as a shock to hear that Bartow graduated high school in 2020. He’s 19 years old and is already working full time in a career he’s been trained for, a rarity for many employers in the trades.
“It feels great to be one of the very few people that's actually interested in doing this sort of thing,” says Bartow. “A lot of kids my age don't seem to be as interested in going into the trades..."
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For questions, please contact:
Shannon Boswell, Division Administrator - 406.444.7915
Eric Tilleman, Agriculture Education Specialist - 406.444.4451
Renee Erlandsen, Health Sciences Education Specialist - 406.994.6986
Ian Beagles CTE/Perkins Data Control Specialist - 406.444.9019
Mike Houghton, Industrial Technology Specialist - 406.444.4452
Austin Schweitzer, Marketing Program Coordinator - 406.444.2059
Eric Swenson, Business Education Specialist - 406.444.7991
Megan Vincent, Family & Consumer Sciences Education Specialist - 406.444.3599
The OPI is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, require an alternate format, or have questions concerning accessibility, contact the OPI ADA Coordinator, 406-444-3161, opiada@mt.gov, Relay Service: 711.
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