Session Description: Being an educator can come with some unique stressors. The effects of stress can lead to negative outcomes for both educators and students. The purpose of this session to provide recommendations to district and school leaders on how the components of the PBIS framework can be used to design a system of support for all staff and students.

Presenter: Susan Barrett, MA, serves as a Director for the Center for Social Behavior Support (CSBS) at Old Dominion University and a Technical Assistance Director with the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). She assists with large-scale implementation of PBIS; partners with researchers to evaluate the impact of PBIS on students, school staff, and school communities. She also co-leads the development of the Interconnected Systems Framework, a mental health and PBIS expansion effort. Susan has been published in the areas of large-scale adoption of PBIS, mental health, cost-benefit analysis, advanced tier system development, and adoption of evidence-based practices in schools. 

“Tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember; involve me and I will understand.” ― Confucius

 Come get involved in math! 

Join me for a session of active and engaging math activities that are relevant to high school learners. This session will cover topics from Algebra, Geometry, and Algebra II with manipulatives, low floor high ceiling, and math discussions. Activities will address the following topics: Algebra - Prime Factorization Algebra/Geometry/ Algebra II - Math Discussions/Homework alternatives Geometry - Introductory shapes and definitions These activities will provide teachers with ideas that will work for whole group as well as small group interaction. 

Session Description: Reading is a dynamic, social, meaning-making experience. However, many students read only at the literal or surface level. As students encounter complex and/or multicultural texts, they may not understand how to read beyond the literal words to discover deeper layers of meaning, Therefore, explicitly teaching students how to make inferences is an essential element of their ability to engage in deep reading comprehension and critical thinking. 

This session will illustrate the factors that affect students’ ability to make inferences, including background knowledge of the topic, prior experiences, cultural/linguistic/socio-economic background, text complexity and genre. 

In this interactive workshop, Dr. Beverly Chin and Stephanie Swigart model a structured reading lesson that guides students from reading at the surface/literal level to reading at a deeper level of comprehension. Scaffolded supports such as “thinking aloud” and using note-taking charts, provide students the differentiated support to demonstrate how proficient readers demystify text and develop creative responses. 

Presenter: Beverly Ann Chin, Ph.D., is professor emerita of English, former director of the English Teaching Program and the Montana Writing Project, past chair of the English Department, and former director of composition at the University of Montana. Dr. Chin served as president of the National Council of Teachers of English, board member of NCTE Middle-Level Section Steering Committee, and executive committee member of the Conference on English Leadership and the Conference on English Education (now English Language Arts Teacher Educators). She was a board member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards and the senior project consultant for the 2011 and 2015 Writing Frameworks of the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Currently, she is vice president of Writing Coaches of Montana, a nonprofit organization of trained community volunteers who mentor students in their writing. Dr. Chin has published many student and teacher programs, including Grammar for Writing (grades 6–12) and Grammar Workshop (grades 3–5) (William H. Sadlier). She served as a senior content advisor/web writer for Annenberg Media’s Teaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Grades and as a literary scholar/teacher expert in The Expanding Canon: Teaching Multicultural Literature in the High School. Dr. Chin has been awarded the NCTE Distinguished Service Award, the Richard W. Halle Award for an Outstanding Middle-Level Educator, and the Rewey Belle Inglis Award for an Outstanding Woman in English Education. She has also received the Distinguished Educator Award from the Montana Association of Teachers of English Language Arts, the Distinguished Alumni Award from Florida State University College of Education, and the University of Montana Distinguished Teaching Award. Most recently Dr. Chin was awarded the 2023 NCTE James R. Squire Award. A passionate advocate for mentoring, lifelong learning, and community building, Beverly regularly presents at state, national, and international conferences. 

Session Description: Restorative Practices are often spoken about but often misunderstood. This session will help to explain, demystify and put into context Restorative Practices in the school settings and use Restorative Practices to complement your existing behavior management plan.

