FY Perkins Grant Application

2026 Fiscal Year Perkins Grant is not open yet. When we can open it, a notice will go out with your allocations. We are awaiting the Grant Award Notice (GAN) from the Department of Education, which should arrive soon. If you are trying to prepare for the grant, you can use this year's preliminary allocation as you begin your budgets and ensure you have your advisory committee minutes from. July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025. If you will be leaving your district and know who the new contact will be or the interim contact, please be sure to include their information in the grant as well. Check our CTE and Perkins Page for the most recent updates.

Lockwood BPA Students visit KGHL Radio

This is Lockwood High School’s first year to have a Business Professionals of America (BPA) student organization.  In one of their first projects, those BPA students who are in the Photo and Video II class are showcasing their talents in Photography and Video Design, by creating and printing a Lockwood School Calendar that will include specific events and happenings in the 2025-26 school year.

Five Lockwood BPA Members visited the KGHL Studios on April 22nd to promote the Lockwood Calendar project, which they plan to offer for sale by mid-May. (Shown Left to Right)  Taylor Brown-KGHL Radio, Manny Lopez, Michelle Tade-Lockwood Business Teacher, Karley Kamp, Mallory Martin, Dakota Takes Enemy, Cayli Arne

The new Lockwood BPA has had a busy first year:

• Competing in the State Leadership Conference March 9-11
• Promoting a “Reality Fair” hosted by Valley Federal Credit Union for Lockwood Business Students in December
• Raising $1,500 in Concessions work
• Hosting a booth at the LHS Community Carnival with a raffle for a Breville Express coffee machine
• Supporting Special Olympics with service and funding

KGHL Radio is proud to support these future Business Professionals!

SkillsUSA Students Win Medals at 2025 State Workforce Development Event

[April, Great Falls] Career and technical education students from across Montana brought home medals from the 2025 SkillsUSA State Leadership & Skills Conference.

The 2025 state championships were held in Great Falls, MT April 3-6, 2025. The annual Montana SkillsUSA conference was a showcase of career and technical education (CTE) students in our state where 367 outstanding students competed in 56 different trade, technical and leadership events.

During the state SkillsUSA competition, the CTE students worked against the clock and each other, proving their expertise in occupations such as welding, computer-aided drafting, diesel service, firefighting and culinary arts.

All contests are run by SkillsUSA Montana with the help of technical chairs from industry, trade associations and labor organizations, testing competencies set by industry.

In addition, leadership contestants demonstrated their skills, which included extemporaneous speaking, pin design and conducting meetings using parliamentary procedure. Top student winners received gold, silver and bronze medallions. Many also received prizes such as tools of their trade and over $750,000 in scholarships to further their careers and education. The annual championships event is for middle school, high school and college-level students who are members of SkillsUSA.

SkillsUSA Montana has a statewide membership of 555 students, representing 35 chapters representing 33 counties. Members have consistently demonstrated their expertise and professionalism while participating throughout the year in a variety of leadership and competitive conferences.

SkillsUSA empowers its members to become world-class workers, leaders and responsible citizens. SkillsUSA improves the quality of the nation’s future skilled workforce through the development of SkillsUSA Framework skills that include personal, workplace and technical skills grounded in academics. Our vision is to produce the most highly skilled workforce in the world, providing every member the opportunity for career success.

State first-place (gold medal) winners are eligible to compete at the national SkillsUSA Championships, which will be held in Atlanta in June.  56 Contests and 226 high school, middle school and college students at the 2025 state conference had outstanding accomplishments walking away with at least gold, silver and bronze medals.

