Health department seeks input by May 17 on 3-year plan to improve child care quality and access

It’s important to find people who make you realize there’s nothing wrong with being who you are.

Come Home Montana

• Montana Career Opportunity – Executive Director – Habitat for Humanity of Missoula

  The Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity of Missoula is the leader of the organization, leveraging the power of relationships and networks across private, public and corporate sectors of Missoula County. Key responsibilities of the Executive Director include Community Impact, Resource Development and Strategic and Organization Management.

• Montana Career Opportunity – Executive Director – Montana Digital Academy

  This position is the chief executive officer of the MTDA, and as such is responsible for all aspects of the Academy including development and management of the budget including submission of biennial requests to the Montana legislature in conjunction with the Office of Public Instruction. The Executive Director will provide overall management and supervision of all MTDA staff (including online classes and EdReady Montana) in the execution and delivery of online courses and programs to students and schools throughout Montana. Location Missoula, MT,

• Enabling citizens to invest in the future of farming

  The new model raises funds from citizen investors to purchase land for agroecological farming

• 14 new Montana nonprofit jobs

  Director of Information Systems Western Montana Mental Health Center – Director of Finance Western Montana Mental Health Center –  Chief Financial Officer Shodair Children’s Hospital –  and many more…..

MEDA -Montana Economic Developers Association

• Health department seeks input by May 17 on 3-year plan to improve child care quality and access

  Montana will receive nearly $32 million in federal funds next year to make child care more accessible for low-income families. How it will use that money — and the similar amount it will receive each year through 2027 — is currently being discussed by state officials.

• Disability Employment Awareness Conference held in Great Falls

  “Studies show that when a company has a more diverse workforce, including hiring people with disabilities, the bottom line and the outcomes are higher than businesses that don’t do that,” Hermanson said.

• D.C. Has an Excellent Model for Strengthening Child Care.

  Supplementing early childhood educators’ wages has gone a long way toward addressing a longtime crisis. Even if the program doesn’t survive the city’s budget process, it should remain an example for local, state and federal efforts.

• Hire a Teenager This Summer and Get a Tax Break

  The tax credit, which pays $1,200 per qualified teenager, could provide a much-needed boost to seasonal businesses, like restaurants, amusement parks, pools, and beach shops, which already depend on high schoolers to beef up their staff each summer, says certified public accountant Miklos Ringbauer.

• You’re invited! From Dioramas to Dinosaurs: The Impacts of Montana Museums and Exploring Paleontological Tourism Listening Sessions – 6/3 and 6/6 – Online

  These sessions aim to introduce you to the projects, meet the research team, and gather your valuable insights. The study is designed with a dual focus

• The Montana STEM Ecosystem – Come Join the Future

  The Montana STEM Ecosystem brings together representatives from education, business, afterschool, government, industry and nonprofits along with other engaged citizens to discuss how Montana can continue to grow a strong STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) learning ecosystem across the state.

• Scaling MT Speaker Series Featuring Phil Venables, VP & CISO of Google Cloud – 5/16 – Bozeman, Kalispell, Billings and Zoom

  This month’s featured speaker is Phil Venables, Chief Information Security Officer of Google Cloud. He is a world-renown cybersecurity expert, who also serves on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, as well as the Information Security and Privacy Advisory Board of NIST. He will be joined by Sherri Davidoff of LMG Security for a conversation bout cyber and security risks.

• Missoulians hurry to get plastic ban on November ballot

  Voters may have an opportunity to choose whether to ban some single-use plastics in the City of Missoula, thanks to a court ruling that overturned a recent state law.

Northwestern Energy

• Northwestern Energy to partner with First Security Bank Missoula to light up the Missoula Children’s Theatre with energy efficient LED lighting.

  NorthWestern Energy will donate $7,500 for the lighting upgrade. LED lights use 50% less energy and last longer than traditional lighting. LED lights can also offer features such as automated color changes.

• New Analysis Platform Shines Light On Utilities’ Solar Energy Future

  Researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, in collaboration with three other national labs, have developed a free online platform to help utilities understand how solar energy projects will affect the operation of their power systems.

The MDT Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program

• GFDA – Upcoming Trainings: Government Contracting Certifications, Business Financials, and more!

