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| MATR Newsletter - Tue Jan 12, 2010 |
"When a student drops out of high school, it hurts that individual's opportunity for a bright, successful future and is a loss to society as a whole. Those who drop out of high school are less likely than others to be employed, more likely to receive public assistance and more likely to be incarcerated. The State Strategies to Achieve Graduation for All initiative will help the selected states devise policies to combat the dropout problem." John Thomasian, Director of the National Governor's Association Center 'Graduation Matters Missoula' Campaign Launches Tuesday, Jan. 19 http://matr.net/articl ... .html
It's all about Education. How can we bring everyone in Montana to understand that "The State with the Best Education Wins!" ? " 'Graduation Matters Missoula' Campaign Launches Tuesday, Jan. 19 " http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- "First Lady, Nancy Schweitzer, Encourages Montana Teachers, Volunteers to Register for Free, Online Math & Science Professional Development - A World In Motion®" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- " PPL Montana accepting grant applications for school environmental projects" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- " Teaching Green, Beyond Recycling " http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- "Six States to Develop Policies to Fight High School Dropout, Achieve Graduation for All " http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- "Triangle Communications Offering 25 $2,500 Scholarship Opportunities" http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Destiny University School of Medicine
Missoula Public Schools Excellence
- Blue Cross of Idaho commits $300K for in-state doctor training
Blue Cross of Idaho https://www.bcidaho.com/index.asp is giving the money to help pay for more doctors to do their residencies in Idaho after graduating from medical school.
- "Reflections of a Country Doctor" Longtime Sidney, Montana physician shares his stories in new book
He still made more than 90 percent of his children’s activities because of the small size of Sidney. Ashcraft says that closeness of such towns can result in excellent health care.
Blackfoot Telecommunications Group
- 'Graduation Matters Missoula' Campaign Launches Tuesday, Jan. 19
Missoula County Public Schools has been working with community leaders from a wide variety of local organizations to develop a lasting campaign to encourage students to stay in school through graduation.
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
- Power Down: Energy Usage By Utilities And Their Customers, 01/21, Missoula
Free and open to the public.
PrintingForLess
- Increased Liability for False Patent Marking Puts Manufacturers at Risk
It is increasingly important for manufacturing companies to review their product labeling to ensure that the listed patents cover the product marked, and that the product labeling is revised when patents expire or are held invalid.
TechRanch
- PrintingForLess.com is excited to announce two fresh new products to help you start off 2010 right
Go big and bold with your message
Highway 12 Ventures
- Tech Ranch’s Billings Networking Event For Entrepreneurs, 1/21 Billings
Entrepreneurs, please join us for our after-hours networking series. You will meet TechRanch staff, affiliates and partners. This fun, relaxed event is a great way to meet and mingle with business and community leaders.
City Club Missoula
- The Story Behind The DAZ3D - Gizmoz Merger - Highway 12
Working on this has been incredibly rewarding for me. Expect to see some very exciting products and technologies introduced to an eager market in the first half of this year.
MAPS™ : Media Arts in the Public Schools
- City Club Missoula speakers detail greenhouse gas cap systems
"Energy and climate policy encompasses everything humans do," he said. "Everything we do is related to greenhouse gases. ... It's time for us to be leaders again."
Montana Ambassadors
- MAPS Media Institute to celebrate the life of former student Jake Rowley
On Saturday at Westview (from 4-7 p.m.), Rosten and the MAPS family will celebrate Rowley and inaugurate MAPS’ Jake Rowley Memorial Scholarship.
Montana Community Finance Corporation
- Montana Ambassadors Announce 2009 Award Winners for Outstanding Service - Awards Dinner will be held the evening of February 25th in Great Falls, Montana
Montana Ambassadors Entrepreneur of the Year: The Huls Family has been selected for entrepreneurship and innovative production on the Huls Dairy Farm http://www.hulsdairy.com/ in Corvallis, MT.
- Montana Ambassador Annual Conference - Montana’s Recovering Economy: Where Do We Go From Here?, 2/25-26, Great Falls
This event is open to all interested in the future of Montana. Montana Is On The Move!
Come Home Montana
- Montana Community Finance Corp. and federal stimulus money helps WGM Group move into roomier building
MCFC executive director Linda Kindrick. Kindrick said the deal is one of 11 the corporation has helped close under the act, and First Interstate Bank was its partner in the WGM project. The main objective of the loan program is to create jobs, and she said WGM was a good fit because the firm was looking to buy its own building. “They’re just a great business,” Kindrick said. “They’ve got a wonderful reputation throughout the state. This new building fits with what they’re trying to do with their business.”
