Melton and Miller both said anecdotally that the level of turnover indicated in the termination report is higher than anything theyve seen at OPI under previous administrations. Josh grew up in Helena, MT and is a Montana State University alumnus. in 1993. << /Border [0 0 0] /Subtype /Link /A << /URI (http://apps.opi.mt.gov/SchoolDirectory/) /IsMap false /Type /Action /S /URI >> /Type /Annot /Rect [374.76 313.128 395.856 324.288] >> 444-3680 . In response, he added, his association and others have taken it upon themselves to offer expertise and legal advice to local school officials and educators. Sign up for our free daily newsletter to get unbiased, independent Montana news sent directly to you. State of Montana Employee Directory Search Partial name searches are allowed. with a Bachelors of Science in Cell Biology & Neuroscience and shortly after earned Despite being less than one page long, proponents and opponents testified Tuesday that Senate Bill 154 would have a profound impact on the states reproductive rights landscape by explicitly exempting the right to an abortion from the Montana Constitutions clause enshrining the right to privacy. She received her B.A. At the MORH/AHEC, she works as the Program Coordinator k " in Political Science and Communication Studies from Carroll in 2016. Contact your agency IT staff to make changes to the following telephone listings. Anna was raised in Colbert, WA, and came to Helena to attend Carroll College. When theres turnover, institutional knowledge is lost, and with that theres a slowdown in being able to respond, Lacey said. Sign up for our free daily newsletter to get unbiased, independent Montana news sent directly to you. Assistant Director/Behavioral Health Workforce beth.carter@montana.edu(406) 925-1261. Regional Coordinatorgreta.moser@montana.edu406-994-6252Room 307 Culbertson Hall. HELENA - As required by the Biden Administration's U.S. Department of Education (USED), the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) yesterday submitted its State Plan outlining how it will assist Montana schools in distributing and utilizing more than $382 million in COVID-19 relief funding from the American Recuse Plan (ARP) Act. All Department of Administration Department of Corrections Department of Environmental Quality Department of Justice Department of Livestock Former Governors Governor's Office Legislative Branch Montana Board of Crime Control Montana Arts Council Montana Historical Society Montana State Library Office of Public Instruction State Information Technology Services Division Cheryl has many years experience in bookkeeping, and originally started The second highest was in 2018, when 38 employees left the agency 26 of them for personal reasons., Departures of OPI staff have been a source of increasing concern for leaders at several Montana education associations in recent years. About a third of the office is currently working from home, she added. Tara has four amazing children and three beautiful grandchildren. According to Allen's report, 24.49 full-time-equivalent (FTE) positions will be vacant at OPI as of Nov. 21. After obtaining his bachelor's degree in journalism and history, Sakariassen spent nearly 10 years covering environmental issues and state and federal politics for the alternative newsweekly Missoula Independent. And as a result, the kids are going to go without a computer that they might have had available to them, or without a quality teacher that could have otherwise instructed and helped that school district meet the needs of kids.. Jake Kaminetzky grew up in Shoreline, WA and attended Montana State University, graduating Muir left OPI on Sept. 1, 2020, and was one of the six signatories to an October 2020 op-ed criticizing Arntzen and calling for Romanos election. She singled out the vacant special education director position in particular, informing the board that OPI has advertised it three separate times without fielding a single qualified candidate. A Thanksgiving message from the Montana State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Two of those employees cited Arntzens management style as a primary reason for accelerating their retirement plans. P.O. his bachelor of science in cell biology and neuroscience and later graduated with News apps are nice, but how many stories might you be missing? Manager and Data Analyst at New Mexico Donor Services, the organ procurement organization 0. Asked about criticism that her administration had micromanaged or condescended to past employees, Arntzen said her office has always been open and willing to listen and takes feedback, both positive and negative, not personally but under advisement. Her goal, she said, is to make government better and to make serving our schools and our children better. Arntzen did not address the criticism of her tenure directly, but said she knows that employees who have left the agency had education in their heart and I wish them the best.. behavioral health trainings like ASIST, YMHFA, MOAB and more! That makes for a total of 202 positions at OPI. An October 2020 op-ed authored by six former OPI staffers described the situation as an exodus of critical staff.. Contact your agency IT staff to make changes to the following telephone listings. Chris Averill, Communications Director, 406-444-3449, State Information Technology Services Division, http://opi.mt.gov/COVID-19-Information/ESSER. Parman attributed the discrepancy between that number and OPIs staffing report to the fact that a single FTE can represent two part-time positions, and urged OPI to present the total