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| MATR Newsletter - Fri Mar 25, 2011 |
“Nations that take student learning seriously do not leave teacher quality to chance. They ensure that all teachers get access to the knowledge and skills they need to be successful, and they support their improvement throughout their careers.” Linda Darling-Hammond, a Stanford University professor and co-director of SCOPE "What the U.S. can learn about improving teacher effectiveness" http://matr.net/articl ... .html
TicketPrinting.com and TicketRiver.com Announce Two New Montana State University Computer Science Scholarships http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- A good video for your Friday: And you thought your commute was tough... Human Planet http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html --- Guess Which State Has The Slowest Internet Access http://www.matr.net/ar ... .html
Everlog(TM) Systems
Globalization Partners International
- The Today Show - Homes in wild land areas at risk of fire. Yours should be safer.
With one out of three homes near a wild-land area, the insurance industry is trying to help Americans prevent these dangerous disasters.
Montana Department of Commerce
- The wrong marketing picture can be a thousand words lost in translation
As with any international endeavor, the vendors chosen for the image localization, design and production must do it well.
21st Century Education Initiative - "You Should Care..."
- 2011 Made in Montana Marketplace Opens Friday - 3/25
With 99 booths, and hundreds of products, the show is perfectly timed to connect exhibitors showcasing their Montana-made goods with more than 400 wholesale buyers from 65 cities looking to purchase products for their spring and summer seasons.
Arrow Solutions Group
- Beyond Basic Skills - State Strategies to Connect Low-Skilled Students to an Employer-Valued Postsecondary Education
Critical federal programs, such as funding for student aid and job training, can help lower-skilled adults and youth access postsecondary education, but important policy choices that support their success and completion can be made at the state and local levels.
- States Pushing Green Education in the Classroom
Forty-seven states are in the stages of developing "environmental literacy plans," which could help student engagement and achievement.
- Online classes are becoming 'the way that education is done'
"You still have to have a caring, knowledgeable person to guide the students," Nelson said. "If you have a strong teacher who is motivating students ... it doesn't matter whether it's in a classroom or an online chat room."
- The search for a new way to test schoolkids
By all accounts, George Washington Elementary School is the very model of a modern urban public school.
- Superheroes here in Missoula at Missoula County Public Schools
In support of continuous improvement, Missoula County Public Schools launched an all-encompassing 21st Century Initiative that involves educators, students, parents and trustees in the process of reviewing and assessing current educational programs in relation to 21st century standards. Our progress on this initiative has been outstanding thanks to the dedication and perseverance of many individuals.
- Video: Laying off great teachers hurts students
Our poll finds 74 percent of voters would rather have a motivated and effective teacher in the classroom than simply one with experience.
- Google Notebooks changing the way students learn
"It's a game changer all the way around."
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
- Tech Companies Seek Out Entrepreneurial Students
"It really is a battle for the best and brightest," said Mr. Little. "The best students are in such demand that you have to keep looking, looking, looking."
Come Home Montana
- Kasten v. Saint-Gobain: Supreme Court Rules That Oral Employee Complaints Are Afforded FLSA Retaliation Protection
Of particular importance to employers, the holding reaffirms a best practice for employee complaints: Pay attention to all employee complaints, regardless whether they are oral or written.
Developing Tech Jobs in Rural Communities
- Montana - You Should Be Here Building Your Business and Living Your Dream
When customers find our website and call in, they often ask where we’re located. When I say “Montana,” they invariably tell me how lucky I am. With a smile in my voice, I say, “I know—I’m living your dream.” Andrew Field, CEO, http://www.PrintingForLess.com
- Montana Career Opportunities - Programmer - User Interface Designer, GCS Research, Inc.
GCS Research is an internationally-recognized, award winning leader in advanced geospatial technology solutions. We specialize in next generation applications, systems integration, and the convergence of distributed geospatial systems and network architectures. GCS is dedicated to the realization of ubiquitous, on-demand geospatial functions as an array of services.
Montana Ambassadors
- More Businesses Are Outsourcing--to Rural and Small Town U.S.A.
Ruralsourcing means outsourcing jobs--but instead of outsourcing to India or China, the jobs are being outsourced to small and rural communities in the United States.
Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana
- Butte, Montana native, Sean Thompson, helps cultivate business ties in Seattle as Montana Ambassador
"Companies that are in Montana need access to that set of resources," Thompson said. "The Seattle chapter of Montana Ambassadors is showcasing Montana companies to a more sophisticated angel (investor) network than they might get in their town."
Montana Business
- SBA's free e200 Program to mentor, train Montana small businesses
The free seven-month course begins in April in Helena, and includes approximately 40 hours of classroom time per participant and provides the opportunity for small business owners to work with experienced mentors, attend workshops and develop connections with their peers, city leaders and financial communities.
Montana Economic Development
- Montana Tech pumps $73M into state economy
Overall, the entire University of Montana system -- including campuses in Missoula, Dillon, Helena and Butte -- contributed $900 million per year to the state's economy, the study found.
Regional Economic Development
- Economic Success Story: Old Works Golf Course in Anaconda, Montana
Montana's first Jack Nicklaus Signature golf course has proven to be a tourist magnet, attracting out-of-towners to the area who enjoy golfing, skiing, fishing, and hunting.
- Next 10 years look better than last for Eastern Montana
Eissinger said she has also noticed that younger people are coming back, taking any job they can to be able to stay in a community where they want to raise their own children.
- Invest Great Falls event on March 30, focuses on area's expanding businesses
"These events are designed to provide people with a better understanding of how a variety of different businesses view the competitiveness of this trade area," said Brett Doney, president of the GFDA. "The decision criteria are different for every business."