Warren Miller Freedom Foundation
- Recording Montana’s Beauty
“I immediately fell in love and had to call it home,”
- Montana Career Opportunity - Account Specialist - Business Marketing Services of Missoula, MT
Business Marketing Services http://www.bizmarketing.com specializes in assisting small companies with improving their brand image and increasing sales.
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
- Warren Miller's World: Try to Keep Your Ski Trips Simple
So many Christmases have been wonderful because so many of you people out there have bought tickets to my films for so many years, enabling us to drive to Montana towing a trailer full of stuff to spend the next four months drawing a lot more cartoons and doing a lot of writing.
Montana Business
- Ranking the Entrepreneurial States: South Dakota Down to DC
The fourteenth annual index examines 36 major government-imposed or government-related costs impacting small businesses and entrepreneurs -- with a heavy emphasis on various tax rates (e.g. personal, corporate, capital gains, property, sales) and regulatory costs.
Montana Economic Development
- NorthWestern Energy wants to talk with Smurfit about possible biomass plant at Frenchtown mill
A biomass plant would burn wood to make electricity using a conventional boiler system. It would be used as a source of primary power for NorthWestern, and would not be suitable as "firming" power for other alternative energy sources like solar and wind.
- Montana's big-sky views become bigger tax burdens
Housing values inflated by celebs make some landowners feel like roadkill.
- Things are looking up in downtown Great Falls, Montana
"I think downtown is in the best shape it's been in a longtime," said Dave Snuggs, co-owner of the Downtown Dog House.
- Economic Developer, Ron Klaphake Launches New Business in Montana - Community Economic Development Services (CEDS)
Community Economic Development Services (CEDS) http://www.cedsmontana.com focuses on helping communities with infrastructure and renewable energy projects. CEDS also assists private companies and non-profit organizations facing growth and survival issues by providing business planning and financial assistance.
- Sustainable Business Council - January Newsletter & Events Calendar
Our members are more than employers and profit-makers; they are neighbors, community builders and the starting point for social innovation, aligning commerce with the common good and bringing transparency, accountability, and a caring human face to the marketplace.
- Over 2 million visited Glacier National Park in 2009
Last year’s increase in park visitors parallels efforts by the state of Montana and local tourism groups to lure geotourists to the state.
Regional Economic Development
- Limited Booth Space Still Available for 2010 Made in Montana Marketplace
“The Made in Montana Marketplace is a prime opportunity for producers of Made in Montana products to gain immediate and widespread exposure to wholesale buyers,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer. “The 2009 Marketplace sold out – exhibitors were on a wait list to get in. The Marketplace is popular because it works.”
- 110-year old Boulder, Montana School for the Deaf and Blind campus could become a full-fledged school for the culinary arts
As envisioned, the project would create an all-inclusive culinary campus. Certificates would range from artisan baking to the cheese and dairy arts.
- Still time to apply for PPL Montana Community Fund grants
Since its start in 2005, the PPL Montana Community Fund has awarded $1 million, providing 160 individual grants to organizations that address issues related to education, the environment and economic development.
- MTA Recommends Changes to Rural Health Care Pilot Program
Yesterday, the Montana Telecommunications Association (MTA) http://www.telecomassn.org filed comments (below) with the Federal Communications Commission recommending changes to the rules implementing the FCC’s Rural Health Care Pilot Program (RHCPP).
- Montana Governor Schweitzer asks Bozeman to rethink stimulus spending
“I would humbly suggest to you n use these dollars for your infrastructure in the way that Congress intended,” Schweitzer said. He suggested the city put the money into its $54 million wastewater treatment plant expansion and use local funds on the tennis courts.
Careers
- Study sees little return on research tax credits
The group said lawmakers should stop allowing companies with gross receipts of more than $20 million annually to get a refund for their research and development tax credits, effectively ending most year-end payouts.
- Governor Proposes Expanded Ties between the University and Govt. Research Laboratory
200 researchers at lab would join university faculty under governor's plan
Funding and Building your Business
- You have your foot in the door. How to keep it there.
What things have you seen good candidates do that cause their applications to go from the “strong interest’’ pile to the circular file?
- A Career Switcher Looks to Build a Better Résumé
Many workers who lost jobs in the hardest-hit sectors of the economy are now looking to change careers. But crafting a résumé that shows the benefits of hiring an industry outsider can be challenging.
Montana Education Excellence
- SEC - A guide to help you understand how to raise capital and comply with the federal securities laws
A guide to help you understand how to raise capital and comply with the federal securities laws
- Educational Opportunities for Businesses
The partners of Mountain West Economic Development http://dobusinessinmontana.com/ are providing great learning opportunities for businesses this month.
