"Dr. Ross Greene was so powerful in his morning keynote that I changed my day to attend his two breakout sessions. His strategies spoke to me for not only my students in special education, but for our school as a whole. I was so impacted that I have already told my building principal about him and his ideas and told her she needs to try to get him in to speak at our school."
"I really enjoyed the break out sessions! Including the OPI led ones and partnering between teachers and parents."
"The presentations gave me ideas I can take directly into my life skills classroom, particularly around executive functioning, problem solving, communication, and preparing students for greater independence. The neurodivergent adult perspectives were especially valuable because they helped connect what we teach in school to what students actually experience in everyday life."
"My perspective has changed from reactive to proactive."
"I found the session “Partnering with Families to Build Connections: Aligning Home, School, and Community for Meaningful Relationships” presented by Kari Tarter and Katie Neskey to be very valuable and relevant to my work. I appreciated the emphasis on building strong, meaningful partnerships with families and recognizing families as an essential part of a student’s support team. The presenters provided practical ideas for improving communication and creating stronger connections between home, school, and the community."
"It was absolutely incredible. I feel so fortunate to see Ms. Garcia Winner and Dr. Greene live."
"I really appreciated the sibling perspective session by the Hartranft brothers. For obvious reasons, schools focus on the student with the intense needs and I have never heard of school staff providing resources for siblings of the children they are serving. This is clearly something that should be done and more training needs to be out there."
"I LOVED the breakout presenters. I learned several different strategies that I can take back and discuss with several of my coworkers."
"This conference was somewhat unique in that it both had Dr. Greene/Michelle Garcia Winner, who are so accomplished in their work and models, but then also was inclusive of individuals with neurodiversity with the 2 panels and Ben's Keynote. That combination was quite effective in helping me and I think others to have a more in depth understanding."
"Ross Greene is my GOAT and to just be amongst that level of knowledge was amazing!"
"Being around other people who "get" it. As a parent of an Autistic child and an overworked, burned out educator, I often feel like the two worlds are often at odds with one another when we should all be working together."
"This is my second year attending. The quality of speakers and content is outstanding."
MAEP is offering limited Pyramid PCC Classroom Certification scholarships to selected Montana districts for the 26/27 school year. Scholarships support implementation of the Pyramid Approach to Education through training, consultation, and classroom certification activities. The application window is open, with priority given to districts committed to developing internal capacity across classrooms and staff roles.
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.
