MONTANA TECH INVESTS IN COMMUNITY!

MTCC AmeriCorps VISTA member Cody LaBean, serving with Montana Tech's Institute for Educational Opportunities and Butte's Local College Access Network, assisted with National TRiO Day on February 22nd in Helena.  Here's what he had to say about it:
"National TRIO Day is a 'National Day of Service' that helps address the complex needs of young people and adults aspiring to improve their lives. TRiO Day was an opportunity for over 100 TRiO Educational Talent Search and Upward Bound students from Butte, Deer Lodge, and Helena to volunteer, visit campuses and consider postsecondary education. The group visited two Montana higher education institutions, and it highlighted the need for investment in these individuals to develop their talents to become actively engaged citizens."

He goes on to say, "The day involved the following: a tour of Helena College, a guest speaker from Carroll College, a trip to the Capital Building, a speed cup stacking tournament for middle school Educational Talent Search participants, and service opportunities for Upward Bound students at the Helena Food Share, Humane Society, and Bryant Elementary school."

"My role was to help chaperon the event, and assist the Butte TRiO Coordinator lead a group of students to serve with the Helena Humane Society. I led the final reflection activity, which I called "Dance to Reflect."  The reflection activity highlighted what the students felt were the pros and cons of this year's TRiO Day."
Keep up the amazing work, Cody!

Cody at the Helena Humane Society.

HAPPY 50, VISTA!

A vintage VISTA poster, apparently before Alaska was around?

The VISTA program is celebrating its 50th anniversary! Over there years, there have been an amazing Montana Campus Compact, we bring the resources of a network of engaged colleges and universities to this important work. VISTAs who have served with us over the years have helped start up the successful Graduation Matters program, have helped open and expand food pantries, veterans services offices, service-learning offices, afterschool programs. MTCC VISTAs have supported college access and success work, and have built capacity for college student volunteers to address community needs all along the way. Thank you for the support in Montana, AmeriCorps​ VISTA!
and diverse set of Americans who have served, great community-based solutions to poverty problems started and sustained, and huge, positive and direct impacts on people living in poverty.

Specifically, we've had great service over the years from the Corporation for National and Community Service and in particular the Montana office. Over the years, folks like John Allen, Jane Piilola, Jackie Girard, Amy Busch and Anna Yeagle have provided an extremely high level of service to Montana Campus Compact. These folks have helped behind the scenes with grants, funding, member support, impact reporting and all of the day-to-day support that's often overlooked.

In some ways, a fiftieth anniversary of an antipoverty program can't help but be bittersweet. It's an anniversary that provides an important time for reflection and consideration about how we expand good work that's happening, and significantly move more Americans out of poverty. The work is far from complete, and in many ways the challenges of poverty continue to be complex, and offer a rallying point for how we do better as a society.

Here in Montana, we're celebrating the VISTA 50th with Governor Bullock and Corporation CEO Wendy Spencer on March 12th in Helena. Here's the link for that event if you'd like to attend!

TWELVE NEW VISTAS BEGIN THEIR SERVICE!

On January 29th we welcomed twelve new AmeriCorps VISTAs to Montana and Wyoming.  They finished their Pre Service Orientation in Helena and continued to a Montana Campus Compact orientation immediately following, where they were joined by MTCC network staff.  We spent three beautiful days at the Montana Learning Center outside of Helena where we got to know our members a little better and they got to know us.  On January 31st we sent our members on their journeys across the state to begin serving.  Our new members include:

Brandon Fish- Blackfeet Community College, Browning

Samuel Garetson- Salish Kootenai College, Upward Bound, Pablo

 Sage Hatch- Fort Peck Community College, Poplar School District

Constance Johnson- Garfield Literacy Center, Billings

Kate Johnson- Bitteroot College, Hamiliton

Dalya Kefi- Kid's Link, Bozeman

Sunny Pate- Girl Scouts of Montana and Wyoming, Great Falls

Morgan Ray- Girl Scouts of Montana and Wyoming, Kalispell

Michele Shahczenski- Children's Museum, Missoula

Coral Thede- Girl Scouts of Montana and Wyoming, Gillette, WY

Jon Van Dyke- Zootown Arts Community Center, Missoula

Lacy Fiore- VISTA Leader, Missoula

CAMPUS ELECTION ENGAGEMENT WRAP-UP

Students at Augustana College
 prepare the sidewalks before Election Day

MTCC’s election engagement work successfully mobilized over 15,000 college students and community members across the region in the summer and fall of 2014. Working closely with the national Campus Election Engagement Project (or “CEEP”) a grassroots, college-focused initiative begun by author Paul Loeb, Campus Compact institutions in Montana and South Dakota rose to the challenge of engaging students volunteers, voters and engaged citizens. The project mobilized college students to serve with local organization to increase youth voter turnout.  At least 12,000 college students and young people across Montana and South Dakota were registered to vote in the 2014 midterm elections.

