Afterschool

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their lives. Vote for a living minimum wage. Ensure that women make equal pay and have equal opportunity. Ensure that women have paid maternal leave. Bring down the American maternal mortality rate. Raise women – all women – out of poverty. Create change in society by changing many of the conditions that lead many women to choose to get an abortion. Create a society where women are empowered and safe. Do these things rather than taking away a woman’s right to autonomy, equality, and privacy.

If you do not support these things and call yourself “pro-life,” “pro-life” is a farce. It is a farce that aims to “put women in their place” and that does not value life. The “pro-life” campaign is nothing but anti-liberty, anti-civil rights, anti-equality, anti-separation of church and state, and against the rights to privacy, autonomy, and freedom of religion. If you are truly “pro-life,” throw your energy into creating a more egalitarian society in which life is actually valued rather than attacking women’s rights.

Mary Hodges Charlo

Fix the problem

Editor,

Imagine that you suddenly learn of an asphalt plant being planned next to your house. You think of the noise, the dust, the smell, the traffic. You think you have a public agency that will help regulate that operation—mitigate the hours of operation, control traffic safety, protect your air, land, and water. You would be wrong.

I learned this when an opencut gravel operation was proposed for my neighborhood here in Arlee. Despite our attempts to learn more about this operation, to ensure that the company applying for the permit complies with what little rules are in place, the DEQ has been silent.

Our legislature last year ignored public concerns and passed HB 599, eliminating the Montana Department of Environmental Quality’s ability to work for us, Montana citizens. All Montanans near proposed opencut gravel operations will suffer from the consequences of changes in the law, regardless of where they live.

Our quiet, rural neighborhood, and the Garden of 1,000 Buddhas next door, will be changed forever by the asphalt plant and gravel pit operation. Think there will be reclamation when it’s all over? Most opencut mines never comply with laws we have. And the Montana DEQ is silent. We here in Arlee have little recourse in the matter, and neither will you, should this unfortunate situation occur next to your house. Write to the DEQ Opencut Mine division and tell them of your concerns: deqopencut@mt.gov. We need to tell our legislators to fix the problems caused by HB 599. For all of us.

Jennifer Knoetgen Arlee

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Afterschool conference highlights need

By Taylor Davison / Valley Journal

POLSON — Educators from around the state gathered in Polson on June 27 and 28 to learn ways to bolster and support their afterschool programs at the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) Summer Training conference. 21st CCLC is a program that provides federally funded five-year grants for afterschool programs through OPI in Montana. Each state receives funding scaled to the number of students served in the population, giving Montana a total of $6 million to be spread throughout the entire state. Of these funds, 93% goes out to grantees, and 7% stays at the state for staff to run the program.

According to their research, a total of 6,420 students in Montana attended 21st CCLC programs during the 20202021 school year and summer.

Operating with the foundational principles of responsibility, integrity, knowledge, freedom, passion, opportunity, sound judgement, and a winwin focus, 21st CCLC afterschool programs have proved vital in a wide variety of ways according to conference attendees.

“What happens (in afterschool) is what I call ‘disguised learning,’” said south central Regional Director Mark Branger of the Huntley Project. “They’re doing activities to teach things like math … It’s fewer worksheets and basically more hands on. It’s an extension, a supplement.”

This project-based learning can appeal to students in ways the typical school day curriculum can’t. If a student is uninspired by core curriculum they aren’t going to do well, explained attendee and actress Meredith Scott Lynn of Legally Blonde fame, now CEO and President of Write Brain World. “They have to supplement the school day to something that connects the kids to their subjects in engaging ways,” she said.

Some program directors reported improved school day attendance for chronically absent students who began attending afterschool programs. “They went to school because they were so excited to go to the afterschool program,” commented western Regional Director and 21st CCLC Grant Director Rae Herman of Hot Springs Schools.

Part of the draw for students, attendees speculated, was that afterschool programs are structured differently than the school day and tend to allow more decision making by the students. “Voice and choice,” Herman called it. 21st CCLC programs provide a wide variety of programs, from robotics and Lego leagues to media arts and children’s book writing programs.