 Topics covered will be Affective Language, Restorative Dialogue, Communication skills and Circles.

Presenter: “Not your typical Administrator” is a label that has been suggested for Matthew.  A Browning High School graduate and member of the Blackfeet Tribe Matthew is the Director of Alternative Education for Browning Public Schools and the Principal of the Buffalo Hide Academy which is an Alternative School on the Blackfeet Reservation.

●      Certified School Counselor for 20 plus years

●      Certified Principal- Instructional Leadership and Director of Alternative Education

●      Worked with Montana Office of Public Instruction to rewrite School Counseling Standards

●      Developed Training models with OPI to implement Comprehensive School Counseling training modules and work a text.

●      Adjunct instructor at Blackfeet Community College for 18 years.

●      Twenty years as a school counselor helps Matthew recognize the importance of balancing academic rigor with social and emotional learning.

●      Matthew also serves as an Associate Judge for the Blackfeet Tribal Court, Chief Grievance officer and part time instructor at Blackfeet Community College which helps him holistically promote Restorative Practices

Session Description:  Collective teacher efficacy has become a mainstream phrase that most educators are familiar with. Its popularity has skyrocketed since John Hattie's (2009; 2023) work placed it at the top of all effect sizes with a value of 1.34. Schools strive to become "collectively efficacious," but how do we go about doing that? Flathead High School is using a framework developed by Bandura (1997) and Donohoo (2018) to systematically assess and differentiate professional development for its teachers. This session will take a deeper discussion on what collective teacher efficacy is than what Hattie presents; information and data will be based on peer-reviewed literature. The second portion of the session will look at Donohoo's (2018) "Enabling Conditions for Collective Teacher Efficacy Scale." FHS has used this scale to assess the conditions that are required for collective efficacy to be promoted and will use it to strategically plan professional development based on groupings of staff (i.e. departments, new teachers, number of years in the building, etc.). 

Presenter: Matt Allison is one of the assistant principals at Flathead High School. He is a 5th year administrator and really enjoys making connections with students and families. Guiding his approach to administration is his passion for a safe and supportive school climate, supporting teachers and staff members, and maintaining a safe school and brings an upbeat, positive attitude to the building. He is currently a doctoral student at MSU and focusing his research on collective teacher efficacy. Matt was previously a high school science teacher who also coached football and baseball for multiple years.

Session Description:  Capital High school has been striving over the years to integrate our longstanding MTSS Pyramid and our schoolwide literacy and instructional framework. The MTSS team, as well as the School Leadership Team has thoughtfully worked together to integrate the CHS instructional framework while incorporating SEL. We are excited to share our growth over the years with our MTSS along with our instructional framework (BRUINS). 

Presenters: 

Kathy Kidder has over 30 years of experience in education spending the last 15 years as an assistant principal at Capital High School. Previous to Capital High School, she taught 2nd grade through 12th grade as well as serving as an elementary principal. She has a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education K-8 and Health, Physical Education and Recreation K-12, as well as Masters in Educational Leadership K-12 from the University of Montana. Kathy has a passion for working with teachers to collaborate on instructional strategies and classroom transitions to capitalize on opportunities for growth. Over her 30+ years in education, she has experienced and worked through many multi-faceted educational changes and there has always been one immeasurable constant in education-the relationships that are built with students, colleagues, and families.  

This will be Hollee Goody's 13th year teaching and coaching at Capital High School and 23nd year for in education. She previously spent ten wonderful years in Fort Benton, MT coaching and teaching. Hollee earned her under-graduate degree from The University of Montana Western in Secondary Education mathematics and history andearned her master’s degree from Concordia University Portland in Education and Curriculum K-14 mathematics in December 2014. She has taught a wide range of classes including, Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, Algebra 2, M105 Contemporary Math, College Algebra M121, Statistics 216 and Title 1 Math. If she could use one word to describe herself it would be PASSIONATE. Hollee loves math and loves her job. She loves helping students learn a life skill… mathematics. In our society, we have people that either love math or hate it. My classroom is a positive environment in which every student will work hard and will succeed. Every day she wakes up honored and excited to teach her students mathematics. She is not a stand-and- deliver type of teacher so her workshops are based on active learning. She is excited to share her passion and tools with the great math educators around the state. 

