MATR Newsletter – September 14, 2026
The state with the best education wins!

“When you’re dead, you don’t know you’re dead. The pain is felt by others.  The same thing happens when you’re stupid.”

Adroit Employment Systems

• ADROIT Supports Helena’s Largest Job Fair – Jobs Junction to Strengthen Montana’s Local Talent Pipeline – 10/28

  Helena Jobs Junction 2026 will bring employers and candidates of all backgrounds and experience levels together for Helena’s largest job fair on October 28. Employers are invited to showcase their organizations and connect with local talent.

Great Falls Development Alliance

• GFDA Top Ten for 9/13/26

  GFDA continues to move business attraction projects forward across our region by connecting prospects with the local, state, and federal resources that can help make an expansion or relocation successful. We have a robust toolbox of financing, site selection assistance, workforce resources, and other support to help companies evaluate opportunities and invest in the Great Falls region. If you know of a company considering an expansion or new location, connect with us so we can put these resources to work. Reach out to Christian Leinhauser at [email protected] to 1-406-836-0136.

Montana Business

• Bison Numbers Soar Thanks to Wyoming Ranchers and Market Demand

  Wyoming ranchers and entrepreneurs have driven a remarkable bison recovery by combining commercial incentives with conservation. This model shows how market forces can support species revival beyond traditional public efforts.

• Cattle Rancher Finds Heads of Lettuce More Profitable Than Heads of Cattle

  Dwight Koehn transformed his cattle ranch into a thriving hydroponic produce business, now delivering fresh lettuce and herbs across Wyoming and Montana. His innovative approach offers a model for agricultural adaptation in the region.

• Signup for Bitterroot Business Classes & Trainings

  Classes will focus on topics such as business operations, workforce, finances, marketing, technology, and business growth—with opportunities to learn, ask questions, and connect with other local professionals.

• Stimson Secures Permanent Protection for 130,000 Acres of Montana Forest

  Stimson Lumber Company finalized a 20,629-acre easement that ensures sustainable timber production and preserves wildlife habitat. This conservation effort also guarantees public access and supports local economic activity across Lincoln, Mineral, and Sanders counties.

• The productive 8-hour workday is a myth

  The eight-hour work day is a relic of industrialization, when unions campaigned for the 100-hour work week to be reduced to 40 hours. But for knowledge workers, it may be impossible to squeeze creativity and deep thinking out of every minute of those eight hours.

• Helena, Montana’s The BARRISTER Bread and Breakfast : Available for the first time in over 35 years.

  his Victorian estate offers endless possibilities as a magnificent private residence, multi-generational home, distinctive investment property, or turnkey hospitality venture. Apart from the main home, the property includes a charming Carriage House offering additional guest accommodation, rental income, or as or an owner occupied living space.

• An Introduction to Montana’s Two Bear Capital – Video

  Founded by Mike Goguen, Two Bear Capital invests in founders with breakthrough ideas to solve urgent, complex problems by harnessing life sciences and technology. Learn about the venture capital firm’s approach to spurring innovation and building enduring companies.

• Preparing Students for Green Jobs in Northwestern Montana

  We identify opportunities for educational institutions to expand and align coursework and training
  with the needs of the smart manufacturing, clean energy, green building, responsible food systems,
  water resources management, and land and forest management job clusters.

• Community Is More Valuable Than Ever. Most Companies Are Building It the Wrong Way

  People aren’t just buying products anymore. They’re looking for connection, familiarity, and a reason to keep coming back.

Montana Housing

• New Federal Act Boosts Manufactured Housing Affordability Nationwide

  The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act aims to ease barriers and improve financing for manufactured homes. This could reshape housing policy and offer cost-effective solutions, especially for states like Montana facing affordability challenges.

Regional Economic Development

• Bannock County, Idaho Rethinks – May Reverse Solar and Wind Energy Ban This Fall

  The county commission is considering a new ordinance to allow solar, wind, and nuclear development after a 2024 ban. This shift highlights local debates over clean energy, property rights, and economic benefits amid rising energy demand.

• Grand Valley State Unveils $166 Million Tech Hub Amid Controversy

  The Blue Dot Lab project aims to transform tech education and boost regional jobs but faces criticism over cost and transparency. Groundbreaking is planned for fall 2026 despite concerns from faculty and students.

