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The OPI is providing this newsletter to legislators every six weeks to keep you updated on current events and ongoing education-related issues in Montana.
The next Navigator will be sent to you on May 13th. Keep informed of our new developments and tribal specialists.
Thank you, to all the legislators who offered public comment and signed the letter of support for Emily Pennington's enrollment during the March 31 Billings School Board meeting.
Revise Funding for Students with Disabilities
HB 233, sponsored by Rep. Fred Anderson (R) - HD 20, was signed into law on May 7, 2021. This bill changed state funding of school districts to include special needs students over 19 and not yet 21 to count towards ANB calculations. Recently, this law has come to the forefront in the discussion of enrollment of students with special needs in Billings School District 2.
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Click to watch Superintendent Arntzen’s – State of Education Speech
 Thank you to Lt. Gov. Juras, Superintendent Arntzen, and members of the Indian Education for All Unit, Mike Jetty, Zach Hawkins, Stephen Morsette, and Don Wetzel, for celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Montana Constitutional Convention.
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As of March 21, 2022, 56 school districts have signed the MOU.
In February, 47 claims were submitted, and 29 claims were released.
In March, 50 claims were submitted, and 41 claims were released.
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For more information, please contact Deputy Sharyl Allen at sharyl.allen@mt.gov or (406) 444-5648.
JP Williams is the new State Special Education Director. JP Williams has been one of Montana’s most dynamic transformational administrators in the state since returning home in 2018. JP has been in school leadership for 10 years and is in his 17th year as a professional educator. JP has been a standout school leader in Montana for his work on suicide prevention and crisis management during the pandemic. JP is married to Jamie Williams who has been in elementary education for 25 years and is a graduate of MSU Billings. Jamie and JP have three daughters Alex, Jordan, and Kauri. Currently, JP serves as the Principal of Butte Central High School in Butte, Montana. His focus has been on developing the Public/Private educational partnership at the state level with OPI and the Governor’s office. He has been responsible for developing one of Montana’s premier high school Dual College Enrollment programs in partnership with the MUS system offering a full Associate’ Degree program at the high school level. JP also served as the Chairman of the Office of Public Instruction Special Education Advisory Committee in the 2020-2021 school year. Now in his fourth year of service to the committee, JP continues to serve as a member of the OPI Montana School Safety Advisory Committee and is deeply committed to youth advocacy across Montana. Another endeavor of JP’s has been serving as a member of the Carroll College Equity and Diversity Task Force, which focuses on ensuring equitable educational opportunities and partnerships for students and faculty at the college and university level across the state of Montana.
Prior to service in Montana, JP worked from 2005 to 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada for Clark County School District. Serving as an instructional leader in the Indian Education Program and Special Education Department. JP was also a liaison for the CCSD Department of Equity and Diversity. JP holds master’s degrees in Special Education (UNLV 08’) and School Administration (NSU 15’). JP is currently preparing his thesis in School Leadership to receive a Doctoral of Educational Leadership from MSU – Bozeman.
JP has spent the majority of his career working in public and private schools supporting teachers and helping students who are diverse learners. In years that are more recent, JP’s leadership work has focused on creating student and family engagement partnerships in schools that build and maintain high levels of trust and credibility in school practices and school leadership. JP believes every student, in every classroom, deserves every opportunity to learn.
For more information, please contact Jessie Counts, Student Support Services Senior Manager, at jessica.counts@mt.gov or (406) 444-4706.
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2020-21 State Report Card:
Please note: this data is from last year
Licensed K-12 Staff & Paraprofessionals: 16,304
Public School Districts: 405
Public Schools: 829
Student Enrollment: 145,632
Per Pupil Expenditures: $12,944.33
The fourth year of issuing the federally mandated public school report card required by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Individual schools received their data on March 11 before the public data was released on March 18. The state report card holds data from the previous school year, 2020-2021, and is displayed in an accessible digital report card. There is an individual report card for each of Montana’s schools plus a report card for our school districts.