Session Description: Gifted & Talented? Isn’t that just an elementary thing? Actually, no. Our students don’t stop being gifted when they move on to high school, and Montana law and accreditation standards require that we meet their needs K-12. Attendees will learn what MT law and accreditation standards say about meeting the needs of this population of our students, gain insight on the philosophy behind an imperative for meeting the needs of our most advanced learners, and gather ideas and strategies beyond “just A.P.” for reaching and stretching those who can go faster, farther, sooner. Discussion will also cover characteristics of giftedness, social and emotional needs of the gifted, twice exceptionality (those who are gifted + a disability or other learning difference), myths vs. realities about gifted students, best practices and research-based options, and using MTSS for addressing GT students’ needs. 

Presenter: Tamara Fisher Alley is the K-12 Gifted Education Specialist (teacher and coordinator) for the Polson School District on the Flathead Indian Reservation. She earned her Masters in Gifted Education from the University of Connecticut in 2004 and her Bachelors in Elementary Education from MSU-Bozeman in 1995. She is Co-Director of Edufest, the northwest’s premiere conference on gifted and talented education, as well as a Past President of the Montana Association for Gifted and Talented Education. Fisher Alley’s experiences working with K-12 gifted students appear in Intelligent Life in the Classroom: Smart Kids and Their Teachers, which she co-authored with Karen Isaacson. Fisher Alley’s writing also appeared for six years at Education Week Teacher where she blogged about gifted education in her “Unwrapping the Gifted” blog. “Unwrapping the Gifted” is now re-animated as a column in the National Association for Gifted Children’s Teaching for High Potential magazine. She has presented on gifted-related topics for local, county, tribal, state, regional, national, and international audiences, including teachers, parents, students, administrators, pre-service teachers, school counselors, and the general public. Fisher Alley was 2001 Polson Teacher of the Year, 2013 Montana AGATE Educator of the Year, and Finalist for 2024 Montana Teacher of the Year. 

Session Description: Increasingly, teachers report that students lack motivation and have become apathetic to the learning experience. This dilemma, coupled with the depth and breadth of ELA curriculum, has contributed to a disparaging view of the current state of education. However, by employing active and engaging learning practices, educators can increase students' natural desire to learn and promote overall student achievement in the ELA classroom setting. 

Presenter: Andrea Visocan is currently teaching Secondary ELA and AP Literature and Composition at Belt High School. With degrees from the University of Georgia, Piedmont College, and Liberty University, she has over 21 years of experience in education ranging from elementary to secondary classroom settings. She is passionate about sharing a love of learning and increasing overall student achievement through classroom engagement strategies. 

Session Description: In the spirit of Kaizen, better stress management means happier, more effective educators. Three specific concepts/ keys will be focused on by the semi-distressed free presenter: 

1. The practical definition of stress 

2. Emotions and States - better states mean better student learning 

3. How emotions and states can be influenced by you (both in yourself and in others)

Presenter: Joe Moriarty has worked in the educational arena for the past 40 years. He has been a classroom instructor, coach, building administrator, health and wellness strategist, and life-long learner. For the past 10 years, Joe has worked for the Office of Public Instruction as an MTSS consultant and coach with a special passion for teacher training, student voice, and facilitating student leadership. Additionally, he has worked as an adjunct professor  and field supervisor for MSU, and continues to work in the area of brain-based education, neurological health, and general wellness.

Session Description: The Generative AI revolution is here. With new generative tools like ChatGPT, Google Bard, Microsoft Bing, Canva, and Midjourney now mainstream, we stand at the crest of a fast-moving wave of evolution that will impact every level of education. Join Dr. Jason Neiffer, Executive Director of Montana Digital Academy, for a first-glance look at this coming AI tsunami. Gain insight into these futuristic technologies and learn practical tips on how to get started with your personal exploration of these tools. 