Scott Lynn’s ‘Write Brain World,’ for example, sells project and social emotional based programs to schools, including a children’s book program. “I always say I went from Legally Blonde to literacy,” Scott Lynn commented. Through her program, children are asked to work collaboratively and independently to create a narrative from an existing set of illustrations. When their story is done, to encourage a passion for writing and bolster their confidence, each student author receives a professionally printed and bound book with their picture and author biography inside.

COURTESY PHOTO

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A Hot Springs afterschool program, led by agricultural education and shop teacher Justin

Wright, helps prepare kids for life past high school teaching design skills and attention to detail with career-oriented activities such as welding, 3D printing.

“A lot of what we do teaches those same skills and those are transferrable working anywhere,”

Wright said. “Stuff that’s fun and interesting does go into preparing them for careers, whether that’s in trades or not.”

Indigenous Studies

Director Julie Lamebull and Elementary School

Principal Evelyn Bigby serve students in the

Harlem school district, Fri., Sat., Sun., where the population is approximately 98% NaNov 22 nd-Dec. 1sttive. Much of what they offer in their afterschool programs is related to culture, for example, beading and making regalia, or dance and drum groups.

Places like Hot Springs and Ronan even have 21st CCLC programs that allow home schooled kids to attend their afterschool programs, rather than restricting it to only students within the public education system. “They need that interaction just as well,” Herman explained of her efforts to get this allowance pushed through all of the Flathead Valley.

“I think we forget too that the underlying principle of why (afterschool programs were) started is that it provides a safe place for kids to be after school before their parents get home,” Branger said. “It’s a wonderful, nurturing environment that also provides these other things and a safe place.”

“I’ve been doing this for 23 years. It’s not just to provide academic and enrichment and all these other components; I still go back to it’s for the kids who would go home and it’s an empty house with nobody there,” Herman added.

Several afterschool programs also see a sharp increase in attendance during the sports seasons. “In the winter months, when kids have practice later, they stay with us until their practice starts so they’re not travelling back and forth in bad weather,” Lame-

COURTESY PHOTO Meredith Scott Lynn said she “went from Legally Blonde to literacy,” now involved with afterschool programs through her company Write Brain World.

see page 14

COURTESY PHOTO

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from page 13

bull explained. “It’s important.” For an afterschool program to qualify for 21st CCLC funding, it must have a 40% free and reduced lunch population. This translates to many students participating in these programs are low-income. “Sometimes the only meals these kids get are from after school and breakfast programs,” Herman said.

Many schools that do not receive a grant from 21st CCLC end up losing their afterschool programs. While some places make up the difference with boys and girls clubs funded by private donors, smaller communities may be forced to require a fee from parents, which many low income families are unable to afford. In some instances, smaller communities are simply left with no programs to offer.

Herman explained that when communities don’t have a program, kids still need a safe place to be, a snack to eat and a place to hang out with their friends.

According to statistics from the National Conference of State Legislatures, Montana is one of 23 states that does not provide any state funding for afterschool programs, leaving local programs to rely on federal grants and donations to function. Additionally, snack funding from OPI has run out, leaving the programs on their own for providing food for attending students. While some programs have been able to get creative and retain indirect funding for food in the form of supplies for cooking lessons, many need help from their communities.

Herman was able to provide food for her students through her ownership of the Lone Pine General Store. She and her business partners donate any food approaching its “sell by date” to the afterschool programs. She asks other grocery stores to do the same whenever possible. “Snacks are huge,” she emphasized.

As far as financial donations, all are tax deductible and welcome from any persons willing to contribute. Business partnerships can be of great help as well, Herman said, giving the example of Stockman Bank providing curriculum to teach a financial literacy program. To find out how to contribute to your local afterschool programs and support your community, call your school district or email Mark Branger at: mbranger@huntley.k12. mt.us.

“If they can stretch $6 million across the whole state and that’s staff, that’s programing, that’s food, that’s everything, then a little goes a long way,” Scott Lynn commented. “There’s so much need. And once you’re bitten by the afterschool bug, forget it. There’s nothing better.”

PUBLIC NOTICE

Charlo School District 7J Board of Trustees intends to hire Alyssa Cahoon, wife of Trustee Daniel Cahoon, as a Junior High Basketball Coach for the 2022/2023 season. This hiring will take place at a regular Board meeting on July 19 at 8 p.m. in the Charlo School Library.

