Education
Supreme Court asks counties to respond to group’s request to require 95 mills for education
The Montana Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered all 56 counties in Montana to submit responses during the next month to a request from the Montana Quality Education Coalition that the court require each county to levy the full 95 state education equalization mills as some counties try to levy less from their residents because of […]
Lawyer: ‘School choice commission’ can address legal concerns in bylaws
Earlier this month, a district court judge temporarily stopped part of a “school choice” bill from taking effect, but a Montana Department of Justice lawyer said this week the order also identifies stumbling blocks that can be addressed. The Community Choice School Commission met Monday for the first time to begin work on implementing new […]
Shaken by post-pandemic disruptions, some states take a harder line on school discipline
Parents in Boone County, Kentucky, were outraged this past January when a ninth grader who had been suspended a year earlier for threatening violence against his fellow students returned to class as soon as his punishment time was up. The parents packed a school board meeting, excoriating the county superintendent and other officials for the […]
Top Tennessee lawmakers start push to reject billions of dollars in federal education funds
Tennessee could be on the verge of rejecting nearly $1.9 billion in federal education funding with House and Senate leaders creating a group to study the potential impact. The idea is drawing opposition already, though, from key Democrats, including Sen. Raumesh Akbari of Memphis, who said the money is “essential to ensure educational equity and […]
Montana State sets all-time record, University of Montana sees headcount jumps
Montana’s largest public universities notched records this fall — Montana State University with an all-time enrollment high and University of Montana with the largest jump in headcount since 2009. In the shadow of inflation and other pressures on household budgets, both institutions also are touting gains they are making with students when it comes to […]
University of Montana working on vaccine for fentanyl, heroin overdose
A vaccine to prevent overdosing on fentanyl and one for heroin are in the works at the University of Montana and partner institutions. Human trials are expected to start in early 2024 for both vaccines, according to UM. UM researcher Jay Evans, who leads a campus center working on the vaccines and co-founded university corporate […]
Heart Butte Superintendent placed on administrative leave
HEART BUTTE —Heart Butte School District Superintendent Mike Tatsey was placed on administrative leave as a procedural requirement following a school board vote to conduct a financial audit earlier this week. Board member Edith Horn-Wagner said the board voted unanimously, with the board chairperson absent from the meeting, to conduct a forensic audit of the […]
Montana is struggling to retain new teachers; experts cite waning education graduates
Montana is struggling to keep new teachers in the classroom. More than half of newly licensed teachers in Montana leave the state or the profession within the first three years on the job and 86% of education graduates decide to leave the state or don’t pursue teaching. “That’s a stunning number,” said Sen. Dan Salomon, […]
Judge finds ‘school choice’ act likely unconstitutional, grants partial preliminary injunction
A Lewis and Clark District Court judge partially granted Wednesday a request to stop a “school choice” act that authorized the creation of charter schools separate from the existing public school system until a final decision on the merits. However, Judge Christopher Abbott also said a “school choice commission” that’s working on those charter schools […]
Two GOP candidates, one Dem, running for Superintendent of Public Instruction
Two Republicans and one Democrat so far plan to campaign for Montana’s Superintendent of Public Instruction position in the 2024 election. Republican Superintendent Elsie Arntzen, who is contemplating a run for Congress, will complete her second term as the head of the Office of Public Instruction next year. Montana law prohibits candidates from seeking re-election […]
Millions enrolled in new student loan repayment program
WASHINGTON — More than 4 million federal student loan borrowers are enrolled in the Biden administration’s new repayment program, according to figures released Tuesday by the Department of Education. With the pause of more than three years on federal student loan repayments coming to an end in October, and the Supreme Court’s summer decision to […]
How far will Montana’s push to remove lead from school drinking water go?
Montana’s legislature designated $3.7 million this spring to remove lead from school drinking-water supplies, then the state received $565,000 more on Aug. 1 from the $50 billion federal infrastructure package aiming to improve water systems nationally. But even with these two new pools of money intended to last two years, the state’s schools may struggle […]