Other notable achievements this year included: Advisor of the year:

• College: Jack Bieger- MSU Northern
• High School: Roger Merritt- Sidney High school

Honorary Retiring teacher award:

• Tim Love- Augusta Public School

Career Essentials Certificate:

• Kyle Kinsey- Butte High School

Retiring 2024-2025 State Officers:

• Kelly McCloskey- Butte
• Tanner Shavers- Darby
• Caleb Lakko- Plains
• Kyle Kinsey- Butte

Incoming 2025-2026 State Officers:

• Lochli Kinyon- Great Falls
• Cameron Seals- Flathead
• Virgil Tholt- Winnett
• Ireland Corbin- Plains
• Tanner Shavers- Darby
• Jackson Bennett- Darby

For more information about this year’s events and the winners, contact:

Roberta Tilleman, State Director

statedirector@skillsusamontana.org

About SkillsUSA

SkillsUSA is America’s proud champion of the skilled trades. It’s a student-led partnership of education and industry that’s building the skilled workforce our nation depends on with graduates who are career ready, day one. Representing over 420,000 career and technical education students and teachers, SkillsUSA chapters thrive in middle schools, high schools and college/postsecondary institutions nationwide.

SkillsUSA’s mission empowers students to become skilled professionals, career-ready leaders and responsible community members. That mission is accomplished through the SkillsUSA Framework of Personal Skills, Workplace Skills and Technical Skills Grounded in Academics, which is integrated into classroom curriculum.

Through Framework instruction, students develop the character-shaping leadership skills — teamwork, communication, professionalism and more — that successful careers and lives demand. At the same time, students hone their high-level technical skills against current industry standards in more than 130 skilled trade areas, from 3-D Animation to Welding. The result? Focused, confident and highly skilled graduates who are ready to work, ready to lead and ready to make a difference in our schools, workplaces and communities. A vital solution to the skills gap, where more in-demand skilled trades positions are available than qualified professionals to fill them, SkillsUSA has served over 14 million difference-making members since 1965. For more, visit www.skillsusa.org.

Final Expenditure Report

FER FY25 Perkins Final Expenditure Report – Creation and Submission  How to Create FER: Guideline Document Link

MONTANA BPA EXCELS AT NATIONAL BUSINESS PROFESSIONALS OF AMERICA CONFERENCE 2025 IN ORLANDO

Business Professionals of America (BPA) chapters were among the 6,825 attendees representing nearly 800 school chapters who attended the 2025 BPA National Leadership Conference in Orlando, FL on May 7-11, 2025.

Alexis Wichman of Moore High School was honored as the National Student of the Year.   Julien Alviar, Hellgate High School was the recipient of the BPA Executive Council Scholarship. Brenda Menahan, Colstrip, was elected to the National BPA Board of Trustees and Montana BPA’s State Director, Lisa Parker, was elected as the Board of Trustees Chair for 2025-2026.

Quality Chapter Distinction for 2024-25 (32) was awarded to the following schools: Anaconda High School, Billings Senior High School, Broadview School ML, Broadview Schools, C.M. Russell High School. Capital High School, Colstrip High School, Conrad High School, Ennis High School, Fergus High School, Flathead High School, Garfield County District High School, Glacier High School, Helena High School, Hellgate High School, Hobson School, Lima High School, Montana State University – Billings, Plentywood High School, Plevna High School, Plevna Middle School, Powder River County, Scobey High School, Seeley-Swan High School, Shelby High School, Shepherd High School, Shields Valley High School,

Julien Alviar and Mattea Gannon; Hobson School: Jeremiah Swanson; Lavina Public School: Emily Mihet: Lima High School: Kiersten Bernard; Melstone High School: James Bergin, Avery Eike, Jade Larue, Trey Meredith, Yazmine Smith; Saco High School: Jessa Erickson; Sentinel: Evelyn Johnson and Alyssa Stephens, Shields Valley HS: Caroline Elder, Asha Jerke, Zoey Watson and Amanda Willis ; Simms High School:  Izabel Leach; St. Regis HS:  Mae Grosenbaugh and Shelby Simkins; Stanford High School:  Royce Holzer,  McKenzi Milburn,  Lyla Mitchell,  Eliza Tureck; Superior High School Chapter: Lane DiGiando;

The 2025-2026 State Officers all Alyssa Stephens, Domonic Calderon, Lily Bingaman, Shoei Davis, Kolbi Ross and Elijah Barnett all attended the Leadership Launch Training.  Montana Advisors were also recognized for their “Years of Service” as a BPA Advisors.  Five years: Michael Cooper, Superior and Colby Minert, Opheim.

