Montana
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History
Learn and Serve Montana programs began in 1992 with six funded projects. More than 40 projects were funded through mini-grants and regional demonstration sub-grants. Over 25,000 K-12 students and 3,000 adults participated in service-learning projects. Two middle school achieved National Service-Learning Leader's School status. AmeriCorps *VISTA members assisted 16 service-learning sites in America Roads tutoring programs.
From 1997-2000, the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory mounted a project to strengthen service-learning in Montana’s very rural communities. The project enlisted schools that had never before participated in service-learning at the state level. Local schools maintain many community partnerships.
In the early 2000s, Learn and Serve Montana awarded grants up to $3,000 for as many as 15 sub-grantees. Grants initially funded a coordinator to get a program started, then supported projects with mini-grants. Many schools took on historical or environmental projects. To provide greater local support to schools, Learn and Serve Montana and the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory established six regional centers, based in local school districts. With a shift in emphasis by Learn and Serve Montana from mini-grants to capacity-building grants, the regional centers played an even more important outreach role.
Networks of Support
The Learn and Serve Program of Montana is housed under the umbrella of the Office of Public Instruction Accreditation department. It partners up with other OPI programs (Character Ed, Montana Behavior Initiative, and 21st Century Community Learning Center) to address issues of poverty, asset-deficits and professional development for our staff.
Learn and Serve office works closely with their eight project sites that are funded through Learn and Serve grants, and regularly go on site visits to interact with students and faculty, and to hold mini-workshops on service-learning. These school sites receive funds following a three year project cycle with the most recent cycle ending in 2009. The grant awarding process is very competitive, and currently grantees include elementary, middle as well as high schools. All schools are in rural communities and most projects have a focus on utilizing technology to meet the needs of the community or addressing environmental challenges.
Learn and Serve also collaborates with Campus Compact to develop service-learning projects. There are also VISTAs who spend time on the sites to assist with project implementation.
The Office for Civic Engagement at the University of Montana works with faculty, students and community partners to incorporate and support service learning endeavors. In the fall of 2008 it offered fifteen designated service-learning courses. As the Office notes, service learning offers "enhanced opportunities for UM/community partnerships: Community partner organizations will have improved communication with departments and/or faculty who teach service learning courses that could meet their identified needs."
Learn and Serve Montana plans to implement a series of service-learning trainings for educators (with an emphasis on principals and superintendents) beginning 2009.
Convening and Celebrating
Montana holds an annual recognition celebration in Helena and an annual Governor’s Conference on Volunteerism. Montana has had three Service-Learning Leaders Schools.
In 2008, Monforton Elementary School was awarded the prestigious Spirit of Service Award, by the Corporation for National and Community Service. The award was presented at NYLC's Annual conference on Service-Learning in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Sally Broughton, the lead teacher for this project was honored on stage by the Arch Bishop Desmond Tutu.
Policy Support
Montana has state-wide academic standards but they do not contain any mention of service-learning. However, the OPI has a strong service-learning commitment. Governor Schweitzer provides valuable support. "The Governor has made service and service-learning one of his top priorities," said Learn and Serve Coordinator Mary Ellen Earnhardt.
Learn and Serve Montana staff have been able to integrate service-learning into Title I and literacy programs, including formal and informal tutoring. Grant-receiving schools must identify the Montana Content and Performance Standards they will address through service-learning. They must include service-learning in their five-year School Improvement Plan and in district goals.
There are no districts that have service-learning graduation requirements but several schools have substantial commitments to service-learning. The OPI works with the sites carrying out service-learning projects to incorporate service-learning into their academic standards and curricula.
Learn and Serve
Learn and Serve Montana is currently housed in the Office of Public Instruction, where Learn and Serve Coordinator Mary Ellen Earnhardt and Program Assistant Colleen Hamer support service-learning activities. In 2008, the state office provided nine school-based subgrants, totaling $225,000. Opportunities, Inc. in Great Falls also receives a separate community-based grant. More than 1,700 students statewide engage in LSA-funded service-learning.
Program design remains one that emphasizes capacity building among sub-grantee school districts to demonstrate service-learning impacts through demonstration projects in areas of MT Indian Education for All, the Environment, Community Defined Needs, and Disaster Preparedness. The goal is to communicate service-learning outcomes on students, community, and teachers in these areas and move from school-based projects toward becoming service-learning schools. This is a more program-oriented approach in which each classroom incorporates elements of service into the every day curriculum.
The 2006-09 Learn and Serve Montana grants promote service-learning projects that:
- support and increase student academic achievement (particularly reading and mathematics)
- reduce dropout rates
- create school and community environments that value the richness of diversity and support the Indian Education for All law
- continue service projects that promote school and community safety and preparedness.
Learn and Serve Montana has a seat on the Montana Office of Community Service. Through that link, the program is able to forge closer ties to other programs, in particular the Senior Corps program. An informal group of service-learning leaders meets occasionally to strategize. This group includes Montana Campus Compact, the Office of Community Service, and the University of Montana.
Youth Contributions
This section is in need of expansion. You can help by expanding it.
Examples of Quality Service-Learning
References
- Cairn, Rich and Neal, Marybeth. 2004. "State Profiles" in Growing to Greatness 2004. St. Paul: National Youth Leadership Council.
External Links
- Learn and Serve America in Montana
- National Service in Montana (Corporation for National and Community Service)
- Learn and Serve Montana
- Montana Commission on Community Service
- Montana Campus Compact
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