What happened in Montana and South Dakota?

Students at the University of Montana
show what they'd turn out for!

In the fall of 2014 college students registered to vote in new and resourceful ways, including: as part of freshman orientations; at parades and rallies; and by tapping into competitive school spirit. The Forward Montana Foundation worked with the University of Montana and set a goal of registering 10,000 new voters. At the final tally, this goal was exceeded with the final new voter count of 10,737!  Montana State University used school pride using the theme “Cat Country Votes!” This slogan was printed on shirts and used at sporting events, peer-to-peer voter registration around campus, and during a large event on September 23, National Voter Registration Day. Over 500 students were registered at MSU. Other campuses used homecoming and orientation events to register students to vote, relying heavily on student volunteers registering their peers.

Students at Augustana College pass
out candy and reminders to vote
during the "Trick or Vote" event

In discussions with college students across the region, many expressed that if they had better access to nonpartisan information; they would feel more comfortable voting.  To address this, CEEP created a Nonpartisan Candidate Guide that presented the candidates for Montana’s Senate race and their positions on several issues. The format was designed to be a easy-to-digest, easily understood, nonpartisan tool and MTCC students, faculty and staff shared their appreciation for the resource. CEEP also created a state-specific Student Voter Guides that presented frequently asked questions by students, (e.g. What ID do I need to bring with me? Where can I find my polling location?) and the information new student voters would need for their respective states. The CEEP tools received high marks, and were distributed in the thousands to students at MSU, UM, Salish Kootenai College, Bitterroot College, Fort Peck Community College and Augustana College in South Dakota. Overall, campuses noted significant increases to their educational efforts in many cases thanks to the support and resources provided by Campus Compact and the Election Engagement Project.

Fort Peck Community College students
drive their peers to the poll

Election Day 2014 saw a push from campuses and organizations to get students to the polls. Salish Kootenai College and Fort Peck Community College offered gathering places for students, staff, and faculty to enjoy refreshments, while rides to the polls were provided for all who needed them.  Student volunteers offered free rides to the polls at Montana’s flagship universities, Montana State University and and the University of Montana, encouraging their peers in classes, dining halls, residence halls, and other gathering locations to take the time to go cast a ballot.

A mini grant provided to the Montana Public Interest Research Group or “MontPIRG” helped student interns to make 3,347 get out the vote calls through phone banking.

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Forward Montana Foundation changed the lyrics of the popular song “It’s All About That Bass,” to be, “I’m All About That Vote” encouraging students to vote, and used social media to steer students to the music video, “Turn Out for What” that features celebrities standing up for the issues they value and asking students what they would “turn out” for. Campus social media sites saw a huge increases in traffic during Election Day as updates were posted and free rides promoted. Fort Peck Community College staff were interviewed on the local radio station and discussed the importance of voting; the interview was videotaped and put on the college’s Facebook page to raise awareness among students!

At Augustana College in South Dakota twenty student volunteers hosted a full week of events leading up to election day and culminating in a well-attended results party. Following these 2014 election engagement work, Augie’s curriculum advisory board began to explore voter engagement efforts in its curriculum, utilizing the input of our South Dakota intern, Brittany Cleveland. 

Students from Augustana College show their
 enthusiasm for voting with their school mascot,
Augie the Viking on Election Day

Sustainable Partnerships
When asked if they would support future election engagement work, staff from the Bitterroot College UM, answered:“Yes! Through the class many students got the information they’d not otherwise have gotten. The class curriculum was altered slightly to accommodate Campus Election Engagement Project ideas and resources.” Others across the region echoed the sentiment and many institutions are already preparing for the 2016 election cycle. With great feedback, plenty of documentation, and strong connections made this year, the 2016 election engagement initiative stands a strong chance of increasing student voter turnout, volunteer engagement and campaign support, making lasting impacts for years to come. 

Big Thanks!
This great work was made possible with generous support of the Campus Election Engagement Project, Ohio Campus Compact, and the hard work of Brenda Cole working from Montana, and Brittany Cleveland working from South Dakota. 

Students from Montana State University
offer rides to the polls.

MTCC DISASTER INSTITUTE RESULTS ARE IN.