10 years:  Brian Frank, Roberts, Jordan Hasquet, Skyview and Monica Tomayer, Conrad. 15 years:   Jeannette Barreto, Billings Senior; Brenda Menahan, Colstrip and Mona Sunchild, Rocky Boy.  20 years: Scott Anderson, Baker. 

Montana BPA members were also afforded the opportunity to complete national certifications during the conference.  Certiport Certifications offered 50 test opportunities. and while Precision Exams offered 195 test national certifications from Certiport. Students and advisors completed the National BPA Student Certification and Local Advisor Certification during the academic year as well,  results will be released soon. 

• Peyton Njos, Red Lodge High School, Graphic Design Promotion
• Payne Brower, Columbus, Administrative Support Concepts - Open
• Iyla Edwards, Ennis High School, Promotional Photography
• Lauren Karpstein, Broadview High School, Health Insurance & Medical Billing
• Abby Wheeler, Superior High School, Advanced Word Processing
• Tanner Allen/Daniel Johns/Austin Mauws, Hobson Middle School, Esports Team - ML
• August Crouch, Washington Middle School, Missoula, Digital Citizenship
• Beckett Gannon, Washington Middle School, Missoula, Business Fundamentals Concepts - Open (ML)

7^th Place:

• Jodi Gibson, Garfield County District High School, Advanced Interview Skills
• Ryan Fuller, Capital High School, Mobile Applications
• Quinn Naemitz/Felicia Li, Plevna Middle School, Video Production Team,
• Ben Reichner/Oliver Rosenberg/Bennett Johnson/Trygve Gislason, Flathead High School, ESports
• Ava Grove, Hobson Middle School, Prepared Speech
• August Crouch, Washington Middle School Missoula, Promotional Photography
• Raye Johnson/Oaklynn Lopez/Pyper Sanofsky, Hobson Middle School, ESports
• Jace Beatty/Berkley Kutil, Washington Middle School Missoula, Digital Game Design Team (ML)
• Ethan Crawford, MSUB, Managerial Accounting.

8^th Place:

• Luke Stevenson, CMRussell High School, Entrepreneurship and Small Business (ESB) certification
• Colton Baum, Skyview High School, Basic Office Systems & Procedures
• Payne Brower, Columbus, SQL Database Fundamentals (S) - IT Specialist Databases
• Ryan Fuller, Capital High School, Server Administration Using Microsoft (S)
• Mckenzy Heppner, Capital High School, Health Research Presentation
• Calder Sudbury, Washington Middle School Missoula, Cybersecurity / Digital Forensics – ML

9^th Place:

• Bella Dehm/Kendall Genson,  Seeley-Swan High School, Virtual Branding Team
• Estevan Rubio, Westby School, Entrepreneurship Exploration
• Cassidy Parks/Avenlea Hammer, Washington Middle School Missoula, Website Design Team
• Karst Rose, Plevna Middle School, Business Math Concepts
• August Crouch, Washington Middle School Missoula, Computer Literacy Concepts
• Harper Grosenbaugh, St. Regis Middle School, Graphic Design Promotion
• Lowen Sudbury, Washington Middle School, Promotional Photography
• Ethan Crawford, MSUB, Payroll Accounting

10^th Place:

• Lowen Sudbury, Washington Middle School, Human Resources Exploration
• Domonic Calderon/Hank Luepke, Columbus High School, Network Design Team
• Oliver Hartle, Flathead High School, Computer Modeling
• Taylor Smallwood, MSUB, College Accounting
• Tyre Phillips, MSUB, Prepared Speech.

