Youth shooting program asks for school access
Organizers of a local youth shooting program are petitioning the Libby Public School Board for permission to bring unloaded firearms into a school building for practice exercises.
Libby schools edit pandemic plan during regular review
Libby Public School Board members reviewed potential changes to the district’s pandemic guidelines, including an entry on the district’s stance on COVID-19 vaccines, this week.
Parental rights advocates come to Arntzen’s defense
A pair of public school board trustees from Missoula and Kalispell emailed a letter to state Superintendent Elsie Arntzen Tuesday refuting recent criticisms of her leadership of the Office of Public Instruction and praising her “steadfast support” for local school boards, parents and teachers.
Montana school districts hit $1 million cap on tax credits for public school donations in mere minutes.
A program offering a dollar-for-dollar tax credit for donations to Montana public schools reached its $1 million limit within minutes of launching this month, with nine school districts claiming credits on behalf of 23 individual donors.
Great Falls schools go remote due to COVID-19 surge
GREAT FALLS, Mont. (AP) — Great Falls Public Schools is switching to remote learning for a week due to a surge in COVID-19 cases among students and staff, the district said Monday, while the Blackfeet Indian Tribe reinstated its mask mandate in public places and is banning most in-person gatherings due to increased cases on the reservation just east of Glacier National Park.
State superintendent pitches revisions to teacher licensing
On Thursday, the Montana Board of Public Education conducted its first review of state Superintendent Elsie Arntzen’s proposed changes to regulations governing teacher licensing.
State laws aim to regulate ‘troubled teen industry,’ but loopholes remain
Five days after Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed a law meant to provide stronger oversight of the more than 100 residential youth treatment programs operating in the state, a 12-year-old boy arrived at one of them, Provo Canyon School. Before long, he was forced into seclusion, denied communication with his family and given antipsychotic medication without parental permission, according to relatives.
Troy to consider four-day school week
The Troy Public School Board will consider the adoption of a four-day week for the next school year when it meets on Feb. 14.
Dangerous levels of lead found in the water of about half the schools tested in Montana
About half of Montana schools that had tested their water by mid-February under a new state rule had high levels of lead, according to state data. But the full picture isn’t clear because less than half of the state’s school buildings had provided water samples six weeks after the deadline.
What the parental rights movement wants
When Jenn Schneider and her husband, Chris, withdrew their two elementary-age boys from the Billings school system last fall, the decision was heartbreaking.
