ALEX SAKARIASSEN/Montana Free Press

Montana Free Press
University of Montana program tackles counseling shortage in rural schools throughout the state
As a matter of routine last spring, University of Montana graduate student Erin Dozhier would settle into their home office on the north end of Missoula and prepare for a barrage of questions about houseplants and parrots.
 
Education official announces last-ditch spending strategy for federal COVID-19 funds
The spending strategy, crafted in partnership with the nonprofit crowdsourcing platform DonorsChoose, will let educators apply for up to $500 worth of assistance in purchasing materials for math- and reading-based projects. According to the Office of Public Instruction, applications will be vetted b
 
Montana State University President Waded Cruzado announces retirement
Montana State University President Waded Cruzado announced Monday that the upcoming school year will be her last as the head of the flagship campus in Bozeman.
 
Education leaders in Montana are preparing students for the world of finance
For more than a decade, high school students in the eastern Hi-Line town of Saco have had to immerse themselves in lessons on debt management, budgeting and financial investing on their path to a diploma.
 
Montana education leaders take stock of changes to school quality requirements
One year ago, the Office of Public Instruction debuted a new system and a revised set of regulations designed to ensure that Montana’s more than 800 public schools meet a state-mandated threshold of educational quality.
 
Montana education board discusses trends, concerns in student achievement
The issue of student achievement arose repeatedly during the Montana Board of Public Education’s latest three-day meeting, which often struck a reflective tone as members revisited recent regulatory changes aimed at bolstering K-12 instruction statewide. Many of those changes, such as a new law esta
 
Schools receive third — and potentially final — round of federal funding for homeless students
From the start of the 2023-24 school year to its conclusion, the number of students experiencing homelessness in Kalispell’s public school system jumped from 293 to 365.
 
New initiative tests nonpartisan observation in Missoula primary
ARLEE, Mont. (AP) — More than a dozen trained volunteers fanned out across 19 of Missoula County’s 22 polling stations on June 4, fixing their eyes not on the results of inter-party primary battles but on the election process itself.
 
Experimental student testing model slated for statewide rollout
The Montana Office of Public Instruction is preparing to expand an experimental student testing model to all elementary and middle schools this fall.