2026 Indian Education for All Best Practices Conference – Save the Date – March 23rd – 24th East Helena High School
Call for Proposals: IEFA Best Practices 2026
The Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) Indian Education for All (IEFA) Unit invites educators, administrators, tribal members, community leaders, and stakeholders to submit proposals for the 2026 IEFA Best Practices Conference.
This conference focuses on how we cultivate relationships and use authentic, culturally sustaining practices to ensure every student understands and contributes to the full history and identity of Montana. We seek proposals that share innovative strategies, resources, and successful practices for integrating the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians and promoting culturally responsive teaching in all content areas and grade levels.
To avoid confusion and ensure accurate scheduling, please submit a separate form for each distinct presentation or session you wish to propose for the conference. This allows us to properly track and review each proposal individually
Best Practices 2026 Registration
We are excited to invite you to join us for the premier professional development event focused on implementing Indian Education for All (IEFA) in Montana schools.
Our 2026 conference theme, "We Are All Related: Planting the Seeds of Knowledge, Growing our Montana Story," emphasizes the vital connection between culturally responsive education and building strong community relationships.
Prepare for two days of engaging sessions, hands-on workshops, and inspiring keynotes designed to provide you with practical, authentic strategies for embedding the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians across all grade levels and content areas. Come learn, share, and collaborate as we collectively work to ensure every student fully knows the history and identity of our state.
Teresa Veltkamp Award 2026
This form outlines the required information and guidelines for submitting a nomination for the Teresa Veltkamp Advocacy Award for Excellence in Indian Education for All (IEFA).
The Indian Education Division at the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) is soliciting nominations for this prestigious award, established to honor the legacy of Teresa Veltkamp. Teresa, a beloved classroom teacher and Indian Education Specialist at OPI, was an inspirational advocate committed to ensuring and supporting the highest levels of IEFA implementation across Montana.
Please seize this opportunity to acknowledge and honor an outstanding educator's exceptional efforts in promoting and steadfastly supporting Indian Education for All.
An Introduction to Indian Education For All - Hub Course for Licensure
Call for Proposals: IEFA Best Practices 2026
The Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) Indian Education for All (IEFA) Unit invites educators, administrators, tribal members, community leaders, and stakeholders to submit proposals for the 2026 IEFA Best Practices Conference.
This conference focuses on how we cultivate relationships and use authentic, culturally sustaining practices to ensure every student understands and contributes to the full history and identity of Montana. We seek proposals that share innovative strategies, resources, and successful practices for integrating the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians and promoting culturally responsive teaching in all content areas and grade levels.
To avoid confusion and ensure accurate scheduling, please submit a separate form for each distinct presentation or session you wish to propose for the conference. This allows us to properly track and review each proposal individually
Best Practices 2026 Registration
We are excited to invite you to join us for the premier professional development event focused on implementing Indian Education for All (IEFA) in Montana schools.
Our 2026 conference theme, "We Are All Related: Planting the Seeds of Knowledge, Growing our Montana Story," emphasizes the vital connection between culturally responsive education and building strong community relationships.
Prepare for two days of engaging sessions, hands-on workshops, and inspiring keynotes designed to provide you with practical, authentic strategies for embedding the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians across all grade levels and content areas. Come learn, share, and collaborate as we collectively work to ensure every student fully knows the history and identity of our state.
Teresa Veltkamp Award 2026
This form outlines the required information and guidelines for submitting a nomination for the Teresa Veltkamp Advocacy Award for Excellence in Indian Education for All (IEFA).
The Indian Education Division at the Office of Public Instruction (OPI) is soliciting nominations for this prestigious award, established to honor the legacy of Teresa Veltkamp. Teresa, a beloved classroom teacher and Indian Education Specialist at OPI, was an inspirational advocate committed to ensuring and supporting the highest levels of IEFA implementation across Montana.
Please seize this opportunity to acknowledge and honor an outstanding educator's exceptional efforts in promoting and steadfastly supporting Indian Education for All.
IEFA Professional Development Offering from the Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Instructor of Record: Heather Bender, Native Education Outreach Specialist, Buffalo Bill Center of the West
Delivery: Live Interactive Zoom Sessions, Canvas Course Shell
Audience: All Wyoming Educators
Length: 7 hours = .5 Wyoming PTSB credit or 7 Montana OPI Renewal Units
Broken into Three, 2-hour and 20-minute modules over the course of one week.
Cost: $25 registration fee. Participants will receive $25 worth of resource materials upon completion of the course.
How to Enroll: Register here: https://tickets.centerofthewest.org/Selection.aspx?item=387&sch=140327
Resources: Access to Buffalo Bill Center of the West curated resource materials, access to Historians, Indigenous Knowledge Keepers, Museum Curators, and Museum Educators.
Objectives: Participants will be able to
• Collaborate with museum educators, curators, historians, and Indigenous knowledge keepers to identify
content resources that addresses sovereignty and forms of tribal government.
• Engage in culturally responsive pedagogical practices.
• Analyze content resources and identify ways to incorporate them into inquiry-based lesson plans.
• Develop a professional learning community (PLC) for Indian Education for All instruction.
Output: Indian Education for All resources available for use in the classroom.
Topic: Sovereignty and Tribal Government
2/10/26, 4–6:30 PM: Cultural Competency
Treaties and Reservation Era
2/11/26, 4–6:30 PM: IRA and Non-IRA Tribal Governments
Intersections with Federal, State, and Local Governments
2/12/26, 4–6:30 PM: Court Cases and Tribal Law and Contemporary Issues
Questions: Contact Heather Bender, heatherb@centerofthewest.org
Free on-line IEFA professional development opportunity for the first 250 Montana teachers that sign up. Sponsored by the National Indian Education Association. Course overview and registration
VIRTUAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
RECORDED WEBINARS AND BEST PRACTICES CONFERENCE SESSIONS
Earn TMT Professional Development units (formerly known as renewal units) on your own time and at your own pace! Build your background knowledge! Gain resources to use in your classroom!