Presenter: Dr. Jason Neiffer is the Executive Director of Montana Digital Academy, Montana’s state virtual school. For the last 27 years, Jason has been on a long quest to find the best ways to leverage technology and good pedagogy together to make learning effective and relevant for learners of all ages. Jason has taught learners ranging from middle school students to graduate students-- in classes ranging from Computer Networking to AP European History to Social Studies Methods-- aimed at the true tech-newbie to the tech-savvy. As a school leader, he focuses his work on making distance and blended learning more relevant to students, an approach that has become increasingly vital in a pandemic-dominated world. His belief that every teacher can be an effective practitioner with technology is at the core of his approach to education, recognizing the importance of human relationships, no matter how we connect. 

Session Description: In this session, we will present on the results of a statewide effort to gather youth input on how schools can support the mental health, wellness, and feelings of safety of students. We will present the top seven strategies schools may consider, derived from the results of youth responses, and provide real-life examples of how the Helena School District has incorporated these and other strategies to support students. Attendees will learn about the perspectives of students on the importance of relationships and supportive school environments and leave with ideas and examples of how schools can take action to incorporate the recommendations from students.   

Presenters: 

Helena Public Schools administrator Lona Carter is leading the district’s effort to collaborate with community mental health providers to develop a sustainable model for K-12 school-based services. Funded through a Montana Foundation Healthcare grant, Ms. Carter is working to create a variety of community partnerships which will eliminate barriers for HSD students and families to have access to high quality mental health services. 

Michele Henson is the School Safety Program Specialist in the Coordinated School Health Unit at the Office of Public Instruction. In her current role, Michele is dedicated to assuring all Montana students feel safe and supported in school. Raised in Corvallis, Montana, Michele graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Community Health from Montana State University and a Master’s in Public Health from the University of Arizona. Michele has worked in the field of health promotion since 2011 and is passionate about supporting local, strength-based solutions to help schools and communities reach their safety and wellness goals. 

Session Description: This session will provide attendees with the best, evidence-based information on how to use data efficiently to make decisions in a secondary MTSS system, and why it is a great option for secondary education.  Attendees will also have the opportunity to work through examples, use their own data if they choose, and leave with resources they can use in their own schools. 

Presenters: 

Amy J. Williamson is the founder of Public Progress, an Iowa education consulting company, and the former Deputy Director of the Iowa Department of Education. As Deputy Director in Iowa, Amy had the opportunity to lead the education community during the COVID-19 pandemic response. She also served as the Department's Bureau Chief for School Improvement for more than eight years. Her first roles at the Department were in special education, a specialty for which Amy remains a relentless champion. 

Jen Adams is a licensed school psychologist and MTSS expert who hails from the state of Iowa. Jen has worked in the Area Education Agency system for Heartland AEA and her hometown of Great Prairie AEA. Most recently she worked as an MTSS Education Program Consultant for the Iowa Department of Education. She resides in Des Moines, Iowa with her son William, and a zoo of animals, including the house rabbit, Jelly Bean. Jen's latest venture, Curious Consulting, is an affiliate of Public Progress, LLC. 

Session Description: Over the past six years, Sleeping Giant Middle School has had some early successes in development of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support for literacy, mathematics, and behavior. Improvements include substantial gains in the percentages of students showing proficiency. However, there are trials and tribulations inherent in shifts in practice and culture. 

