EDUCATION

University of Montana officials recently announced they want to put a branch campus of the UM College of Technology in Ravalli County.

Child care has benefits much further reaching than simply the parents of the child. Businesses benefit because parents are more productive when they know their children are cared for and safe. Child care could also be a selling point to attract young, skilled workers to the region. And children also benefit because research shows they perform better in school when they have received quality care during the first six years.

‘‘The findings are sobering, and we take them seriously,’’ said Sharon Robinson, president and CEO of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, which represents 800 schools. She said Levine’s motives are true and his ‘‘tough love’’ findings have credibility.

Gamble told the regents it seems that both he and George Dennison, president of the University of Montana, with which the Butte campus is affiliated, had "not provided effective enough leadership" to solve the problem.

The underlying reason, Gamble said, is "a lack of trust between the campuses."

For teens, saving money may not be as much fun as spending it, but putting dollars aside for their future and learning how to be smart consumers are still important things to do.

The back-to-basics approach is decidedly unglamorous, but it could lead the way to showing what cities can do to improve high-school graduation rates.

The presidents of Montana’s two leading universities and the commissioner of higher education are in line to receive pay raises of more than $40,000 when the Montana Board of Regents meets this week in Butte.

A new website launched by the Montana Guaranteed Student Loan Program (MGSLP), and the nation’s student loan guaranty agencies will provide a wealth of resources to make college and career planning easier.