Need professional development units? The Montana Office of Public Instruction Indian Education for All Unit has some great virtual options for you! Each webinar/workshop is a 90-minute recording you can watch when it suits you and your schedule. To earn professional development units, you will need to compete a short survey after watching each recorded episode. You will also gain access to the extensive resource folder that supports the materials referenced in the recordings. Over 200 educators have viewed the recordings, and their feedback indicates these 90-minute webinars/workshops are valuable, interesting, and immediately applicable to all teaching scenarios.
MONTANA TRIBAL LANGUAGES WEBINARS FOR CLASS 7 TEACHERS WEBINAR SERIES
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT RENEWAL UNIT SURVEY - one unit for each session
Series Playlist
INDIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE BUILDING WEBINAR SERIES
These series provide detailed information to build your background knowledge in the topic being presented. This series is intended for individuals wanting to learn more about a topic in order to more confidently and accurately present and teach about the topic.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT RENEWAL UNITS SURVEY - two units each session
Tribal Sovereignty
Covers different aspects of sovereignty, such as a basic history of tribal sovereignty, tribal governance, natural resource management, blood quantum, cultural autonomy and more.
Indian Boarding Schools: From History to Healing
Covers the Boarding School era, and its history and implications. The intention behind the series is to build background knowledge and provide a context for both the inter-generational trauma and the resiliency of many tribal individuals in both the US and Canada. Trigger Warning: these videos contain graphic and honest depictions of boarding school experiences that some may find triggering and/or troubling
Ethnobotany
Covers tribally-specific and engaging ethnobotany information that can build teacher background knowledge and provide guidance for respectful classroom implementation
INDIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE BUILDING AND IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES WEBINAR SERIES
These series build both background knowledge and provide specific resources and strategies for teachers to integrate into their curriculum.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT RENEWAL UNITS SURVEY - two units per session unless otherwise specified
Unpacking the Essential Understandings
Covers the Essential Understandings Regarding Montana Indians and provides basic strategies and resources for implementation throughout curriculum in any educational setting, Pre-K-20
Essential Understandings Deeper Dive
A follow up to the Unpacking the Essential Understandings Webinar Series and a deeper dive into strategies and resources for integrating The Essential Understandings into any educational setting and content area, Pre-K-20
IEFA Across the Content 2023-2024 - one Professional Development Unit per session
IEFA Across the Content 2024-2025 - one Professional Development Unit per session
Provides an interactive opportunity for K-12 teachers to learn from teachers through model lessons, sharing of resources and strategies and discussion.
Teaching about Contemporary Issues in Indian Country Presented by 2020-2021 Advocacy Award Recipients
Covers current events and contemporary issues facing Montana tribes and strategies for respectful integration and how to choose primary documents for classroom use, Pre-K-20
Thunderous Book Study - one unit for each session
INDIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL BEST PRACTICES VIRTUAL CONFERENCES
The Best Practices Conference sessions provide information on various topics.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT RENEWAL UNITS SURVEY - one unit for each session
2021: Keynotes and Presentations
2022: Keynotes and Presentations
2023: Keynote and Presentations
OPI TEACHER LEARNING HUB
AN INTRODUCTION TO INDIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL IN MONTANA
This Hub course provides a basic foundation for implementing Indian Education for All (IEFA) in your classroom. IEFA offers students an opportunity to meet academic standards in multiple content areas and grade levels as they learn about the distinct and unique cultures and heritages of American Indians.
Created by Mike Jetty, OPI Indian Education Specialist. Sign up for the course.
THE FRAMEWORK: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR IMPLEMENTING IEFA
This course provides a step-by-step overview of The Framework: A Practical Guide for Montana Teachers and Administrators Implementing Indian Education for All (IEFA). This course will help all educators in understanding how to carefully integrate IEFA practices across curriculum areas in classrooms, schools, and districts.
Developed by Dr. Tammy Elser in partnership with the Salish Kootenai College (SKC). Sign up for the course.
TEACHING AND LEARNING ABOUT CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN INDIAN COUNTRY
Contemporary issues are a good way to bring IEFA into your classroom while also addressing Social Studies content standards and the Essential Understandings regarding Montana Indians (EUs). This course will provide an awareness and understanding regarding contemporary American Indian issues as well as provide ideas for implementing grade level standards aligned instructional strategies that provide teachable moments in your classroom.
Created by Zach Hawkins and Mike Jetty. Sign up for the course.
BISON RESTORATION AND TRIBAL SOVEREIGNTY IN MONTANA
This course presents the opportunity to engage in content related to bison restoration efforts in Montana and the significance of bison to Tribal sovereignty. Participants will explore a wide range of resources that present the complex history of the near extinction of bison and current restoration efforts and will ultimately be better prepared to develop classroom activities that incorporate the Indian Education for All Essential Understandings.
Created by Stephen Morsette. Sign up for the course.
INDIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL AND MATH SEAMLESS INTEGRATION
This course is designed to help teachers of mathematics more easily find connections between Indigenous cultures and lifestyle and mathematical practices. It also provides a planning tool that can be used to strategically align Indian Education for All and curriculum planning.
Created by Zach Hawkins, Director of Indian Education for All, and Marisa Graybill, former OPI Math Instructional Coordinator. Sign up for the course.