Conference Session
Thursday, October 19, 2023
8:00 - 11:30 am
Opening General Session
ALBERTA BAIR THEATRE - 2801 3rd Ave N, Billings
Awards Ceremony
Strategic Legislative Leaders’ Panel – Presenters: Jason Dougal (facilitator), David Bedey, Shannon O’Brien, Llew Jones
Our facilitator, Jason Dougal, president and COO of the National Center on Education and the Economy (NCEE), will set the stage for the panel discussion with an overview and cross reference of these Montana-specific priorities to NCEE’s Blueprint for a High-Performing Education System. Dougal will facilitate a discussion of panelists regarding their reflections on challenges and successes championing these priorities during the 2023 Legislative Session and their thoughts on the next steps in our work together.
Learning about the details of this initiative is perhaps the most important step you can take in the coming year to ensure the future success of your community schools.
1:00 - 1:50 pm
MCS - Underwriter - Unconventional Options to Manage Campus Growth and Expansion with Bonding & Funding Uncertainty – Presenters: Mark Qualman – QuEst Services, Dave Puyear – MCS Director, also Featuring MCS Partners: CD Architectural Services, Lakeshore Equipment, Hillyard
CONFERENCE ROOM 1 - Doubletree
This clinic session will address the ever-growing issue of how to manage the influx of students without overcrowding existing facilities. As we settle into the next chapter of our current economic cycle, Districts need to find unconventional models, means & methods to deal with this issue. Buildings are aging in Montana that house current educational programs as well as school support services. Many of these buildings are reaching way beyond their intended life, and, in some cases, have deteriorated to the point where they are becoming structurally unsound. This situation will require adaptive solutions that not only serve the District's immediate needs but will give them the tools to actually plan longer-term solutions for campus expansion as funding cycles become more favorable. Solutions to this crisis will be discussed in detail in our session.
Platinum Sponsor - McKinstry Inc. - ESSER Funding Sunset, What Now: Cost Saving Measures for Facilities, Construction, and Capital Planning – Presenters: Bob Moore, Senior Account Executive & Halvor Kamrud, Business Development Manager
CONFERENCE ROOM 5 - Doubletree
McKinstry representatives will present Design-Build construction methods, energy cost savings measures, capital improvement planning, and alternative funding opportunities through grants to include the Inflation Reduction Act and the Renewing America's Schools grant.
Teams that Work - Superintendent and District Clerk Collaboration – Presenters: Rita Huck, Business Manager and District Clerk and Mark Wandle, Superintendent from Huntley Project and Mike Waterman, Executive Director Business and Operations and Casey Bertram, Superintendent from Bozeman Schools.
SKYBRIDGE 4 - Doubletree
Teamwork and communication between the Superintendent and District Clerk/Business Manager is vital for efficient operations and budgeting in your District. A cohesive administrative team is the first step in creating clear communication and trust with your educational team and your community. This session will provide tools and tips to ensure your team is working like a well-oiled machine.
Ethical Requirements for School Trustees and Employees – Presenters: MTSBA Legal Staff
PONDEROSA - Doubletree
This session is a “must-attend” for any trustee or school district employee. The MTSBA Legal staff will discuss the ethical requirements under Montana law and how to effectively manage and comply with conflict-of-interest provisions impacting district operations and board decisions.
2:00 - 2:50 pm
MUST - Underwriter - Why is Healthcare so Expensive? – Presenters: Jim Mepham and Fabian Deneault
CONFERENCE ROOM 1
The US healthcare system is highly complex, with separate rules, funding, enrollment dates, and out-of-pocket costs for employer-based insurance, private insurance from Healthcare.gov, Medicaid, and Medicare. We will dive into multiple topics on why the costs continue to increase.
Proficiency-Based Education: Moving from Definitions to Implementation – Presenters: Dr. Tricia Seifert (Dean of the College of Education, Health & Human Development at Montana State University) and Dr. Joshua Meyer (faculty member in the Department of Education at Montana State University)
CONFERENCE ROOM 5
This presentation consists of three parts. First, it reviews changes to Montana law pertaining to infusing proficiency-based education (PBE) into Montana’s educational system emerging from the 68th Legislative Session. Specifically, key definitions articulated in Senate Bill 8 and Chapter 55 Accreditation Rules of Montana will be clarified. Second, it provides an overview of PBE, competency-based education, mastery-based learning, 21st Century Skills, and other similar approaches by interpreting relevant definitional ideas and identifying areas of overlap and discrepancy. Lastly, this presentation reviews ways PBE-related literature recommends administrators and school leaders navigate the challenges associated with implementing PBE in schools and school districts. Participants will learn about the common pitfalls associated with PBE implementation and gain insight into supporting students, parents, and teachers as their school adopts proficiency-based approaches to curricular design and assessment.
New Funding to Address Lead in School's Drinking Water – Presenter: Greg Montgomery, Reducation in School Drinking Water Rule Manager, Montana DEQ
SKYBRIDGE 4 - Doubletree
Lead Reduction in School Drinking Water is an important focus for schools across the state. The costs of continued testing, remediation efforts, and continued filtration all add to our increasing facility expenses. Find out about remaining and new funding opportunities to address some of these costs.