number of vacant positions, rather than vacant FTEs. Families are the foundation of learning as our parents are our first teachers. Executive Assistant/Deputy Communications Director. Public education makes up roughly a third of Montanas state budget, and in response to the COVID-19 pandemic Congress has granted hundreds of millions of relief dollars to Montana schools. with public health practice. OPI State Assessment Director Ashley McGrath also briefed the board Wednesday on the results of statewide standardized testing conducted in K-12 schools this year. working on campus in 2006. Project Coordinatorgracebehrens@montana.edu406-994-6043Room 305 Culbertson Hall. MPEC has done its part, he said, and polling conducted by the organization this year revealed strong support for public education among Montana voters, with more than 50% of respondents saying they trust classroom teachers and local school boards most regarding whats best for students academically. Support news by Montanans for Montanans. Share your form with others Send it via email, link, or fax. contact information for Montana OPI Employees; OFFICE OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION . The same goes for any other spending decisions a school may have to make, he added. Through this large influx of Federal funds, Montana schools have an opportunity to focus on the whole child and maximize instruction, State Superintendent Elsie Arntzen said. But we dont need Washington dictating cumbersome terms of use to Montana schools. I trust our school administrators and teachers to use the money wisely to promote innovation in the classroom and enhance learning opportunities for our students. Our plan allows them to do just that, without sacrificing an ounce of accountability. OPI staff have worked diligently to ensure that the Montana State Plan they compiled recognizes local control, removes obstacles and barriers for schools, and enhances accountability without being overly burdensome. The State Plan template provided by USED was overly top-down and not tailored to the local control needs of Montana schools. What we pay at about $79,000 is somewhere around $40,000 below the market right now.. Parman said its also his understanding that OPIs chief data officer left the position last week and the agencys human resources manager will be leaving in three weeks. Department of Labor Contact information; Walt Sullivan Building 1315 Lockey Avenue Helena, MT 59601: INFORMATION DESK: 444-2840: AUTOMATED LISTINGS: 444-3555 NorthWestern Energy said Monday it will acquire Washington-based utility Avistas ownership stake in the aging Colstrip coal power plant, a move the company said would keep the plant in operation through the end of the decade. Those numbers were consistent [at] about 30 [departures] every year, Arntzen said. Support news by Montanans for Montanans. Sign up for theCapitolizednewsletter and stay up-to-date on the latest legislative developments during the session. In response, the party narrowed the scope of its request and on Aug. 26 hand-delivered a payment of approximately $2,000 to OPI. directory information for just a single county, we strongly recommend going here for the most up-to-date and accurate information. Despite being less than one page long, proponents and opponents testified Tuesday that Senate Bill 154 would have a profound impact on the states reproductive rights landscape by explicitly exempting the right to an abortion from the Montana Constitutions clause enshrining the right to privacy. The report also noted a high vacancy rate at OPI, which it said makes compliance with federal regulations difficult. Jennas work experience includes serving as a Field Representative for U.S. DIRECTORY CONTENTS State Directory Agencies She described the situation as very intrusive and very uncomfortable.. Brian grew up in Butte and Helena and received his B.A. Beth Ann is the Assistant Director of Behavioral Health Programs. Her MBA was completed at Northern Arizona University, where she also completed post-masters work in Educational Leadership. In fact, the board has requested a staffing report from the agency at least once recently, she said, to get an idea of what specific positions at OPI were unstaffed. Rachels role Opponents of her reelection campaign, including Democratic challenger Melissa Romano, claimed that OPI had suffered a staggering loss of veteran employees under Arntzens leadership and that some vacated positions had remained unfilled for months. 2023 Montana's independent nonprofit news source. MISSOULA Montanas Board of Public Education was briefed about staff vacancies and recruitment challenges by Office of Public Instruction Deputy Superintendent Sharyl Allen Thursday. There was disagreement on where . Your membership makes this and all our other local reporting possible. Community Health Support Network, the. 406-444-3083. with Full Honors in Political Science, Economics, and Liberal Studies with Minors After a year in the agencys special education division, she transitioned to a compliance monitor position in the accreditation division, which is tasked with verifying that each of Montanas 826 public schools meets student performance and educator licensing standards. School Staff The Montana Asthma Control Program and the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) designed the Creating Asthma Friendly Schools training for school staff in 2016. Theres a new Congress and new federal education law, she said, referencing the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act, as well as new regulations and flexibilities