Montana Education/Business Partnerships

“Farm to College has become standard operating procedure,” says UDS Executive Chef Tom Siegel. “At first, finding new vendors was this big effort. Now we have our inroads laid. We know our vendors. We’ve made the leap; it’s not new anymore. It’s the way we do business.”

Montana State University’s College of Business is seeking local and regional businesses that would be willing to offer MSU management students practical business experience this fall and spring semesters in return for research, issue analysis or operational advice.

Project Vote Smart is located 100 miles south of Missoula on 152 acres along Rock Creek. The former dude ranch was picked in part as a sort of aesthetic payoff for employees and interns, Kimball said.

The donations will allow the College of Technology to award scholarships to qualified students each year for the next five years.

UM-Helena serves as a regional training center for Miller in something of a unique relationship: The company provides its latest machines and equipment free of charge to the college. In exchange, Miller can use the shop and classroom a few times a year to train its dealers across the region on the latest technology. “It’s a win-win situation,” said Jim Lamphiear, Stevensville-based district manager for Miller. “The college gets to use the equipment, and the company gets a long-term benefit because the students get out of here trained on our equipment and ready to go to work with it.”

Dr. Jakki Mohr is looking for companies who would like a student
group to work with them on their high-tech marketing needs.

During the four-month course, students will help manage special consulting projects requested by area businesses.

A 2004 Forrester Research Inc. study found that 57 percent of working-age Americans could benefit from technology to make computers more accessible because they have reduced eyesight, limb discomfort, hearing loss or other impairments.

Hiring a few college interns isn’t enough. The industry needs a collective effort to get more people into the pipeline.

The new program will make people more marketable in the laboratory fields.