Department of Education Monday Minutes

Here are your Monday Minutes for February 15-19, 2021. 

From the Department Head 

Dear Colleagues and Students, 

February is Black History Month, and I’d like to share some resources on Buffalo Soldiers. According to the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, “The heroism of the soldiers has been celebrated by filmmakers, musicians, military reenactors, and descendants who want to preserve their legacy. Yet that legacy is a complex one and raises challenging questions about the relationship of the soldiers to the government they served as well as to the Native peoples they fought.” Additionally, the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian has an online exhibition about African-Indigenous lives in the Americas, which further illustrates the complex shared history of Indigenous and Black peoples. Finally, you may be interested in this PBS documentary about the 25th Infantry's bicycle trip from Missoula, Montana, to St. Louis, Missouri in 1897. This Black infantry took the trip to test a theory that the bicycle would replace the horse in transporting men for the army. 

I hope that these resources help you learn more about Black and Indigenous histories during February.

Take good care,

 Ann Dutton Ewbank's signature 

Dr. Ann Ewbank

News and Announcements

  • We at the MSU Department of Education send our condolences to the Kitto family and the Whittier Elementary School community following Principal Craig Kitto’s death on Sunday. Along with EHHD Assistant Dean Kayte Kaminski and MSU Counseling and Psychological Services, we have a plan in place to support students who worked with Mr. Kitto. Students can also contact CPS for a same-day or walk-in appointment. Also, attached is a document prepared by HHD Department Head Dr. Rebecca Koltz which provides evidence-based methods for talking about tragedy with children. 

Professional Development & Engagement Opportunities

  • The Center for Bilingual and Multicultural Education is pleased to provide a spring webinar series on Preserving Indigenous Languages.  All webinars will take place on Wednesdays, from 2:00-3:30 (Mountain time).  Please see the attached flyers and the additional information on the book presentations by Dr. Crawley and Dottie Susag. Zoom links are provided below. 
  • Please see the attached flyer for upcoming online workshops on R statistical software. These are excellent opportunities to learn more about R. 
  • Have you checked out the MSU Center for Faculty Excellence resources lately? The CFE offers resources and workshops related to teaching and scholarly productivity.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

  • Congratulations to those involved in last week’s MSU Giving Day! Thanks to your generosity, our department-sponsored projects collectively raised over $12,000! These funds will support kids with and without additional needs in a summer camp setting, opportunities for middle and high school students to participate in Science Olympiad, and a resource library for folks to learn about the gifts and strengths that individuals with dyslexia have. 
  • Our department’s success is determined by our collective accomplishments. Share your own accomplishments with pride! Or if you hear of a colleague or student’s accomplishment, please share. Please send accomplishments and kudos to ann.ewbank@montana.edu. 

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