- Predictions for 2010: Five Changes in the Way We Work
The recession of 2008/09 was significantly different from previous recessions in two important ways: the use of pay cuts and furloughs to reduce costs.
- A peek inside a venture-capital pitch meeting
Venture capitalists and entrepreneurs have told me there is an art to pitching your idea.
- As more explore business ownership, ask yourself: Do you have what it takes?
The starting point is having a unique winning idea.
- Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh’s Unique Take on Startup Hiring and Culture
What’s more annoying than a 24-year-old who sells his company to Microsoft for $265 million and never has to work another day in his life? Easy. When that same guy sells his next company to Amazon.com for more than $1 billion.
- Arrogance traps for entrepreneurs
How to strike the right balance between confidence and arrogance? Start by avoiding the following classic traps. I wish they were clichés, but sadly they aren't.
- Social science meets computer science at Yahoo
Computer science alone can't answer all the questions of the modern Web business.
- Keep things weird, says Zappos CEO
About five years ago, we formalized the definition of our culture into 10 core values.
- Open-book management turns workers into bosses - Starting Over in Lexington: The Picnic Lesson
“How does this motivate us?”
- Small Talk: Possible dream? Starting a company in a recession
A look at how four new business owners fared last year:
Montana Education/Business Partnerships
- University of Montana seeking $19.75 million in federal earmarks for fiscal year 2011
All of Montana’s colleges and universities are presenting their requests to the Board of Regents this week in Helena. In total, the Montana University System is seeking $71 million in congressional earmarks.
- University salaries on radar: Higher percentage of UM administrators in top tier than at MSU
There are many reasons onlookers are paying greater attention to salaries these days – pay freezes, furloughs and new high-profile hires like football coaches and university presidents.
- University of Montana-Western teams up with Bitterroot college
Students going to the Bitterroot College program seeking a higher education degree or certificate can finally earn that parchment without having to leave the valley - thanks to a satellite program of University of Montana-Western.
- Helena’s PowerSchool grants parents Web access to grades, other student records
“As an educator, to be able to enter grades from home, work, wherever you are at, is wonderful from our end,” he said. “Our jobs sometimes don’t ever seem to end, and if you need to check on a student from home, now that’s suddenly an option.”
- Montana student pushes for blind-friendly Web
Jim Reed’s eyesight is rapidly vanishing, but the 27-year-old graduate student doesn’t plan on letting that keep him from using the Internet to follow news, download music or manage his bank account.
- First Lady, Nancy Schweitzer, Encourages Montana Teachers, Volunteers to Register for Free, Online Math & Science Professional Development - A World In Motion®
“AWIM offers hands-on learning in the classroom to make math and science come to life,” said First Lady Nancy Schweitzer. “I encourage Montana teachers to take advantage of this professional development opportunity to access high-quality curriculum without extra time or travel costs.”
Regional Business
- Triangle Communications Offering 25 $2,500 Scholarship Opportunities
Graduating high school seniors are eligible to apply for this scholarship if they are dependents of subscribers who receive their local landline telephone service from Triangle.
- PPL Montana accepting grant applications for school environmental projects
As part of its annual Project Earth Environmental Education Grants Program, PPL Montana is reaching out to elementary and high schools across the state to help support programs that will inspire students to learn about environmental issues and energy conservation.
- Montana School for Deaf & Blind Gets Fourth Donation from PPL Montana
At a ceremony this afternoon, representatives from PPL presented a $10,000 check to the school, the fourth donation of its kind in the past five years.
University TechTransfer
- Venture Capital Firm, Buerk Dale Victor Renamed Montlake Capital
The new name recognizes the firm's evolution from a local partnership (founded in 1999) to a regional investment team with partners in Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Idaho.
Idaho Business
- Brigham Young University's Entrepreneur Factory
Despite a meager budget for technology research, the Utah university is churning out startups.
North Dakota Business and Economic Development
- 2010 Idaho State of the State address: 'We must live within our means,' Gov. Otter says
The governor outlines his plan to trim school spending, tap reserve funds and steer clear of tax increases.
Oregon Economic Development
- Study finds North Dakota Centers of Excellence had $329 million impact
“Those are the kinds of results we were hoping to achieve and we want to continue to achieve,” Gov. John Hoeven said of the Centers of Excellence program.
Washington State Business
- Economic Development for Central Oregon - January 2010 eCon Update
EDCO welcomes Scott Larson to head Venture Catalyst Program
Education
- Towns rally to revive Main Street program slashed by Gregoire
The importance of preserving healthy downtowns is easy for her to describe: “It’s like the living room to your community.”