Presenter:  Todd Wester grew up in Billings, MT, where he graduated from Billings Senior High School. He earned a B.A. in philosophy from Stanford University, and a B.S. in elementary education and M.Ed. in educational leadership from Montana State University. He was self-employed as an outfitter, author, and wood worker for 20 years and has worked in public education for 20 years, all in Livingston, MT. He is most recently principal at Sleeping Giant Middle School and deputy superintendent at Livingston Public Schools. Among more standard school administration, Mr. Wester has also directed community partnerships, work-based learning, the development of mental health screening, and school-based health initiatives. In his off hours, he enjoys hunting, fishing, playing bluegrass music, and spending time with his three children and two grandchildren. 

Session Description: School-wide PBIS is a multi-tiered framework to make schools more effective places. It establishes a social culture and the behavior supports needed to improve social, emotional, behavioral, and academic outcomes for all students. This session will include strategies to address locally-meaningful and culturally-relevant outcomes, empirically supported practices, systems to support implementation and data to monitor effective decision making. 

To reboot PBIS, the following strategies will be addressed:

1. Universal Expectations

2. Procedures and Routines

3. School-wide Reinforcement System

4. System for Error Correction

5. Building a Strong Team

6. Utilize Classroom Best Practices

7. Data-Based Decision Making

8. Celebrating Climate

9. Utilizing Student Voice

10. Building Relationships

Presenters: 

Keith Hoyer has taught high school students about business for twenty-six years. He has a bachelor’s degree in Business Education from the University of Montana-Western and a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from the University of Montana. Keith is lucky enough to live in Belt with his beautiful wife Heather. He is an MTSS coach/presenter and co-chairs the MTSS program in the Belt School District. He is the high school Yearbook/Media/Youth Leadership/Sophomore class Advisor. As the DECA Advisor, Keith has taken students to the International DECA competition fifteen consecutive years placing several teams in the top 10 in the World and having over 60 teams place in the top 10% of the World. Keith is most proud to successfully start a Youth Leadership group that has prospered at Belt School. Students are given an opportunity to succeed and with a focus on student voice, they have passed a law, started a wellness center and have increased awareness of social issues affecting the school, community and state. Keith is fond of saying “Living the dream” and truly believes it when working with MTSS and students.

Joe Moriarty has worked in the educational arena for the past 40 years. He has been a classroom instructor, coach, building administrator, health and wellness strategist, and life-long learner. For the past 10 years, Joe has worked for the Office of Public Instruction as an MTSS consultant and coach with a special passion for teacher training, student voice, and facilitating student leadership. Additionally, he has worked as an adjunct professor  and field supervisor for MSU, and continues to work in the area of brain-based education, neurological health, and general wellness.

Session Description: Students and teachers can easily be overwhelmed by the education and career planning process.  This session will look at resources that you can utilize in various class settings to help with career planning and transitions.  This session will give an overview of Career Lab resources which includes Career Guides from K-12, hands on activities, information on how to use the updated Montana Career Information System (MCIS 360) and team building activities.  Make Career Development part of a student’s everyday life!!!  

Presenter: Mary Ellen Earnhardt has over 30 years of experience as an educator serving pre-school through college. She has been an educator, coach, counselor, student support employee and worked for the department of OPI directing the 21st Century Community Learning Center Grant. Currently she is the Career Lab Manager for the Department of Labor. The driving force behind her success is her passion for the students, families and communities and the understanding of how career development plays an important part in student development. For her work in Career Development Mary Ellen has been awarded two of the NCDA Global awards "Out Standing Career Practitioner" and the "Ken Hoyt Outstanding Career Educator award”. She was instrumental in bringing the F1 in school's program to Montana which assisted the Harlem students in being the First Native American Team to make it to the World competition and brought the NASA program to Montana sending the Hot Springs High school students to Ireland where they presented their research at the NASA Globe Conference.  

Session Description: This presentation focuses on suicide within our culture with specific attention towards the role of school counselors in assessment and intervention with high-risk students. The training is based on WICHE’s Suicide Prevention Toolkit for Primary Care Providers and the Zero Suicide Initiative. The training covers national and Montana data, demographics of a suicidal person, warning signs, depression screening with the PHQ-9 or PHQ-A (pediatric), anxiety screening with the GAD-7, suicide risk assessment utilizing the Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale or the ASQ (pediatric), safety planning, lethal means counseling, and caring contact. The training also focuses on evidenced-based practices, and resources available.