• Montana Career Opportunity – Executive Director – Montana Business Assistance Connection (MBAC)

  A Rare Opportunity to Build What Comes Next MBAC enters this next chapter with a meaningful regional mission, an established lending portfolio, and the ability to strengthen its role as a catalyst for business and economic development across central Montana.

Rural Montana Communities

• Artists Revive A Forest with Eco-Friendly Sculptures in Lincoln, Montana

  Nearly two dozen sculptures made from local materials are reshaping 37 acres of forest in Lincoln. This project blends art with land management, offering new ways to engage visitors and protect the environment.

YOUR MONTANA CAREER

• Montana Career Opportunity – Civil Rights Attorney – Disability Rights Montana

  Most legal jobs operate inside systems. This job transforms systems. Every day, disabled Montanans are neglected and abused by care providers, excluded from schools, unnecessarily institutionalized, denied critical services, denied treatment in correctional facilities, separated from their communities, and shut out of decisions that shape their own lives. Our job is to change that. Sometimes we negotiate. Sometimes we investigate. Sometimes we build coalitions. Sometimes we educate decision makers. Sometimes we use the media. And sometimes we sue.

• What to ask someone instead of “How was your day?”

  What made you laugh today when you least expected it? Easy to answer, but often leads somewhere deeper.

• Meet the LA-area cook who’s gone viral for his Meta AI-filmed cooking videos – What do you do that’s interesting?

  His first video received more than 60 million views

Montana Energy and Transportation

• Why San Francisco’s pedestrian scrambles are spreading

  The unusual design of the pedestrian scramble is a deceptively simple rethinking of the street that makes crossing safer while letting people move with greater freedom.

• Video of First Ride in Tesla Cybercab. Are You Ready For the Future?

  No steering wheel. No pedals. The Tesla Cybercab is a fully autonomous Level 4 self driving car. You are not in control at all, you have zero responsibility for its actions. You can watch movies, play on your phone, work, ANYTHING while it drives. You can even have a few adult beverages then call a Cybercab and it’s perfectly legal. All settings are saved to your Tesla account so when you call the next Cybercab your AC temp, seat settings, Spotify logins, etc are all saved.

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

• University of Montana Office of Research and Creative Scholarship Newsletter

  UM’s research community has faced substantial upheaval and uncertainty over the past few years. Despite this, we continue to meet the challenges and excel. This fiscal year, new grant awards and proposal volume demonstrate the resilience and drive of our faculty, staff, and students.

• California’s Governor Signs Landmark Online Child Safety Bills – Is Your State Next?

  Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that prohibits social media platforms from providing addictive features to users under 16, the first law of its kind in the nation.

• Code Girls United FREE after school program registration is open throughout the state

  Registration is open! Code Girls United is offering free after-school programs for 4th–8th grade girls at locations across Montana. Our Advanced classes in Kalispell, Bozeman, and Billings are invitation-only for 8th–12th graders.

• “Our Youth in the Age of AI”

  What is it like to grow up as an “AI native?” Will the next generation be able to harness artificial intelligence for social good, or will creativity and logic deteriorate?  These are a couple of questions that a Code Girls United panel tackled.

2025 Montana Legislature and Politics

• “my feed, my way” Australia to Fine Social Media Firms Over 100 Million Dollars for not allowing users to opt out of algorithms

  Australia will impose fines exceeding A$100 million on social media companies that ignore new safety laws. The legislation empowers regulators and allows users over 16 to opt out of algorithm-driven content, signaling a major shift in digital regulation. “This is not about giving government control, it is about giving people control,”

• America is losing its war against wildfire

  The problem with putting out all fires, said Dallas, is the same one that troubled him on that drive to California. You’re leaving fuel there that could stoke the next megafire you can’t manage, or even stop. “We keep going back to the same places, and it’s more often that the fires are more severe,” Dallas said.

• National Park Service Faces Major Staff Shakeup and Reorganization

  Twenty retired superintendents warn that recent staff reassignments and structural changes threaten park management and visitor safety. The proposed centralization could reduce local control and impact Montana’s tourism-dependent economy.

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