Workforce Development
- Western Governors' Association Annual Meeting June 29 - July 1, 2011 in Coeur d'Alene
We are planning events and discussions on important Western issues where folks can exchange ideas on improving the region we call home.
- Commentary: A health care law for rural America
For too long, rural Americans have been getting the short end of the health-care stick, with limited insurance options, fewer doctors and nurses, and higher out-of-pocket expenses.
Careers
- A "Hybrid Higher Education System" Essential to Increasing National Competitiveness
This brief provides a guide to help public, business, education, and labor leaders work together to invest in workers with an eye toward connecting different programs to serve them and using resources prudently.
Funding and Building your Business
- Self-Employment Training
Early adopters include Florida, Texas, and Ohio state Vocational Rehabilitation agencies. Take a look and please pass along the link!
Incubators and R&D
- Gaming center targets disabled players
Disabled people represent the world's largest minority, with some 650 million individuals around the globe, according to a recent United Nations report. Isn't it time more brands began serving them?
- 13 Tips for Getting Help for Your Startup - It takes the right village
New entrepreneurs often don't know who they need in their village or how to work with them once they figure it out.
- Patent system reforms could squeeze out start-ups
Group says bill favors deep pockets of big firms
- Tesco recruits children for new advisory board
Given that today's school kids are tomorrow's shoppers, forging an early relationship and refining your kid-focused offerings accordingly makes good sense.
Montana Education/Business Partnerships
- $500K grant to link biz incubators
The new network will leverage technology innovation, entrepreneurship and incubation, and create partnerships between universities and businesses, according to a statement of the Economic Development Administration.
- Mayo Clinic sees promise in Harvard students' incubator
Matly sees the program as a way for Mayo Clinic to connect at the ground level with some of the best ideas out there for improving health-care delivery.
University TechTransfer
- Sell through local stores, Stihl president, Fred Whyte, says
Whyte gave five executive-in-residence lectures at the Montana State University Billings College of Business and is visiting seven local retailers, including Billings Hardware and the Ace Hardware stores. The Stihl story was featured in a 2010 book co-authored by Tim Wilkinson, interim dean for the MSU Billings Business College: "The Distribution Trap: Keeping Your Innovations from Becoming Commodities."
- TicketPrinting.com and TicketRiver.com Announce Two New Montana State University Computer Science Scholarships
Building on TicketPrinting.com's and TicketRiver.com's rural technology success, the scholarships are directed at students from rural Montana.
2011 Montana Legislature
- Innovation Council aims to link entrepreneurs, University research
Universities have embraced the role of turning advances into viable commercial opportunities and state policy-makers have been supportive.
- Utah's Great University Technology Commercialization Experiment
Most universities house their technology transfer units inside an administrative division that oversees research functions, such as managing the paperwork around grant funding and providing lab animal care.
Education
- Help Pass House Bill 439 - 2,400 students crammed into building constructed for 700. - Crowded College of Technology awaits word on legislative funding for new building
Gazette opinion: House Bill 439 - Let's create jobs by investing in Montana's future. Your Help is Needed!
Other Economies
- A Nation of Dropouts Shakes Europe. Education long was an afterthought here.
"I don't see how it is going to grow without educating its work force."
Community
- Young Entrepreneurs' Ideas to be Auctioned
Indiana lawmakers recently passed a bill establishing a Young Entrepreneur Program that would allow community leaders to bid for the chance to bring a young entrepreneur's business to their area.
Connectivity & Communications
- FIFTEEN New Grant announcements
- EPA Seeks Applicants for $1.2 Million in Environmental JusticeGrants to Address Local Health and Environmental Issues
Sorry I did not get this out earlier, only a week to apply now, $25,000 (40 grants) or $50,000 (4 grants). Maybe you know of a community who has a problem and a proposal already written for another funding source they could submit for one of the grants.
- Human Planet
And you think your commute to work is tough....
Energy and Climate Change
- Guess Which State Has The Slowest Internet Access
The slowest is Montana, with an average of 2.57Mbps.
Cool Stuff That's Coming
- What Is Your Water Footprint?
Take a water tour with us through your home, yard, diet, and transportation and consumer choices!
- "Tapping Clean Energy Funding For Rural Montana" Workshop, 5/10, Missoula, Montana
Want to learn about how energy efficiency and renewable energy funds can work for you?
- New studies raise doubts about greenness of biomass
Doubts about carbon neutrality could well alter the future of the biomass industry in Washington state and elsewhere. Thanks to its forests, the state is among the nation's largest producers of biomass power, generating enough to meet electricity demands of Tacoma and Spokane.
- Flyback Energy Announces Energy Saving Commercial Lighting Solution
Breakthrough Technology Allows for the Capture and Recovery of Magnetic Energy Losses and Saves Significant Energy Costs
- The World's Water-Smart Cities
The world's increasing population and development of agricultural land are putting pressure on the Earth's limited freshwater supplies. Find out what's at stake and how you can help.
Non-Profit News
- App facilitates communication for users unable to speak
Verbally, the first project by US-based Intuary http://verballyapp.com/ , is described as an "Augmentative and Alternative Communication" app, and is available free of charge from the App Store.
Transportation
- Craigslist founder, Craig Newmark, launches venture to connect nonprofits - Craigconnects
"I've decided to get much louder about good stuff that I know about," Newmark says, "because there are a lot of good, small nonprofits that need help in specific areas."
- Helena, Montana nonprofit keeping tabs for citizens - The National Institute for Money in State Politics
The group's goal isn't to draw conclusions, but rather to provide as much transparency and accountability as possible to the electoral process at the state level.
- Montana Department of Transportation March Newsletter
This is your opportunity to comment on Montana's transportation projects.
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