The federal government required the state-wide assessment without any relief or waivers as in the previous year. Each report card shows data on:
- student achievement scores in math and reading
- student growth in math and reading
- student enrollment
- per-pupil expenditure at local/state, and federal (The federal allocation of Covid relief dollars is not reflected)
- educator qualifications
- graduation rates
The federal requirement for accountability designation as Comprehensive, Targeted, or Universal was carried forward from 2019. The previous annual state accreditation status for schools was also maintained.
For more information, please contact Dr. Julie Murgel, Chief Operating Officer, at julie.murgel@mt.gov or (406) 444-3172.
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OPI asked for and was granted waivers from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) starting in the spring of 2020 to the spring of 2022. All students were given free breakfast and lunch regardless of income eligibility. The summer food program will be the same as last year. This coming school year there will be income-based free and reduced meals. Superintendent Elsie Arntzen Ensures School Meal Assistance
The production of Montana Marinara began in response to school district requests for locally sourced menu items. According to the 2019 USDA Farm to School Census, 84% of Montana schools are serving local foods. Recent disruptions in the food supply chain have prompted food service directors to increase local and regional purchases.
The Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center in Ronan will be using crops harvested in the summer and fall of 2022 to process the marinara for Montana school districts. The product is planned to arrive at the state-owned warehouse in Helena in December 2022 for statewide distribution to school districts in January of 2023.
- A total of 11,957 pounds of squash, carrots, and onions and 680 pounds of safflower oil will be purchased from MT growers.
- This project contributes $12,045 in payroll to Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center.
- USDA commodity diced tomatoes used in processing will lower the cost of production.
During the 2020-21 school year, school districts across Montana served a total of 16,871,992 meals to their students. Food service professionals from Absarokee to Zurich prepared an average of 69,626 healthy and delicious meals each school day.
Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued more than fifty waivers during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 school years to decrease administrative burden of the school meal programs and increase reimbursement payments per meal.
Starting July 1, 2022, most waivers and additional funding per meal will end. The Montana Office of Public Instruction is helping school districts make the transition back to “normal” for the summer of 2022, and school year 2022-23. The USDA has announced updates to the school meal programs called “transitional standards” for milk, whole grains, and sodium as a bridge from where we are now to where we are going. These standards will help school districts continue to build on the progress they have made in offering high-quality, nutritious school meals that support children’s health and development. Fact Sheet on Transitional Standards Final Rule
The new standards will begin in the 2022-23 school year and go through the 2023-24 school year. They will provide guidance to school districts as they plan their menus and include:
- Students can be offered flavored, low-fat milk in addition to unflavored, low-fat milk and flavored or unflavored nonfat milk.
- At least 80% of all grains served in school lunch and breakfast must be whole grain-rich (when a product is whole grain-rich, it contains at least 50% whole grains).
- The weekly sodium limit for both school lunches and breakfasts will remain at the current Target 1 level during the 2022-23 school year. For the 2023-24 school year, the weekly sodium limit will decrease by 10 percent to the interim level of Target 1A.
Montana school districts continue to have difficulties with staff and product shortages, as well as food and labor cost increases.
For more information, please contact Christine Emerson, MS, RD, Director School Nutrition Programs at cemerson@mt.gov or 1-406-444-2502.
April is the Month of the Military Child! Please join us by inviting community members and families to celebrate our military-connected students as prepare for Purple Up! Day. Montana’s Purple Up! Day is April 12th this year.
There are many opportunities across the state to recognize our military-connected families and honor their sacrifices. Please see the flyer below for events the Montana Army National Guard is partnering with communities all across Montana to celebrate military-connected students. We invite you to participate and invite friends and families to join in on the fun. For some of the more rural areas, please sign up for a MTARNG Camp in a Box or create your own activity to celebrate school wide. Click here for elementary, middle school, and high school military child packets with ideas on how your school can celebrate the Month of the Military Child.
For more information, please contact Jessica Flint, Communications Program Specialist, at jessica.flint@mt.gov or (406) 438-3400.