adopted by the Montana Legislature and the Board of Public Education. Regarding concerns about loss of institutional knowledge, Arntzen said education has changed over the past decade. Telephone: (406) 994-6501 Email: [email protected] Undergraduate Programs. In her free time, Kailyn enjoys spending Oregon State University. She lived in HiSET (Formerly GED)/HiSET Options Program, Educator License Options & Requirements Information, Earn Professional Development Units Online, Educator Licensing & Preparation Task Forces, Acceleration and Evidence-Based Instruction, Montana Alternative Student Testing Pilot Program, School Innovation, Flexibility & Efficiency, IT Resources for Schools - Programs & Grants. So there is definitely interdependence between the two agencies, and I would worry that if OPI wasnt staffed with both the correct number and folks with the correct experience and understanding of educational policy, that the outcomes of the board wouldnt be as good as we need them to be for Montana students.. After the boards meeting on Wednesday, Arntzen told MTFP that OPI has recently filled a vacancy in its director of American Indian student achievement position, and had filled a new American Indian cultural and language immersion specialist position created by the Legislature this year. Upon completing her undergraduate nonprofits, both domestic and international. once; then start all over again. Jan 14, 2022. MSU starting in 1991 in the accounting office of the MSU Bookstore. Please reload the page and try again. The amount of turnover revealed in the report speaks to allegations leveled against Arntzen in advance of the 2020 election. Now more than ever, Montana needs quality local, independent journalism. of projects related to healthcare workforce training in rural and underserved communities Commission, and as a legislative analyst for the New Mexico Senate. Beth Ann currently oversees all of the behavioral health-focused The overarching concern is having a reasonable expectation of getting timely, accurate and helpful technical assistance from the Office of Public Instruction, and this appears to be no longer possible.. Welcome to the State of Montana newsroom, where breaking news in Montana State Government is posted for various state agencies. The Montana Board of Regents this May permanently revoked the states requirement that students submit standardized test scores as part of college admission. Home of the Rams. 02. The cause for the high rate of turnover at OPI remains difficult to establish. OPIs legal division informed MTFP via email that the agency began compiling the termination report data in January 2017, when Arntzen began her first term as head of the agency. Shortly after Arntzen took over the office in 2017, Granberry said, she began to feel relegated to more bureaucratic duties, reviewing and approving various forms and contracts while matters of policy fell to new staff brought on by Arntzen. Muir eventually worked her way up to accreditation program director, overseeing an accreditation staff of two. Josh has previous public The Montana Board of Public Education (BPE) at their Nov. 17 meeting rejected a proposal by the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) to strike student-to-staff ratios for counselors, librarians and . 6 0 obj Granberry started at OPI in September 1989, serving as a division director for more than 20 years before assuming the assistant superintendent of education services post in August 2016. In previous rounds, Montana received more than $41,000,000 (ESSER I) and $170,000,000 (ESSER II). Through the Emergency Assistance to Non-Public Schools (EANS), the state also received nearly $20 million for home and private schools. Two-thirds of the ESSER III funding has already been released to schools; once USED approves the State Plan submitted today, the OPI will be able to release the remaining one-third, or roughly $126 million. [/PDF /Text /ImageB /ImageC /ImageI] the Montana Healthcare Workforce Advisory Committee. Assistant Director of Montana Area Health Education Center & Workforce cindra.stahl@montana.edu (406) 994-6499 Bozeman Health Highland Park 5 Ste 5230 Cindra works extensively on Healthcare Workforce issues, serving as facilitator for the Montana Healthcare Workforce Advisory Committee. The Montana Democratic Party submitted a request for public records related to staff turnover in May and, according to MDP Executive Director Sandi Luckey, was assessed a fee of $10,000. Please enter at least 2 characters for a first name, a last name, or a phone number. Jenna studied Law at Western Michigan University Cooley Law School. Contact Rob, 406-444-4399. Nutrition And Physical Activity Program. level. 4 0 obj Find key state employees in these agency listings by clicking on the agency name that the employee works for. OPI Staff Directory; Response to Intervention (RTI) School Computer Equipment Program; School Laws Order Form; State and National Education Links; Wiki; . 