Elsie Arntzen is Montana's Superintendent of Public Instruction
October 1, 2019
Update Your School Contacts and Subscription Preferences
The OPI strives to maintain up-to-date contact lists in order to efficiently and effectively communicate with districts. Please update your school contacts at this LINK. The OPI is now using GovDelivery for newsletters. You can update your newsletter subscription preferences online at this LINK.
2020 Census
The decennial national census is just around the corner! The census is very important to Montana schools and the OPI along with other state and local partners will be sharing information with schools throughout the coming year about how you can promote the census in your classrooms and community. Federal education dollars for Montana depend on an accurate census. Learn more about how schools can get involved with the census at this LINK and find your local complete count committee and other Montana-specific info at this LINK.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security School Safety Resources
Homeland Security has a variety of resources that schools can utilize to promote school safety from an infrastructure and cyber-security perspective. Randy Middlebrook is a Montana-based Protective Security Advisor with DHS. He serves on the OPI’s Montana School Safety Advisory Committee and is willing to visit schools free of charge to assist with emergency planning and preparedness. He can share best-practices with your staff. You can learn more on DHS’ website or contact Randy directly at randy.middlebrook@dhs.gov.
2020 U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools Application
The OPI is now accepting applications through January 10th! Learn more on our website.
Superintendent’s Office September Events
- Event with Baker High School students, teachers, and administrators to honor Linda Rost as the 2020 Montana Teacher of the Year
- Hosting U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Mick Zais for a back to school tour of Pryor Public Schools, Skyview High School, and MSU-B
- Meeting with Education Northwest to discuss rural recruitment and retention
- Visit with Waterford to discuss Montana’s participation in the UPSTART kindergarten readiness program
- American Indian Heritage Day events
- Recurring Land Board, Education Advocates, Governor’s Office, Board of Regents, Board of Public Education, and Interim Education Committee meetings