Grants

MUSEUMS and SCHOOLS GRANT PROGRAM SEEKS APPLICATIONS

Deadline for applications - April 16, 2010

Enhancing Museum Collections with Essential Understandings: A Grant Opportunity for Montana Museums and Schools (a partnership program of the Office of Public Instruction - Indian Education and the Montana Historical Society).

A maximum of ten grant awards of up to $14,000 each will be given to selected museum-school partnerships who meet certain criteria.  Deadline for grant applications is April 16, 2010. Awards will be announced April 26, 2010. All projects must be completed by June 30, 2011.

Each partnership will collaborate on one or more educational products or projects that access museum collections and that incorporate two or more of the seven Essential Understandings regarding Montana Indians.

PLEASE SEE:   http://mhs.mt.gov/education/ConferencesWorkshops.asp

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Richard Sims at rsims@mt.gov or 444-5485

Bill Mercer at bmercer@mt.gov or 444-4753

Kirby Lambert at klambert@mt.gov or 444-4741 

Guidance and Data

Indian Education Fall 2010 Annual Data Collection Summary

Indian Education Fall 2009 Annual Data Collection Summary

Indian Education Fall 2008 Annual Data Collection Summary

Essential Understandings

A Guide for Evaluating Indian Education Services, Products, and Materials

A History & Foundation of American Indian Ed Policy

Letter to Vendors and Resource Providers

Funding Spectrum Guide: Indian Education for All Examples of activities suggested for IEFA funds (not intended as a definitive list). Also, please see Funding Spectrum Guide: Indian Education For All, listed above:

• Indian Education for All guest speakers
  
• Visiting experts from local tribes and tribal colleges
• Peer mentoring or cooperative planning for instruction
• Visits to cultural and historical sites with guidance from tribal experts
• Purchase of books and materials that directly support implementation of IEFA
• Book study groups/ literature circles emphasizing evaluation criteria
• Planning time for development of Indian Education for All implementation
• Planning time for familiarization with resources, including OPI website
• Committee work on Indian Education for All curriculum and professional development
• Registration and travel costs for conferences or stipends for professional development

Assess, Plan and Schedule Professional Development – ASSESS professional development needs using a simple survey. Administrators (e.g. superintendents, principals, curriculum directors, IEFA coaches, teacher leaders) may request this 15 minute survey for a group, district, school building or professional learning community.

Annual Data Collection (ADC) Yearly Summaries

A Process Guide for Realizing Indian Education for All: Lessons Learned from Lewis & Clark Elementary School – This guide presents insights gained from a two-year process of implementing Indian Education for All into an urban elementary school. Topics covered include: Integrating Indian Education as a form of place-based multicultural education, securing school-based commitment and teamwork, partnering with Indian People, intercultural communication – essence of Indian/non-Indian partnerships and supporting teachers to cross over the tipping point.

Professional Development

OPI Indian Education staff provides Indian Education for All professional development for educators, school administrators, school boards and community groups. Trainings are offered both online and onsite at schools, district PIR days, and conferences at no charge.

Take these steps to provide professional development for your group.

• ASSESS professional development needs using a simple survey. Administrators (e.g. superintendents, principals, curriculum directors, IEFA coaches, teacher leaders) may request this 15 minute survey for a group, district, school building or professional learning community. Click here to request the survey. (Jfranke@mt.gov )
• PLAN for professional development by using survey results to select the IEFA professional development module that best meets those needs.
• SCHEDULE a visit from OPI Indian Education Staff, link to an online presentation, or contact Indian Education for other resources..

OPI Renewal Units available. Explore all available professional development options by clicking on the ONLINE and ON SITE buttons.