  Are you a small or disadvantaged business looking to unlock new opportunities in government contracting? Join Great Falls APEX for an informative session where we will be joined by Small Business Specialists for the Department of Transportation with the Civil Rights Bureau. Learn how to obtain and maintain the DBE (Disadvantaged Business Enterprise for 51% woman or minority owned) and SBE (Small Business Enterprise for 50/50 husband/wife or 100% white male owned) state certifications.

Five Valleys Archery Club

• Montana Bowhunters Association Teen Bowhunter Camp – June 20-23, 2024- McCartney Creek Ranch, Forest Grove Montana

  Teen Bowhunter Camp Vision – To provide an experiential adventure engaging Montana Teens in the outdoors while sharing information and experiences to help them be great stewards for the Sportmen’s community to be successful Bowhunters.

Great Falls Development Alliance

• New 2024 Great Falls Housing Market Demand Assessment

  Bottom line: the data says we need more housing.

Montana’s Tech Hub Effort

• Stem Ecosystems

  Every young person should have access to rich, connected learning opportunities

Montana Business

• Montana factory feeding honeybees across the United States

  Butte-based Global Patties creates pollen supplements for honeybees kept by commercial and hobby beekeepers across the country

• Planet Fitness offers free summer workout pass for teens, high school students

  Here’s what you need to know about the High School Summer Pass program.

• Multiple Major Banks to Close Operations in Parts of Montana

  Not only are Chase and BOA struggling, but Wells Fargo is beginning to pull out of some locations across Montana as well. Missoula lost a Wells Fargo Branch in 2023. A Wells Fargo branch in Helena is slated to close its doors this July.

Senator Jon Tester

• BREAKING:Montana Senator Jon Tester Successfully Pushes Postal Service to Stand Down on Missoula Processing Center Consolidation

  “Montanans sent me to the Senate to defend rural America and make sure our state doesn’t get left behind, and that’s exactly why I told Postmaster DeJoy that plans to move Missoula’s outgoing mail processing out-of-state were a complete nonstarter,” said Tester.

Housing

• French towns take action to reduce percentage of second homes

  A new town is to offer ‘tiny homes’ to rent all year round from just €100 per month. Around 25 other French communes are working on similar projects

Funding and Building your Business

• Air quality in several US states (Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, parts of Wisconsin and Iowa) threatened by growing Canada wildfires: See map

  According to Pastelok, the fires could keep burning until September or October. However, predicting when it will improve is difficult.

Come Home Idaho

• Welcome to the Idaho STEM Ecosystem Community!

  Join the community today and start networking with like-minded individuals, attend unique events and access valuable resources!

21st Century Education Initiative – “You Should Care…”

• Partnerships in Education and Resilience (PEAR)

  Building a future where every student and educator can learn, dream, and thrive.

• City Council hears University of Montana parking plan, and some opposition – There are better alternatives

  Cook also suggested that the university’s plan is a result of the city’s own zoning flaws, which he said push students further away from campus living.

2024 Montana Legislature and Politics

• With the rise of AI, workforce planning is critical. But many governments don’t do it. Is yours?

  That’s a problem when state and local government officials are seeing daily evidence that the nature of their workforce is quickly changing.

Government Technology

• The AI Images That Boost Support for Sustainable Transportation

  AI-generated illustrations of streets with bike lanes, bus lanes and fewer cars have the power to persuade, a new study finds.

• The Era Of Autonomous Vehicles Has Arrived

  Autonomous vehicles are no longer perpetually “five years away.” They are here now. Planners must act now to ensure they don’t degrade city life.

• Whole-of-state program delivers security that’s ‘antivirus on steroids’

  Under the plan, eligible entities, including localities, schools and tribal nations, get CrowdStrike hardware and a three-year subscription for managed detection and response software for free. After that, they pay through a cost-sharing model.

Careers

• Values, Passion, or Purpose — Which Should Guide Your Career?

  Identifying and understanding our values, passion, and purpose takes introspection and self-discovery. It requires us to examine our beliefs and motivations to gain clarity on what truly matters to us. And that’s only the first step.

Energy and Climate Change

• Ancient trees reveal last summer hottest in 2,000 years

  Clues hidden deep in the trunks of ancient trees have revealed that last summer was the northern hemisphere’s hottest in 2,000 years.

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