Stronger Connections Grant
Watch for the Upcoming Competitive Grant Application
The Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) was awarded $4,560,000 in federal K-12 funding from the U.S. Department of Education under the BSCA Stronger Connections Grant Program. The Stronger Connections Grant aims to provide funding for high-needs Montana LEAs to develop, implement, and evaluate a comprehensive approach that prioritizes physical and emotional safety for their unique school community. The OPI’s Stronger Connections Grant will open on Egrants on March 6th and will close on April 17th at 4:00 PM. Schools will have the opportunity to apply for a minimum of $10,000 and a maximum of $350,000 total ($175,000 per year). Please watch for more information on this competitive grant funding opportunity in the coming weeks. For more information contact Paige Sedahl, Title IV-A Program Manager at paige.sedahl@mt.gov or OPIStronger@mt.gov.
Skyview Implements Resiliency Poll and Focuses on Positive School Climate
Skyview High School in Billings has been hard at work fostering student wellness and academic success by focusing on building resilience, strengthening protective factors, and creating a positive school climate. This work, led by Assistant Principal, Jeremy Carlson, and Department Head of School Counseling, Tina Boone, uses a “resiliency poll” to gauge student resiliency indicators as well as risk factors. The results of the poll are used by Skyview staff to inform school and community interventions and build systems of support to meet the identified student needs. Students also engage in individual conversations to identify ways to help build personal resilience and improve the climate of their school. Upon reviewing resiliency poll data and gathering student input, one strategy Skyview implemented was to create additional lunchtime activities to increase students’ feelings of belonging and connection to others.
The work at Skyview is supported by research indicating that when students experience growth in resilience skills (i.e. grit, hope, positive social connections, etc.) their academic performance also improves, with grade point averages increasing by 12% and standardized test scores increasing by 15%. The success of this program at Skyview has led to its implementation in other schools in the Billings area. If you would like to learn more about this work, please contact Jeremy Carlson at carlsonjc@billingsschools.org 406.281.5231 or Tina Boone at boonet@billingsschools.org 406.281.5308.
If your school has implemented a successful program or intervention supporting student mental health or wellness that you’d like to feature in a future Compass article, please reach out to Michele Henson at michele.henson@mt.gov. The Coordinated School Health Unit appreciates any opportunity to showcase the great work happening in Montana’s schools.
The Montana Meth Project celebrated its public launch of Paint the State 2023 with students, Superintendent Arntzen, Governor Gianforte, and Attorney General Knudsen at the Montana Capitol on January 30, 2023. The statewide public art contest invites all Montana students 13+ to join the community outreach program in inspiring vibrant drug-free lives. Registration is now open for groups and individuals at Paint the State. A number of $250 art stipends are still available for student team entries!
The program is ideal for junior high and high school:
- student art and health classes (or any class as an impactful group project)
- student service and leadership clubs
- community service and senior projects
For questions and more information, please contact Gail Maehl, Paint the State Project Manager at gail@montanameth.org or 406.370.5354.
Tobacco Use Prevention Education Grant for Montana Schools Opens March 3, 2023
The Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program has once again dedicated $40,000 to the OPI to provide grants to Montana schools for implementing strategies to reduce youth tobacco use. Grant recipients will be awarded up to $10,000 per school or up to $20,000 per school district to support student tobacco use prevention strategies. Previous awardees have used these funds to purchase vape detectors, to provide educational programs as alternatives to suspension and to enhance school-wide tobacco use prevention education curriculum.
You can find more information about this grant here, or contact Kris Minard, Tobacco Use Prevention Education Specialist at kminard@mt.gov or 406.444.0785
February is teen dating violence awareness month, a time dedicated to raising awareness about the frequency of dating violence in teens and encouraging adults and teens to positively intervene if dating violence is suspected. According to Youth Dynamics, 1 in 3 female and 1 in 4 male teens will experience dating violence. Dating violence includes mental, emotional, physical and sexual abuse and can take many forms. Violent behaviors in youth often begin between 6th and 12th grade (Do Something). Females between the ages of 16 and 24 are the most likely demographic to experience abuse from an intimate partner (Do Something) and youth ages 12 to 19 are most likely to experience sexual assault (youth.gov).
Teens in Montana report higher rates of sexual violence than the nation as a whole. In 2021, 13.5% of Montana high school students reported they had experienced sexual violence during the past 12 months, including being forced by anyone to do sexual things that they did not what to do, such as kissing, touching, or being physically forced to have sexual intercourse (Montana YRBS, 2021); nationally, 11% of high school students reported this same experience (CDC, 2023). Likewise, in 2021, 11% of Montana high school students reported they had been forced to have sex at least one time in their life (Montana YRBS, 2021) compared to the national average of 8% (CDC, 2023). According to Do Something, half of all young people who experience rape or physical or sexual abuse will attempt suicide in their lifetime. (It is important to note that the sexual violence represented in these data may or may not have been perpetrated by someone in a romantic relationship.)
While dating violence is common, only about a third of teens who experience it talk to someone about the abuse (Do Something), making it incumbent upon parents and school staff to know what to look for and to intervene to stop violence and abuse from taking place. An informational video developed by Youth Dynamics describes what adults can look for to identify potential teen dating violence. These include:
- Withdrawal from normal activities and/or social or family functions
- Decreased activity on social media or other forms of communication with friends
- New or increased use of drugs or alcohol
- New or increased signs or expressions of depression or other mental health concerns
Students, parents, and school staff members who have concerns about teen dating violence are encouraged to contact Youth Dynamics at 406.245.6539 or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1.800.656.4673. For more information, please visit Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention.
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OPI Vaping Prevention Presentations
The OPI Tobacco Use Prevention Education Program is able to provide vaping prevention education presentations to your middle and/or high school students in a classroom setting. There is no cost to Montana schools and the feedback has been positive from participating districts and students.
We can provide middle and/or high school presentations during the school day as well as staff/parent presentations after school. Scheduling will depend upon requests received and associated travel.
To inquire about school presentations follow this link, or for more information contact Kris Minard, Tobacco Use Prevention Education Specialist at kminard@mt.gov or 406.444.0785
Tobacco use prevention resources for schools continue to be updated on the OPI Tobacco Use Prevention webpage.
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Positive School Climates Support Student and Educator Success and Wellness
A positive school climate, where students and staff feel safe, supported, and cared for by school staff, is critically important to student academic success and emotional wellness. Increased student attendance, academic achievement, and graduation rates have all been linked to a positive school climate (National Center on Safe and Supportive Learning Environments). Likewise, educators who feel supported and have positive relationships with their peers report higher feelings of teaching efficacy and emotional wellness (Pennsylvania State University, 2016).
The U.S. Department of Education defines school climate as the extent to which a school community creates and maintains (1) a safe school campus, (2) a supportive academic, disciplinary, and physical environment, and (3) respectful, trusting, and caring relationships throughout the school community. To learn more about creating a positive school climate visit OPI’s Positive School Climate Development webpage and view our positive school climate informational flyer. We also invite you to take a look at this guidance document, Creating a Safe and Connected School Climate for American Indian Students, which was codeveloped with Montana American Indian students.
For more information, please contact Michele Henson, School Safety Program Manager at 406.595.1058 or michele.henson@mt.gov.
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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