Pick one event to attend and get your Middle and/or High School student team of leaders registered!
Great Falls, October 6th & 7th, 2024
Butte, October 27th & 28th, 2024
A two-day youth leadership event including talks, activities, workshops, and community service in partnership with Montana Special Olympics Unified Champion Schools. This event is open to all Middle & High School students in Montana. Each public school district traveling greater than 50 miles each way will be reimbursed, at the state rate, for up to 4 lodging rooms and two vehicles. If your district requires additional rooms or vehicles, that will be the district's responsibility.
REGISTRATION and more information is available on the 2024 MTSS Youth Days website.
Questions, please contact: Anne Carpenter , 406-465-0922 or Tammy Lysons, 406-431-2309.
November 19 | Great Falls, MT @ Holiday Inn and Convention Center
Keynote: Carrie Cole, Literacy for All
With additional sessions from Carrie and Drea Beale on the Science of Reading for Secondary and Administrators and Powerful Teaching for Engagement. Featured sessions on Building Thinking Classrooms for All Content Areas and Mathematics with Jared Sliger, BTC. Mental Health and Behavior sessions featuring Shawna Heiser and Jerry Girard. Special Guests from Build Montana and ElevateMT. OPI Staff presenting on Secondary MTSS, Early Warning System, Transformational Learning, CTE & Montana Perkins Grant Revisions, and Indigenous Whole Learner Framework.
This event is FREE! Reserve your substitutes and register today!
OPI provides travel reimbursement for up to 5 staff per public school district traveling greater than 50 miles.
New for 2024: Pre-Forum Training
On Monday, November 18, we have added three full-day training events you won’t want to miss. Registration for Pre-Forum Training will be on the Forum website.
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Check & Connect
Presented by Joe Moriarty, OPI, 8:30-4:00 PM
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Restorative Practices
Presented by Crystal Hickman, OPI, 8:30-4:00 PM
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Youth Mental Health First Aid
Presented in partnership with AHEC, 8:00-5:00 PM*
No Pre-work, 1 hour lunch
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3rd Tuesday of each month, 3:30 PM – 4:30 PM October 15th – May 20th
October 15: Special Education Highlights & New Monitoring Process
Featuring OPI Special Education Director Danni McCarthy and School Improvement Unit Manager John Gorton
These meetings are one-hour sessions held on the third Tuesday of the Month from 3:30-4:30. There will be a short 10-20 minute presentation on a topic followed by a discussion around that topic. The purpose of these meetings is to provide technical assistance and support for Special Education teachers as well as help build a network for teachers throughout Montana.
For more information, go to the Special Education Learning Community website and learn about future monthly topics.
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2024 Montana Special Education Law Conference, October 21-22, Helena, MT
Agenda at a Glance
Location: Best Western Great Northern, Helena, MT
Cost: $125
Renewal Units: Up to 11 OPI Professional Development Units available
This conference is designed for general and special education administrators and teachers, service providers, parents, advocates, lawyers, and others involved in developing and supporting special education services for children with disabilities and their families.
Most sessions will require attendees to have a background in special education procedures and practice in order to apply the information to work or advocacy responsibilities.
MT School OT/PT Conference 2024
October 17-18 | Great Falls College MSU, Great Falls, MT
Executive Function in Students: Building Skills for Academic Independence and Success
Lori Benson Adams, M.Ed., BS and M.Ed. in Special Education; Private Educational Interventionist; Contributing Instructor with Sensational Brain
This 12-hour course will provide evidence-based strategies for related service providers to:
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Assess common school-based challenges (weak time awareness, poor organization, difficult self-regulation, working with educators and parents, and promotion of generalization of skills)
- Develop Intervention Plans
- Create Daily Strategies
PTs... remember that the training of gross motor skills may contribute to the development of specific executive functions. Approved for Category A PT CEUs through CEU locker!
Special Education Endorsement Project
Have you recently hired an educator to teach Special Education as a paid intern in your district (teaching Special Education under a current Montana educator license while attending school to obtain the SPED Endorsement)?
Is your district not yet financially supported through the OPI SPED Endorsement Project?
If you answered yes to these questions, please reach out to Annette Viciedo Young (406-444-0299; ayoung3@mt.gov) for information on how the SPED Endorsement Project may be helpful to your new hire.
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Scholarship Opportunity with SIMS Scholars
Funded by OSEP (Office of Special Education Programs), SIMS (Specialized Interventionists for Montana Schools) Scholars is an opportunity for future special educators and speech-language pathologists to be fully funded through their programs (2 years). In return, they work for Montana schools for four years. View the SIMS Scholars Abstract here.
Open to all students eligible for admission into the University of Montana Teacher Education Program, and those admitted to the speech-language pathology graduate program. These are the specialized course sequences for SIMS Scholars:
Questions, contact Jennifer Schoffer Closson or Morgan Alwell.