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Montana’s 2021 - 2022 Purple Star School Awardees are:
- Flathead High School in Kalispell
- Holy Spirit Catholic School in Great Falls
- Morningside Elementary School in Great Falls
- Great Falls Central Catholic High School in Great Falls
- Ben Steele Middle School in Billings
- Townsend School District in Townsend
The 2021- 2022 Purple Star Champion Awardees are:
- Jennifer Bernhart of Missoula (Community Supporter)
- Hunter Jones of Billings (Educator)
- Joe Ferda of Great Falls (US Air Guard and Community Supporter)
- Kim Ray of Great Falls (Principal)
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Superintendent Elsie Arntzen has introduced recommendations to the Board of Public Education (BOPE). Parents, community leaders, and teachers are asked to participate in commenting on hiring flexibilities to ensure quality teachers lead our community classrooms. Current Montana teacher shortages demand this change to remove barriers in obtaining teacher licenses and hiring qualifications. Streamlining the process will attract teachers with multiple pathways and skills.
The proposed changes to increase recruitment of teachers:
- Equalizing alternative teacher preparation pathways
- Earning multiple endorsements to expand credentials
- Increased access for expired licensees to reenter the classroom
- Flexibility of initial license competencies through a test, portfolio, or verified GPA
- Acceptance of lifetime licenses
- Increase Career Technical educators by accepting diverse degrees, allowing associate degrees, and work experience equivalencies
- Allowing school counselors to pursue administrative licenses
- Providing license reciprocity from other states for military spouses and dependents
- Recognizing licenses for nationally board-certified teachers
- Read more comprehensive changes to ARM Chapter 57.
- Written public comment may be submitted through 5:00 PM on April 8, 2022, to the Executive Director at bpe@mt.govand will be shared with board members and included as part of the official public record. Read all the details in Conceptual Changes to ARM Chapter 57.
For more information, please contact Dr. Julie Murgel at julie.murgel@mt.gov or (406) 444-3172.
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On March 24, 2021, the Montana OPI received from the U.S. Department of Education (USED) the American Rescue Plan Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) Funds, authorized under the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act. The ARP-ESSER provides $382,019,236 (ESSER III) for Montana schools to safely reopen and sustain safe operations of schools while meeting the academic, social, emotional, and mental health needs of students resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. This marks the third round of ESSER funding that Montana has received and is available through September 2024.
ESSER_I_II__III Allocations.pdf (mt.gov)
Federal Data Collection Due
The state of Montana received the CRRSA Emergency Aid to Nonpublic Schools (EANS) I award in the amount of $12,816,385 and received the ARP EANS II award in the amount of $12,063,324.
- It is estimated that the total awarded under EANS I will be $6,522,933, with the remainder reverting to the Gov. Emergency Education Relief Fund (GEER).
- The EANS II award is still open for new applicants to submit an Intent to Apply. Information is available on the website. These are the parameters for the EANS II funds that nonpublic schools must meet to qualify for this award:
More information will be available per school district allocation for your legislative purposes.
For information contact Wendi Fawns at wendi.fawns@mt.gov.
Completion Diploma Steering Committee
The 2021 Montana Legislature passed HB 556 (2021) establishing a Montana proficiency-based diploma for Montana residents who have exhausted the possibility of earning a high school diploma. Now in statute at § 20-3-110, MCA, the Legislature required the Superintendent to establish the eligibility and qualification requirements for a state diploma by administrative rule.
Superintendent Arntzen has convened a steering committee to help craft a proposed rule. The committee includes Rep. Ken Walsh (R) - HD 71, sponsor of HB 556, as well as representatives from Montana Youth Challenge and Pine Hills. The Superintendent expects the rules to be in place for a state diploma by the end of this school year.
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Public comment about the state diploma requirements is welcomed and encouraged throughout the rulemaking process. The formal public comment process will be initiated in April when the rulemaking proposal is filed. Keep an eye out for further information about this exciting program to recognize the accomplishments of Montana’s youth!
For more information, please contact Rob Stutz, OPI Chief Legal Counsel, at rob.stutz@mt.gov or (406) 444-4399
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Questions? Contact:
Brian O'Leary, Communications Director, (406) 444-3559
Dr. Trenin Bayless, OPI Project Manager, (406) 444-3449
Tara Boulanger, Legislative Liaison, (406) 444-2082
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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