Government
- Online instead of on campus
Getting an advanced degree with classes over the Internet can help some balance work, school, and family. For others it is just a better fit.
- Teaching Green, Beyond Recycling
“Green is not just the environment,” Jennifer said. “It’s politics, government, social justice.”
- Special-Ed Funds Redirected - School Districts Shift Millions of Dollars to General Needs After Getting Stimulus Cash - Study: Youth now have more mental health issues
Supporters of special education say special-needs students are being shortchanged. The biggest rub: To shift the funds, schools must show they have met certain criteria, which may include graduation and drop-out rates of special-education students. To allow more districts to qualify, some states are ignoring or lowering the standards.
- States Lower Test Standards for a High School Diploma
“The real pattern in states has been that the standards are lowered so much that the exams end up not benefiting students who pass them while still hurting the students who fail them.”
- Union to propose test scores figure into teacher ratings
Smarick believes Weingarten is offering the idea to blunt criticism in several states, such as Michigan, Florida and Minnesota, that local union leaders are resisting state proposals to, among other things, reform teacher evaluations.
- Best Value Colleges: Can getting a degree be affordable?
Faced with state budget cuts and recession, some colleges and universities are stepping up their financial aid offerings.
- Six States to Develop Policies to Fight High School Dropout, Achieve Graduation for All
"When a student drops out of high school, it hurts that individual's opportunity for a bright, successful future and is a loss to society as a whole," said John Thomasian, director of the NGA Center. "Those who drop out of high school are less likely than others to be employed, more likely to receive public assistance and more likely to be incarcerated. The State Strategies to Achieve Graduation for All initiative will help the selected states devise policies to combat the dropout problem."
Connectivity & Communications
- The Montana Exception - A Democrat cuts spending. Really - Governor Brian Schweitzer
"It doesn't matter what party the legislature is. They want to spend every last dime." Governor Brian Schweitzer
- Montana state lawmakers, business groups reject proposed greenhouse gas limits
"Without its own set of rules, the state might end up having to enforce rules that would be harmful to Montanans and Montana businesses. Going ahead with state rules, as proposed by the Board of Environmental Review, would ensure that regulations on Montanans would be less onerous." Richard Opper, director of the state Department of Environmental Quality
Energy and Climate Change
- Court to FCC: You Don’t Have Power to Enforce Net Neutrality
A federal appeals court gave notice Friday it likely would reject the Federal Communications Commission’s authority to sanction Comcast for throttling peer-to-peer applications.
- Is the Federal Government's Defined Speed for Broadband Too Slow?
Broadband advocates and some vendors consider standards tied to the $7.2 billion for broadband projects in ARRA indicators of what will come from an overall broadband strategy. And some don't like what they see.
- BroadbandMatch -- New Broadband Partnering Tool
“It will help in locating community partners and establishing new relationships that will foster better broadband service in areas of the country that really need it.”
Miscellaneous Ramblings
- The unintended ripples from the biomass subsidy program
In a matter of months, the Biomass Crop Assistance Program -- a small provision tucked into the 2008 farm bill -- has mushroomed into a half-a-billion dollar subsidy that is funneling taxpayer dollars to sawmills and lumber wholesalers, encouraging them to sell their waste to be converted into high-tech biofuels. In doing so, it is shutting off the supply of cheap timber byproducts to the nation's composite wood manufacturers, who make panels for home entertainment centers and kitchen cabinets.
- What Do You Think? Is a Stringent Climate Change Agreement a Pot of Gold?
If one subscribes to precepts of entrepreneurial management, there should be a pot of gold at the end of a climate change agreement rainbow, regardless of how one feels about global warming or its causes.
- California cap-and-trade: A political gamble? - "Household friendly"
It may be no accident that an advisory committee to the California Air Resources Board today recommended that 75% of an expected $20 billion in annual revenue from the state's proposed global warming measures be kicked right back to state residents.
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- The beauty of the six-word memoir.
How short can you tell it? Your life in just six words
Government Technology
- Open Source 3-D Printer Turns Designs Into Objects
Wired.com checks out MakerBot's Cupcake CNC 3-D Printer. Using PLA, ABS, or HDPE plastic, this open source, $950 kit allows the user to fabricate small objects of virtually any shape.
- Blazingly Fast Wireless HD Hits the Mainstream - No more cables!
In addition to eliminating cable clutter, Wireless HD can offer fast data transfers, enabling high-definition audio and video streaming at a rate of more than 10 Gigabits per second.
- Governments stifle hi-tech innovation, says trade group
"When it comes to innovation there's a lot the government can do, and there's a lot they should not do."
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