Learning objectives for this presentation include: 1) Participants will be able to complete a depression screen, 2) Participants will be able to complete a suicide risk assessment, 3) Participants will be able to complete a safety plan, and 4) participants will know the questions to ask concerning lethal means counseling and safe storage of firearms and medications.

Presenter: Karl Rosston is the Suicide Prevention Coordinator for the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services. He provides evidenced-based programs to all Montana secondary schools, implements the State Suicide Prevention Plan, supports the Montana Suicide Prevention Lifeline, implements statewide media campaigns, provides suicide prevention trainings, and coordinates suicide prevention efforts around the state. Karl is a master level trainer in QPR and trains in suicide safe care for patients for many of the state’s universities and health care settings.

Previously, Karl was the Director of Social Services at Shodair Children’s Hospital in Helena. Before returning to Montana, he was on the faculty of the University of Colorado, School of Medicine, and a clinical consultant with the Colorado Division of Youth Corrections.

He is a licensed clinical social worker who maintains a small private practice in Helena. He received his Master’s in Social Work from the University of Denver and his Bachelor’s in Psychology from the University of Montana.

Session Description: An interactive session where you will leave with innovative techniques that you can use in your classroom right away. 

Presenters: 

Aimee Konzen is the Director of School Improvement for the Office of Public Instruction. As the Director of School Improvement, she oversees the development and implementation of statewide policies and initiatives aimed at improving student achievement and closing achievement gaps across Montana’s schools. She leads a team of education professionals to provide technical assistance and support to our schools in Comprehensive status. Her team also provides professional development to local school districts to improve instructional practices, increase student engagement, and promote effective use of data to inform decision-making. Aimee collaborates with stakeholders, including educators, parents, community members, and policymakers. In her free time, Aimee enjoys being in the sunshine, attending music festivals, and spending time with her family. 

Julie Gavin works as a School Improvement Specialist in the Department of Improvement and Engagement with the Montana Office of Public Instruction. Previously, she taught English Language Arts in public high and middle schools and designed children’s enrichment programming and teacher training in several states. Julie is passionate about encouraging people of all ages to uncover their passions and put them into practice within their lives. In her personal life, she enjoys reading, living an active lifestyle, and spending time with her family. She is honored and excited to serve Montana school leaders, staff, and students in her role supporting districts. 

Lindsay Mahoney joined the Department of Improvement and Engagement with the Montana Office of Public Instruction in 2022 as a School Improvement Specialist. Previously, Lindsay worked on the OPI Multi-Tiered Systems of Support team. Over the past 10 years she was an elementary classroom teacher, technology teacher, and elementary counselor. Lindsay has also served in many leadership roles over the years, from MTSS site facilitator to basketball coach. Lindsay has a passion for the Science of Reading, data dives, and technology integration. Lindsay moved to Montana from Ohio to pursue her education at Montana State University 20+ years ago and never looked back. Lindsay loves living in Montana, in her free time you can find her riding horses, eating at the newest restaurant or playing fetch with her two Corgis. 

Sara Tiffany joined the OPI team as a School Improvement Specialist, bringing with her 14 years of teaching experience.  Most recently, Sara taught special education at Townsend Elementary School. Sara also has 10 years of experience teaching Title I Reading in the Brandon Valley School District in South Dakota. Sara grew up in South Dakota, graduating from Augustana University in Sioux Falls with her degree in Elementary Education with endorsements in Kindergarten as well as Middle School Math and Language Arts. She has a passion for phonics instruction and data analysis. Sara is looking forward to working with districts to help provide teachers with the tools they need to improve student learning. She and her family moved to Townsend, MT in November of 2020. In her free time, Sara enjoys being outdoors, watching her daughters play sports, and baking.