MATR Newsletter – January 29, 2020
The state with the best education wins!

Come Home Montana

• Montana Career Opportunity – Executive Director – Mission Mountain Enterprises, Inc.

  Mission Mountain Enterprises, Inc. is a private, non-profit corporation in Lake County, Montana, established in 1975 to provide high quality, community based services to individuals with intellectual disabilities.

• Montana Career Opportunity – Director of Development & Communications – Montana Audubon

  The Director of Development & Communications at Montana Audubon is a permanent full-time staff person whose primary responsibility is to coordinate all fund development activities.

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

• Dorsey Webinar – Performance Management: Common Mistakes and Practical Strategies – 3/4

  This seminar will address common mistakes in performance management and provide common-sense, practical guidelines which will help Human Resources, Supervisors and Managers with their personnel management responsibilities.

Montana Office of Tourism and Business Development

• Indian Equity Fund helping small Montana Native-run businesses

  The IEF matches investments made by small Native American run businesses into their own companies.

Montana Governor’s Office of Economic Development

• States Invest in the Outdoor Recreation by Opening Offices Dedicated to the Sector’s Growth

  “Outdoor recreation represents over 5 percent of our economy and $70 billion in annual consumer spending in Montana, and creates more than 71,000 jobs.” Rachel VandeVoort, director of the Montana Office of Outdoor Recreation

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

• State of Bozeman: Mayor talks need for decent wages, more child care options

  Mehl said Bozeman should be a place where people can work, live, play and retire. He said to keep that, people need access to housing, livable wages and services like child care.

• This city has a plan to stop homelessness by the end of the year

  In 2018, the city became the first in the country to reach a goal of “functional zero” for veteran homelessness, meaning that at any given time, while a veteran may become homeless, it’s rare, and they quickly find housing.

• What’s changed in Big Sky country since the inception of Next Frontier Capital? Hint, the availability of venture capital.
  From $7M to $152M, Per Year
• Art and culture playing a bigger role in driving Missoula’s economy

  According to a 2015 study by Arts and Economic Prosperity, Missoula’s nonprofit arts sector represented a $54 million industry, one that provided more than 1,900 jobs and contributed more than $39 million in household earnings.

• Helena mayor Collins highlights progress, priorities in State of the City address

  Collins listed off achievements from each of the city’s departments over the past year. Among those he highlighted were:

• Glacier Country pushes vacation planning as U.S. workers leave time on the table

  Glacier Country Tourism is working to change that American bad habit by participating in a national initiative launched by the U.S. Travel Association to encourage employees to take full advantage of their paid vacation days.

Gov. Steve Bullock

• In Missoula, governor’s council on climate solutions struggles to find middle ground

  Finding ways to combat climate change that most of the state can accept is a daunting task, but it’s one that about two dozen Montanans need to complete before June.

Montana Economic Development

• Finding workers remains a problem for Montana

  45th Economic Outlook Seminar began in Helena

Montana Business

• Women-owned businesses help guide Missoula’s Southgate Mall evolution in shifting retail world

  Whitney Oliver planned to become an archaeologist. But now, like five other women-owned businesses in Southgate Mall, she thrives in retail leadership.

• Arts Missoula eNews

  Arts Missoula is seeking nominations for the 21st Annual Missoula Arts & Culture Awards.

Developing a more Entrepreneurial Montana

• University of Montana Team, Charmed, Accepted Into Techstars Accelerator Program

  Charmed, a Missoula-based startup company assisted by the University of Montana, has been selected for the prestigious Techstars Boulder Accelerator program, which accepts less than 1% of applicants.

Funding and Building your Business

• This Is the Best Interview Question to Ask to Evaluate Someone’s Self-Awareness

  I’ve asked this question in countless job interviews, and discovered that it’s an effective way to evaluate soft skills such as self-awareness, empathy, and honesty.

Idaho News & Events

• SDC Capital Partners Closes Majority Acquisition of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho-based Fatbeam

  Fatbeam is a leading provider of purpose-built fiber infrastructure services to enterprise, education, healthcare, government and carrier customers in the western United States.

Education News

• Nearly 40 Helena teachers take early retirement amid budget woes

  The idea behind this retirement incentive was to increase the rate of natural attrition by having teachers in the upper levels of the pay scale retire and be replaced by novice teachers who would earn less.

Montana Education/Business Partnerships

• Farmers state Bank offers $100,000 in scholarships to Montana graduates

  This year 10 scholarships will be offered.

2020 Montana Politics

• Bozeman instructs employees to relay talks with elected officials

  City of Bozeman employees have been told anytime they talk with elected officials — city, county or state — to let the city manager known that conversation happened.

Transportation

• A New Transportation Vision for Texas Not Focused on Cars?

  Governor Greg Abbott recently described a possible shift in state transportation infrastructure priorities—one that doesn’t involve funding road projects.

• Webinar – American Highways Are Being Removed: What’s Next? – 2/4

  Since 1987, more than 20 urban highway segments have been removed from downtowns, neighborhoods and waterfronts, mostly in North America.

Energy and Climate Change

• Nuclear waste recycled into diamond batteries with ‘near-infinite power’

  Thousands of tonnes of radioactive materials could be used to power everything from pacemakers to spacecraft

• Carbon tax plan proposed by GOP would pay dividends back to public

  Crowding around the ever-growing carbon tax drum circle, major oil companies are rubbing elbows with college students and economists.

Community

• Livingston, Montana spirits high despite not being selected for TV show

  Though Livingston didn’t come out on top, Livingston resident, Kris King, says she has never seen the community so tight knit before.

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