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Montana Empowerment Center
2024 IEP Bootcamps for Families
The Montana Empowerment Center is Montana's federally funded Parent Training and Information Center under IDEA Part D. You can register for the location by the registration links above. MEC has invited multiple stakeholders to join and bring information about the IDEA process to families, caregivers and outside agencies that work with families that have children with disabilities. Invited agencies include early intervention agencies for young children as well as the Pre-ETS and Vocational Rehabilitation, MT OPI, MT's Independent Living Centers, MSDB, MonTECH, and community partners in each area. CADRE is the Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education and their session will focus on Due Process.
Please share this information with any families with children with disabilities from ages birth to 26 and any professionals who may be interested in this training. The training will include information on the IEP process, assessments, transition from high school, IDEA law, the Office for Civil Rights 504s, parent's rights and responsibilities, as well as information from our community partners about supports and services available for families.
Let MEC know if you have any questions or need additional information or reasonable accommodations. Questions, contact: Info@mtempowermentcenter.org or 1-877-870-1190.
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Explore virtual and in-person training options on our CSPD website. Some upcoming trainings are also highlighted below.
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Monday, Sept 30 - SPED Procedures, Applications, Review of Samples; Presented by John Gorton, OPI Special Education Monitoring Unit Manager
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October 7, 2024 - Secondary Transitions; Presented by Desiree Johnson, OPI School Improvement Specialist
This series of virtual meetings is geared toward providing basic trainings for case managers and Special Education personnel to become better acquainted with the navigation and use of Infinite Campus and the writing/development of various Special Education documents addressing procedural recommendations and the How To’s of the various components of Special Education. The intended audience is school administration, Special Education teachers, and related service providers. There is a lot of material to cover as a result we will need to hit the ground running.
Oct. 11-12 | 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. | Havre Best Western Inn and Suites
- 11 OPI Renewal Units are available for this free Region 2 CSPD training
The Mandt System builds on skill development through a system of gradual and graded alternatives for de-escalating and assisting people using a combination of interpersonal communication skills, conflict resolution strategies, and physical interaction techniques. The goal is to assist others in managing themselves and the safety of all involved through skillful and nonphysical means. Physical strategies are also taught to provide additional “least restrictive” options in the event the person poses a clear threat of substantial harm to self or others if physically unassisted. The Mandt System focuses on prevention.
This is a two-day training, and attendance is required on both days. Those recertifying also need to attend both days. Saturday involves learning the physical part of the training. Groups are limited to 10 people by the MANDT Company. If we reach our maximum of 20, our presenter will break participants into two groups on Saturday of the training (a.m. and p.m.)
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October 17 & 18 | 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM | Sidney High School
Shawna and Hank will present keynotes and breakout sessions on Thursday.
Friday will consist of more specific breakouts and a closing session and time made available to work in teams with each Shawna and Hank. Teams/Schools attending will receive Hank's book on MTSS.
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Shawna Heiser is a Senior Lecturer at Montana State University, working with children, families, and professionals in positive support. Her teaching interests include Behavioral and Applied Psychology principles such as learning theories, positive behavioral support, and BCBA certification procedures. Strong emphasis on teaching principles for people with autism and other behavioral difficulties.
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Hank Bohanon is a professor at Loyola University of Chicago. His work focuses on supports for high school settings related to positive behavior support, response to intervention, social and emotional learning, school-based mental health, and school improvement. He is the co-author of Implementing Systematic Interventions: A Guide for Secondary Schools.
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Register Today!
November 6 – 8, 2024, Great Falls Heritage Inn
Welcoming youth with disabilities, families, educators, and service providers for an unforgettable and fun learning experience. The MYT conference offers the resources to help you create successful transition plans for independent living in the adult world.
IMET SELF-PACED ONLINE COURSES
The Utah State University TASK12 Interpreter, Mentorship, Education, & Training (IMET) Program offers a variety of independent study, self-paced, online training courses produced for sign language interpreters. The courses are designed to be completed independently on various knowledge- & skill-based topics.
Courses are self-paced and fully online using the Canvas platform. Participants can self-enroll for courses here. Questions, contact LeeAnn Lundgreen.
Webinar Series – Communication for Students with Complex Needs (DeafBlind focus)
Live Webinar Series with Kathee Scoggin and Emma Packard.
14 Sessions, starts Sept 25th! See the website link for more info and to register.
Description: Children and youth who are deafblind have many concepts and skills to learn before language is achieved, most of which are learned by other children incidentally. Not so for students who are deafblind. Learn the steps to ensure your students are primed for learning and using language. The strategies and tools learned in this class will prepare educators and parents to better support students across learning settings and within the community. Hosted by the Washington DeafBlind Project.
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Special Education General Information:
Contact Kelley Brown, 406-444-5661 or check out our webpage.
Danni McCarthy, Montana's State Special Education Director, 406-594-3610
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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