July 6 &13, 2022 MNAXLP vj

Locals named to Rocky Mountain College dean’s list

BILLINGS — Rocky Mountain College is pleased to announce the 2022 spring semester dean’s list which includes students who maintained a 3.60 to 3.99 grade point average (GPA). High honors students who maintained at 4.0 GPA will be noted with an asterisk (*).

Local students are: Shyanne Reum* of Charlo; John Steele of Polson; and Jackson Duffey* of Ronan.

2022 LAKE COUNTY FAIR SCHEDULE

12 p.m. SUNDAY, JULY 24 Shotgun Competition – Big Sky Sporting Clays

MONDAY, JULY 25 12 p.m. Interview Judging

TUESDAY, JULY 26 8 a.m. Dog Show 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Non-perishable Open Class Check in 5 p.m. Family Style Dinner 3 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Perishable Open Class check-in 3 p.m. – 6 p.m. LIVESTOCK ARRIVAL 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Livestock Weigh-in

WEDNESDAY, JULY 27 8 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Swine Show 10 a.m. Horticulture Barn Opens 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Kid Zone Games & Activities 9 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Perishable Open Class Check-in 12 p.m. Cat Show 1:30 p.m. Poultry Show 5 p.m. Family Style Dinner 6 p.m. Market Beef Judging 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. Open Class Judging

THURSDAY, JULY 28 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Kid Zone Games & Activities 9 a.m. Sheep Show 11:30 a.m. Goat Show 4:30 p.m. Fashion Review 5 p.m. Small Fry Stock Show 5:30 p.m. Market Livestock Dinner 7:00 p.m. Market Livestock Sale

FRIDAY, JULY 29 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Kid Zone Games & Activities 10 a.m. Horse Show 9 a.m. – 6 p.m. Kid Zone Games & Activities 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Quilt Show at K. William Harvey 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Lunch Special 2:30 p.m. Rabbit Show 5 p.m. Crabfest - pre-purchase tickets

9 p.m. from Ronan Chamber - contact secretary@ronanchamber.com Teen Dance

SATURDAY, JULY 30 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Kid Zone Games & Activities 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. Beef & Dairy Showmanship 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Quilt Show at K. William Harvey 3 p.m. – 4 p.m. Large Animal Round Robin 5 p.m. Small Animal Round Robin 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Ranch Rodeo

9 a.m. SUNDAY, JULY 31 NBHA Barrel Race

Book giveaway provides summer reading material for kids

By Taylor Davison / Valley Journal

ST. IGNATIUS — The Montana Federation of Public Employees (MFPE), thanks to an agreement with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Union and First Book, were able to partner with public schools in St. Ignatius and Hot Springs on June 27 to provide a free book giveaway for local kids.

“We had a really great time,” said Amanda Curtis, president of the MFPE.

Curtis proposed the ‘Reading Opens the World’ program to local union members in the Flathead Valley to see who would be able to co-sponsor a book giveaway. Both Caitlin Shelman of St. Ignatius High School and Mindy Leicthnam of Hot Springs High School responded enthusiastically.

With their help to put together the event, Curtis was able to order around 500 books from First Book and they all met in the St. Ignatius School Library to set up the books according to age groups. Books were available for newborns to teenagers and everyone in between, making sure all students would have something to read this summer.

“Carloads of kids showed up to pick out their books,” Curtis recalled. “They were really sweet. They asked what the limit was and what they had to do, and it was really fun to just say ‘take the books that you want to read this summer and take one for a friend (and) take one to read with a friend.’ They were so excited.”

More than half the books were given away to students or school board members who arrived to pick up books for their kids. Some books also went to the Hot Springs and St. Ignatius libraries to be enjoyed by kids during the school year.

This is the first book giveaway Curtis has been involved in since her start as MFPE president two years ago but is not the first book giveaway to be done in the state. What she describes as a benefit of union membership, Curtis states she would love the event to be replicated in every community across the state.

To learn more about putting together a book giveaway, email Curtis at: acurtis@mfpe.org.

“We’re so happy to share this with community members,” Curtis stated. “It was just really great.”

COURTESY PHOTOS The ‘Reading Opens the World’ project was made possible by the partnership of AFT Union, First Book, and MFPE.

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