July 2021
This newsletter contains news and information of interest about
Montana Rural Teacher Project. Thanks for staying informed.
Hiring a Bobcat!
Funded by a $6.2 million grant ($3.1 million from the US Department of Education and $3.1 million raised from Montana's education partners), we are proud to share that the inaugural cohort of Montana Rural Teacher Project (MRTP) graduates are accepting teaching positions in Montana's schools.

Take a look at the map above. The yellow pins are districts that have signed an MRTP graduate to teach and be part of their community. Purple pins are those which hosted a teacher resident in 20-21 and blue pins will be hosting the second cohort of MRTP teacher candidates in 21-22. Get on the map!

Do you know someone who would like to be a teacher in a rural school?
Are you a school leader looking to hire excellent new teachers?

MRTP candidates receive a living wage stipend while they are completing their Master of Arts in Teaching degree from MSU in exchange for three years of demonstrated employment in over 600 eligible schools.

MRTP benefits do not end with the teacher. Districts that hire MRTP graduates also receive support for their school principal through School Administrators of Montana's LPLP program and development for their boards through Montana School Board Association. This extraordinary professional learning for school leaders and trustees is available at no cost to the district.

Would you like to see your school on this map? Check here for eligibility and to learn more about the MRTP.
Summer Camp Comes to Campus!
From August 2-6, Master of Arts in Teaching students, many of whom are part of the Montana Rural Teacher Project (MRTP), will come from near and far to the MSU campus to lead two incredible camps for youth.

Inclusive Community Camp (ICC) is the first of its kind in Bozeman and this year will engage local children in a "Train Like an Astronaut" camp experience!
Partnering with MSU's Science Math Resource Center, NASA AEROKATS and ROVER Education Network, we have created an active STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math)-focused camp for children with and without disabilities, complete with kite making and flying. Appropriate language, perspective shifting, and re-framing the culture of disability is woven throughout the camp and provides our MAT teacher candidates with a hands-on early field experience working with children of different abilities in a fun and experiential setting.

For our secondary candidates, we've created the Middle School Mentoring and Leadership Experience Camp, an activity-based program for youth entering grades 6-8. Middle school campers will engage with MAT teacher candidates and ICC campers in supported, outdoor activities and workshops to strengthen their relationship building and leadership skills. This is an opportunity for middle school campers to expand their leadership capacity and have a blast doing it!  
PARTNER HIGHLIGHTS
We make the most of summer days when the MRTP teacher candidates are on the MSU campus. When not interacting with campers, they are engaging with MRTP partner organizations.

We are excited to have Mike Jetty coming to share about Indian Education for All and how to take advantage of the tremendous curricular resources on the Office of Public Instruction's website.

We also look forward to welcoming Diane Fladmo from the Montana Federation of Public Employees. This is a great opportunity for teacher candidates to learn about the opportunities and benefits the union provides its members.

Scholarships for Teachers & School Leaders

The MSU Graduate School is pleased to announce the Refer-a-Bobcat program for licensed educators. This program provides a 3 credit tuition waiver for students referred and admitted to a master’s degree program. For the typical 30 credit master's degree program, this is a 10% discount on tuition!

Is a current teacher in your building retiring in a year and you want to proactively ensure you have a highly qualified educator to fill their shoes? Refer a potential new teacher to MSU's Master of Arts in Teaching program. This program offers applicants with a bachelor’s degree a pathway to complete a teacher preparation program and become a licensed Montana teacher in as little as one year.

The application window for the 2022 cohort opens July 1, 2021.
Elementary candidates begin January 2022.
Secondary candidates begin May 2022.

If you have Class I or II teachers in your district interested in pursuing a master's degree, MSU's Master of Education in Curriculum & Instruction is fully online. The program challenges students to take their knowledge of curriculum development and assessment to the next level while providing flexibility for graduate seminars in specific content areas.

Maybe you have a teacher who is interested in becoming a school administrator? Refer them to the MSU Master of Education in Educational Leadership program.
We are recruiting for the final MRTP cohort.
Elementary track starts - January 2022 (applications due Oct 1, 2021)
Secondary track starts - May 2022 (applications due Dec 1, 2021)

If you know of prospective applicants, please contact