11^th Place

• Asher Barnes/Davis Bodnar/Murray Lane/Hyun Joon Na, Hellgate High School, Financial Analyst Team
• Johanna DeMars, Winifred High School, Extemporaneous Speech
• Anna Lende, Park High School, Economic Research Individual

12^th Place

• Isabelle Anderson/Coramay Theige/Owen Theige/Evan Anderson, Bainville, Administrative Support Team
• Will Oley, Red Lodge High School, Digital Media Production
• Christian McGuire, Broadview Schools, Health Research Presentation
• Zachary Baldwin/Danielle Rhodes, Hellgate High School, Small Business Management Team
• Rachel Comer, Fergus High School, Interview Skills
• Cole Harris, Skyview, Entrepreneurship and Small Business (ESB) certification
• Avery Eike, Melstone High School, Advanced Office Systems & Procedures
• Gavrilo Majstorovic, Lambert High School, Fundamentals of Web Design (S) - IT Specialist HTML and CSS
• Ryan Heng, Hellgate High School, Personal Financial Management
• Michaela Hockhalter, Broadview Schools, Promotional Photography ML
• Beckett Gannon. Washington Middle School Missoula, Computer Literacy Concepts
• Taylor Smallwood, MSUB, Business Law & Ethics

The 2026 National Leadership Conference will be held in Nashville Tennessee on May 7-11.  Celebrating the 60th anniversary the theme will be Amplify Your Impact!

Montana DECA Shines at 2025 International Career Development Conference in Orlando

A total of 229 Montana DECA members qualified to attend ICDC after excelling at their state-level competitions. Students competed in a wide range of events, including Marketing, Finance, Hospitality, Business Management, Entrepreneurship, and Personal Financial Literacy.

Several Montana students received top honors, earning international finalist recognition and performance awards. In total, 74 Montana DECA members earned the prestigious DECA Award of Excellence for their performance in case-study and business plan events.

Among the top achievers, Kayla Lobb and Rhea Lowe of Gallatin High School placed in the Top 10 internationally in the Marketing Management Team Decision Making event. 

Lenamarie Ellis, also from Gallatin High School, earned a  Top 10 international finish in the Integrated Marketing Campaign – Service event—an outstanding accomplishment at one of the world’s most competitive student business conferences. 

Beyond the competitions, attendees participated in leadership academies, workshops, and networking sessions designed to connect students with business professionals and college representatives—experiences that continue to prepare Montana students for success in future academic and career pursuits.

A highlight of the week included the national recognition of Montana DECA State Director John Stiles, who received DECA Inc.’s Outstanding Service Award—one of the organization’s highest honors. Presented annually at ICDC, the award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership, dedication, and impact in advancing DECA’s mission of preparing emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. 

“We are incredibly proud of our Montana DECA members and their exceptional performance at ICDC,” said John Stiles. “Their success on the international level speaks volumes about their dedication, professionalism, and the strength of business and career/technical education in Montana.”

About DECA 

DECA is a career and technical student organization with over 290,000 members in all 50 U.S. states and several international chapters. DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. Through competitive events, leadership development, and career-focused programming, DECA supports students as they grow into the next generation of business professionals. 

New Updated Framework for Career Clusters

Selected as one of eight states to participate in the Early Adopter Cohort OPI will be working with OCHE and other partners to review our Career Clusters and Montana Career Pathways. Click the image to find out more.

The Montana Affiliate of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (MAFCS)

The Montana Affiliate of the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (MAFCS) partners with the Montana Beef Council to provide $100 mini-grants to Family and Consumer Sciences educators to promote beef education in food and nutrition lessons and labs. 

To date, MAFCS has been awarded two Beef Council grants to provide the $100 to approximately 90 FCS classrooms over the last two years.  Beef projects have ranged from taste testing higher cuts of beef, beef comparisons using different cooking methods, processing a side of beef to learn beef cut location, and more with FCS teachers stating how thankful they were for the mini grant as they could not afford to purchase beef very often with their limited budgets.