This October MTCC hosted its first Disaster Institute in Billings, Montana, hosted by Rocky Mountain College. We partnered with American Red Cross of Montana (ARCMT), the Montana Department of Emergency Services (DES), the Governor's Office of Community Service (OCS) to train 40 participants from across our wonderful state of Montana. We were excited to collaborate with these agencies in order to help our communities learn valuable lessons on disaster preparedness.

ARCMT  participants during the Shelter Management Simulation

Institute participants came from different areas and backgrounds to receive training in Red Cross certifications and Montana State DES Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training. Participants ranged from community members to department heads within the Compact affiliate colleges and universities.

Of the forty participants, twenty seven received certification in Department of Emergency Services CERT which included topics on Active Shooter, Fire Safety, Communication and Amateur Radio, and Disaster Psychology.

The other thir participants received American Red Cross certification in Emergency Shelter Management, International Humanitarian Law, and Psychological First Aid.

Our participants came from 2 year colleges, 4 year and Universities, tribal colleges, and different Montana communities. Our tribal colleges included: Aaniiih Nakoda College on the Fort Belknap Reservation; Blackfeet Community College on the Blackfeet Reservation; and Little Big Horn College on the Crow Reservation. There were also members of these tribal communities in attendance.

Our 2-year institution in attendance was  Helena College while our 4-year and universities were: Montana Tech, the University of Montana, Montana State University, MSU-Northern, MSU-Billings, and Rocky Mountain College.

Disaster Institute participants gained new skills in competencies in supporting either the American Red Cross of Montana or Department of Emergency Services and Community Emergency Response Team; as well as, a greater understanding of the roles colleges and higher education play in disaster preparedness. Many of our participants learned how Montana Campus Compact helps further civic engagement on college campuses and helps them establish and deepen partnerships with their communities. Participants also built up a great network of colleagues to draw on in the future and we hope to see some "good faith" effort put in to build up their communities and campuses first responders and disaster preparedness volunteers!

Big thanks to our event sponsors: The Corporation for National and Community Service, City Brew Coffee, The Montana Office of Community Service, Rocky Mountain College and to Jill Washburn, Rocky's community service coordinator and a tireless voice for disaster preparedness.

COMPACT PRE-THANKSGIVING NEWS ROUND-UP

On Saturday, November 22nd Campus Compact used the occasion of the Brawl of the The Wild (aka "Griz/Cat" or "Cat/Griz," depending on where you're from) to honor ten exemplary college student volunteers from our network.

Photo courtesy of Todd Goodrich

Please join us in congratulating our 2014 Montana Athletes In Service:
Tyler Adair, UM
Hunter Chandler, MSUN 
Aubrey Conceicao, MSU Billings
Darrell "D.J." Fish, SKC
Jordan Johnston, Carroll College
Dilan Starkel, Montana Western Football
Katie Tabaracci, Montana Tech
Julie Theis, MSU
Tinaya Monroe, Blackfeet Community College
Kelsey Oblender, Rocky Mountain College

As we head into this holiday, the Compact's network office staff is thankful to live in a state where our two flagship universities, Montana State University and University of Montana, use their rivalry to raise a collective $150,000 in cash and close to 300,000 lbs of food for food-insecure Montanans. Here's to Educating Citizens and Building Communities. And thanks for the example you set with Can the Cats/Griz, UM and MSU.

GET INFORMED AND VOTE (AND GET YOUR FRIENDS TO)!

We're not sure what exactly this means, but we like the sentiment.

Tuesday, November 4th is Election Day across the country, and here in Montana we've got plenty to think about with important local elections and bond issues, state-level races and even a senate and (our lone) house seat all being sought.

Montana Campus Compact has partnered with the Campus Election Engagement Project which works nationally to engage students in the important, practical work of being involved in elections, campaigns, voter education and mobilization and, ultimately, voting. Student's from Compact affiliate campuses across Montana and South Dakota are working hard to engage their peers, educate on the races and issues, and get out the vote for Tuesday.

We're supporting get out the vote projects at Blackfeet Community College, Fort Peck Community College, the University of Montana, Montana State University, Salish Kootenai College and Bitterroot College of UM, as well as at Augustana College in South Dakota.

Voter guides for races across the country, including Montana and South Dakota can be found here.

Certainly there's plenty to be said about midterm elections lacking some of the panache of the quadrennials, when everybody's been hearing about the president's race about seven times a day, every day for the past 23 months. That said, we like to think of midterms as every bit as important, in the grand scheme, because even though the singularity of the president's role makes it easy to focus on, the Congress has the purse strings. Additionally, states are hugely empowered to manage their affairs in the U.S., compared to other places in the world and being informed about local races helps to ensure government is doing, or not doing, what it ought to. See you at the polls (or, if you've voted via absentee, at the post office!)