ISBC - Underwriter - Overview of U.S. Federal Policies and How They Have Historically Impacted Indigenous Communities of North America – Presenter: Deserae Kill Eagle
PONDEROSA - Doubletree
Despite governmental assimilative tactics, tribal nations still possess innate protective factors such as cultural resiliency to overcome historical loss symptoms of poverty, violence, discrimination, and oppression. This session will help create a sense of community by viewing the current assets of tribal nations as tools to overcome historical loss and contribute to sustainable solutions for future generations. The historical awareness this session provides will help educators understand the perspective and necessity of IEFA.
3:00 pm – 3:50 pm
Montana's Public Bidding Laws - Tips, Tricks and Things to Remember – Presenters - Rich Batterman – MREA and MCS Chief Legal Counsel, Dave Puyear – MCS Director and MCS Partners: CD Architectural Services, Lakeshore Equipment, Hilyard
CONFERENCE ROOM 1 - Doubletree
This clinic session will feature a comprehensive review of state bidding standards and processes. Details on the flexibility that Montana Law provides for the cooperative bidding process will be included.
Platinum Sponsor - T.E.S.T., Inc. - Three Tough Questions!! – Presenter - Liz Cunningham, Owner T.E.S.T. Inc.
CONFERENCE ROOM 5 - Doubletree
When it comes to security, school districts are faced with three simple but tough questions. What should we do? How do we prioritize? How do we pay for it? Please join us for an overview of a variety of safety and security solutions that we have helped many schools across Montana implement. T.E.S.T. has built a premiere team of diverse employees and partners to serve Montana Schools. Join us as we help provide answers for those three tough questions!
Platinum Sponsor - DA Davidson - Building A Bright Future Through Capital Improvement Projects – Presenters: Dale Olinger, Superintendent, Lolo Elementary, Mike Perry, Superintendent, Arlee Public Schools, Lonnie Morin, Business Manager/District Clerk, Arlee Public Schools, Bridget Ekstrom, Senior Vice President, D.A. Davidson & Co. and Dan Semmens, Partner, Dorsey & Whitney LLP
SKYBRIDGE 4 - Doubletree
Despite challenges presented by COVID in recent years, many Montana School Districts have experienced good luck passing school bonds and completing school building projects. As schools look to a bright future ahead in the implementation of capital improvement plans, this MCEL session will provide an interactive format for attendees to learn from the recent favorable experiences of Lolo Elementary District and Arlee Elementary District. Officials for each District worked tirelessly with their community to pass bond elections for general obligation bonds (as well as impact aid revenue bonds for Arlee). This MCEL session will discuss how Districts successfully (1) developed a capital improvement plan, (2) communicated with the community in passing the bonds, (3) issued bonds with favorable financing terms, and (4) worked through the design and construction process of seeing the projects to fruition.
Effectively Managing District Policies – Presenters: Presenters: MTSBA Legal Staff
PONDEROSA - Doubletree
During this session, we will provide an overview of MTSBA’s new policy platform – Simbli. MTSBA made a significant investment to enhance our policy services when we moved to the Simbli platform with our hosting of 200+ district policy manuals. This platform is user-friendly, allows school leaders to easily navigate and search district policies, and meets ADA accessibility requirements. If you are a member of our policy maintenance program, bring your device and follow along as we navigate through the platform. If your district is not a member of our policy services, join us so you can see the benefits of our policy maintenance program.
4:00 – 4:50 pm
Four Day School Week – Presenters – Luke Kloker – Fairview School Superintendent, Rob Pederson – Plentywood School Superintendent
CONFERENCE ROOM 1 - Doubletree
Fairview School District is starting its 11th year working in the 4 Day School Week, while Plentywood is just beginning its first year in this new system. These two districts will share how they planned, implemented, adjusted (in Fairview’s case), and what they will be looking to do in the future.
Community Building Toolkit – Presenters – Moffie Funk, Jenny Murnane Butcher, Rob Watson
CONFERENCE ROOM 5 - Doubletree
Learn about what you can do to build support in your community for your schools, especially for levy elections. Walk away with tools to resolve conflict in your community and communicate the needs of your school district with the public.
Platinum Sponsor - Renaissance Learning - Effective MTSS Practices – Presenter – Tanna Thwait
SKYBRIDGE 4 - Doubletree
MTSS outcomes are improved when systems use their local context and data to align resources to student and educator needs. This session will provide ideas for evidence-based practices that can be implemented to evaluate Montana MTSS needs, as well as research-based practices that can improve outcomes within an MTSS. Join us to learn more about • Supporting MTSS requirements • Data visualizations and interactive tools that provide insights to accelerate learning • Determining how to answer the question, “Is what we’re doing working?" across all roles, teams, and departments.
Underwriter - MSGIA - Assessing Risks and Planning for Contingencies – A school district’s guide to compliance for recent legislative changes in an ever-growing important aspect of public education: School Safety! – Presenter – MSGIA Staff
PONDEROSA - Doubletree
Join Shawn Bubb, Annette Satterly, and Brenda Koch as they discuss ways to approach, develop, and continually enhance a school district’s annual review of their school emergency plans, threat assessment process, protocols and outcomes. We plan to review sample plans, templates, and key aspects to consider as your district works through the annual process for school district emergency plan reviews and threat assessment protocols. School Safety continues to be front and center for school boards and administrative teams. Let the Insurance Services team at MTSBA assist your district in making this process even better for this coming year.
5:00 pm – 6:00 pm
ISBC Board Meeting
SKYBRIDGE 1
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Joint MREA & MCS Reception – Everyone Welcome
PONDEROSA, 22nd FLOOR