Shannon Miller, Centerville FCS teacher and FCCLA Adviser was one of those teachers who received a 2024-25 Beef mini grant.  With her beef funds, she created a “Montana Beef Challenge” within her classes. She reports the following:

“Our Montana Beef Challenge was a success with four classes participating. The classes were randomly assigned a meal and then were able to pick which recipe they were going to complete. The breakfast menu consisted of Biscuits & Beef Gravy; the lunch menu included Lean Meatball Subs (with homemade sub rolls),

Cheeseburger Dip, and the dinner menu was Wrangler’s Beef Chili. Outside of the challenge the Nutrition and Wellness class also cooked up a family recipe of Beef Enchiladas.

The students enjoyed the consumption of the finished product the most and were not as enthusiastic about the cleanup. The teachers and staff who were judges were impressed with the outcomes of all dishes and decided that the appetizer should be added to all future teacher training events as it was a favorite.”

Carl Perkins FY 2025 Cash Request

There are many school districts who have not successfully submitted a cash request for this year’s Perkins Grant.  The grant requires that there are at minimum quarterly cash requests submitted for reimbursement, to show that this money is being spent as budgeted.

If your districts receive less than $5,000 and we understand that this is often difficult to accomplish. However, the district does need to submit at least one cash request, prior to June 10, in order to have a Final Expenditure Report generated in the system. 

By missing these deadlines, the district will be marked as a higher risk, and could be subject to additional requirements.

CTE School District Assignments

The CTE Specialists have been assigned regionally to schools. The regions are Eastern, Northcentral, Northwest, Southcentral, and Southwest. These assignments will be used to review the 2025- 2026 Perkins Grant application and any remaining 2024-2025 amendments.

Along with our partners at the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education, we will plan regional meetings to prepare for the FY 27 Comprehensive Local Needs Assessment for the 2026-2027 Perkins Grant cycle.

The tentative dates and locations are:

• Eastern Region- Glendive, MT September 9, 2025
• Northcentral Region- Great Falls, MT September 10, 2025
• Northwest Region- Pablo, MT September 15, 2025
• Southwest Region- Butte, MT September 18, 2025
• Southcentral Region- Billings, MT September 22, 2025

We will provide more information as dates, locations, and start times are secured.

If you have any questions or need assistance, our team of specialists is available to support you. Map Key can be found here.

Montana CTE Guidance Documents

Below you can find information related to CTE Funding, Montana Career Pathways, Carl Perkins Grant and Data, State CTE Data, Work Based Learning and related topics. If you would like all of this information in one document you can reference that here.

The information is also split into three different resources for more specific guidance. The linked documents are broken into three different categories; CTE Funding Guidance, CTE Montana Career Pathways, Montana Work Based Learning.

2024-2025 Montana Career Pathways

Montana Career Pathways were completed in the late fall this year and are now posted on our CTE page. Please review your pathways and you can find the current year documents here as well as previous year in this Google folder.

May- June- July Important Dates

• May 25- Deadline to submit FY 25 Perkins Cash Request for June 10 payment
• June 8- 12, Montana Association of Agricultural Educators Summer Update-
  Kalispell, MT
• June 10- Deadline to submit FY 25 Perkins Cash Request for June 25 payment
• June 11- WBLC Educator Peer Learning Group
• June 16-18, Montana Industrial Technology Education Association Summer
  Update- Bozeman, MT
• June 16-19, OPI Summer Update- Bozeman, MT
• June 16-18, Montana Family and Consumer Sciences Institute- Bozeman, MT
• June 19-20, Baking Science Immersion- East Helena, MT
• June 19- Juneteenth Federal Holiday

For questions, please contact:

OPI CTE Unit General Questions

Shannon Boswell, Career Technical and Adult Education Director

Eric Tilleman, Agriculture Education Specialist

Jamie Corley, Health Sciences Education Specialist 

Kaitlin Trutzel, Industrial Technology Education Specialist 

Ethan Igo, Business Education Specialist 

Gayla Randel, Family & Consumer Sciences Education Specialist

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.