01. MISSOULA Montana's Board of Public Education was briefed about staff vacancies and recruitment challenges by Office of Public Instruction Deputy Superintendent Sharyl Allen Thursday. Natalie, as the Assistant Director of the Montana Office of Rural Health, brings nearly After living in the Bitterroot for 20+ years, Tara moved to Helena for the 2019 Legislative session to work for the Montana State Senate. She is currently working on her Doctorate Natalie earned her Bachelors of Science in Community And Montana School Boards Association Executive Director Lance Melton pointed out that delays in receiving such guidance can have consequential ramifications on districts and, by extension, the students they serve. Prior to that, she served in various roles in Montana public schools including as a teacher, HR director, and superintendent of Great Falls Public Schools. Jenna was born and raised in Montana and received a Bachelor of Science from Liberty University in 2011. SIMILAR ITEMS (based on metadata) . With the change of administration in January 2017, Muir said, she quickly grew to feel that her work was under a microscope, adding that even employee workstations were critiqued by new leadership. The changes to licensure requirements, which include a proposed reduction in the years of experience required for teachers to get licensed in Montana, are now slated to come before the board in January 2022. STATE OF MONTANA DIRECTORY Directory.MT.GOV State Directory Agencies Agencies AGENCY TELEPHONE LISTINGS Find key state employees in these agency listings by clicking on the agency name that the employee works for. She also received an MBA with dual emphases in Healthcare and Public Administration from the University of Mary (ND) in 2022. General Information, P.O. Exif II* ( 1 2 ; i X Montana Office of Rural Health and Area Health Education Center Montana State University P.O. Rural Health Association Rural Health Fellow. Superintendent of Public Instruction Else Arntzen speaks at a parental rights rally at the state Capitol on Friday, Oct. 1, 2021. The agency has received applications for four more vacant positions, candidates are being interviewed for three positions, and three positions are advertised but have yet to generate candidates. HELENA As required by the Biden Administrations U.S. Department of Education (USED), the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) yesterday submitted its State Plan outlining how it will assist Montana schools in distributing and utilizing more than $382 million in COVID-19 relief funding from the American Recuse Plan (ARP) Act. The OPI also released a new Frequently Asked Questions document for schools as they navigate the process of deploying the new funding. News apps are nice, but how many stories might you be missing? Senator Steve Daines, and working on numerous statewide campaigns. ' Adobe Photoshop CC (Macintosh) 2018:04:03 09:09:39 Jupiterimages Getty Images 0221 @ ( H H Adobe_CM Adobe d Melton added that many OPI staffers whose experience he used to rely on have left the agency, but that he has still been able to depend on a few key personnel including Deputy Superintendent Sharyl Allen to answer questions from his organizations members. Others may not be filled due to a routine method of balancing state agency budgets known as vacancy savings. She moved to Bozeman to attend Greg Gianfortes administration effective next week, and that Communications Director Anastasia Burton will depart OPI later this month. In his spare time, Jake enjoys cooking, reading, and jamming out with the A support document for our Montana policymakers and leaders, Happy New Year from Superintendent Arntzen. Previously, Cindra was Hospital Services endstream Parman, who planned to present the same comment to the Legislatures Interim Education Committee Thursday, concluded his statements by recognizing the dedication of remaining OPI employees who have continued to help school officials and educators. Educator Licensure (Certification Program) 444-3150. OPI has an additional 20.5 modified positions that are tied to various grants, as well as 27.5 so-called proprietary positions that work in multiple areas of the agency, such as budget analysts and grant coordinators. Thats what that report shares with me. for the state. The board will likely get its first look at revisions to the standards applied to college prep programs in March 2022. at the office including task force work, health equity training, and the Health Equity She received her B.S. a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from Creighton University. health efforts. Michal Gilpin has been with MT AHEC/ORH since July 2011. Every time we went to have a conversation with that leadership, we had to repeat ourselves, which became very frustrating, Muir said. TTY number is 406-444-1421. Using his decades of industry expertise, he advises Superintendent Arntzen in her capacity as Vice-Chair of the Montana Board of Land Commissioners. Now more than ever, Montana needs quality local, independent journalism. Sara grew up in rural Montana and graduated from Montana State University with a Bachelor Contact the General Information line at 406-444-2511 with any questions. Any issues with staffing levels at OPI could have a direct impact on the boards functions, Lacey added, since the board has only three employees and relies heavily on the regulatory and policy expertise of OPI staff. of Washington. health employees in Montana. You can help. in 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Community Health. both winter and summer outdoor activities. is to manage the numerous grants and contracts that flow through the office and serve Your membership makes this and all our other local reporting possible. and performing various administrative duties. She is also focused on educating, in April 2015. Allen emphasized that OPI has experienced significant challenges in recruiting candidates to certain vacant positions. Unbiased, unflinching journalism is critical to our democracy. Natalee grew up in rural northwestern Montana and graduated from Montana State University of Public Health and Environment. We certainly dont pay our OPI staffers enough. Nearly every member of the board, at one point or another, expressed appreciation for staff who continue to work at the agency. Two former OPI employees interviewed by MTFP cited Superintendent Elsie Arntzens management style as their primary reason for accelerating their retirement plans, describing an atmosphere of intrusive behavior, condescension and lack of understanding of agency operations. and workforce needs related to serving rural populations. NorthWestern Energy said Monday it will acquire Washington-based utility Avistas ownership stake in the aging Colstrip coal power plant, a move the company said would keep the plant in operation through the end of the decade. in Political Science from MSU in 2012. Over the past 10 months, there has been a growing clamor among school leaders and business officials, which today is at a fever pitch. and earned her Bachelor of Science from MSU in Anthropology in 2014. There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Muir began working at OPI in 2012 under then-Superintendent Denise Juneau. Grace graduated from Carroll College with a Bachelors in Public Health and Sociology She said the total number of full-time positions at OPI funded by the state budget is 154. Montana Office of Public Instruction (Montana OPI) phone number is 406-444-2082, located at P.O. Mountain View Elementary ; Phone: (406)446-1804 Fax: (406)446-0115 . Natalie earned her Bachelors of Science in Community NOSORH Emerging Leader Award in 2011. within the state. Theres very few that remain that are sort of the people that Ive relied upon in years past. SUPERINTENDENT'S OFFICE. Sign it in a few clicks Draw your signature, type it, upload its image, or use your mobile device as a signature pad. A bill under consideration by the Montana Legislature aims to ease the burden of rental application fees on apartment-seeking Montanans by specifying that landlords and property management companies must reimburse unsuccessful applicants for any fees not used for specific expenses like credit checks. The Montana Office of Public Instruction is at risk of misspending federal money and misreporting statewide graduation rates because of a lack of internal controls, according to a recent report from the Legislative Audit Division.. Superintendent Elsie Arntzen is proud to serve our Montana families, students, and teachers. Prior to working at MORH/AHEC, It takes good teamwork at OPI to make these processes work in terms of the distribution of money.. We are constantly enriching our leadership at this time because its management and leadership that I believe are part of that recruitment and, more importantly, that retention, Arntzen said. Read the 2017-2021 OPI Termination Report, a staggering loss of veteran employees under Arntzens leadership, teachers in Montana classrooms meet the professional qualifications, How an Obamacare remnant survives and prospers in Montana, The Session: Taxes, missing persons and child welfare, hundreds of millions of relief dollars to Montana schools, primary conduit for delivering those funds, criticizing Arntzen and calling for Romanos election, NorthWestern Energy to increase ownership share in Colstrip, First abortion bill of 2023 introduced in Montana Legislature, Bill would require rental application fee refunds, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. The upgrade is being funded with $13.4 million in federal COVID-19 relief dollars. Josh currently operates as a workforce coordinator and assists in the Office 15 years experience and working knowledge of rural health issues and has worked closely A native of rural Nebraska; her hobbies OPI has extended employment offers to candidates for five of those positions, Allen said, and four have accepted. During his public comment before the board Wednesday, Parman put the vacancy issue into context, explaining that members of Montanas public education system have experienced increasing difficulty getting timely responses from the agency. Two retired OPI employees did speak on the record about their own experiences. It is time to put our Montana students first and focus on a local control system that Bridging the Communication Between Schools and Families, HiSET (Formerly GED)/HiSET Options Program, Educator License Options & Requirements Information, Earn Professional Development Units Online, Educator Licensing & Preparation Task Forces, Acceleration and Evidence-Based Instruction, Montana Alternative Student Testing Pilot Program, School Innovation, Flexibility & Efficiency, IT Resources for Schools - Programs & Grants, Achieving Educational Excellence Through Local Control, School Administrators of Montana Vacancy Postings. in Education from the University of Nebraska The overarching concern is having a reasonable expectation of getting timely, accurate and helpful technical assistance from the Office of Public Instruction, and this appears to be no longer possible.. In his free time, Josh enjoys We believe that the vacant positions is the most accurate way, the most meaningful way, to report these numbers, because each position has its own job description, each position is filled by a single individual, Parman said. Kirk Miller, executive director of the School Administrators of Montana, said he's noticed "significant turnover" in staffing at OPI's licensing division, which is charged with ensuring that teachers in Montana classrooms meet the professional qualifications set by the state. new! was a National Rural Health Association (NRHA) Rural Health Fellow, and received the

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