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When the White House recently celebrated the latest class of National Board Certified teachers, several of the honorees traveled to Washington from some of America’s most remote and distant rural communities to receive the teaching profession’s highest credential. During their visit, we caught up with these rural teachers to hear their stories about what it’s like to teach in rural America.

When the White House recently celebrated the latest class of National Board Certified teachers, several of the honorees traveled to Washington from some of America’s most remote and distant rural communities to receive the teaching profession’s highest credential. During their visit, we caught up with these rural teachers to hear their stories about what it’s like to teach in rural America.

Register Here to Receive Updates for this Event What: Rural Dynamics INC. is proud to announce the date for the 2011 Mobilizing Rural Communities Conference. National and regional speakers will share ways to build strong communities through innovative approaches and best practices. The Mobilizing Rural Communities conference is for community businesses, organizations, leaders, policy makers, and funders who are intent on building thriving and sustainable rural communities. Mark your calendar and watch for more to come. When: September 13-15, 2011 Where: Great Falls, Montana

AgrAbility recognizes the immense potential for rural youth to excel individually and contribute to their communities. Therefore, the Project seeks to: Make lifelong changes in the worldviews of rural youth by exposing them to principles and examples of disability in agriculture increase disability awareness and foster the acceptance of peers with disabilities Encourage and empower rural youth with disabilities by providing them with vital resources concerning assistive technology and other disability-related resources Supply rural youth with relevant information to share with family members, neighbors, and other community members with disabilities Provide encouragement for community service projects, by such groups as FFA chapters and 4-H groups, to assist people with disabilities

President Obama has challenged us all to help “Win the Future” by out-educating, out-innovating, and out-building our competitors in the 21st century. President Obama believes the best ideas come from the American people. That’s why the White House started a series called “Champions of Change.” Each week, the White House selects 5-20 Americans, businesses, or organizations who are doing extraordinary things in their communities. This series highlights a different group each week ranging from educators to entrepreneurs to community activists. The Office of Public Engagement hosts a roundtable event here at the White House to honor those who are “Winning the Future” and empowering and inspiring other members of their respective communities.  Agency representatives and White House Policy Offices participate in the event and host a discussion on amplifying best practices learned in each area. Paired with each White House event, these “Champions” are featured on the White House website. The Champions of Change series is designed for people to look into their communities and nominate everyday heroes who are demonstrating commitment to improving their own communities, their country, or their fellow citizens. That is why the White House is looking for you to nominate someone as a “Champion of Change” who is doing extraordinary things to make a difference in your community. The White House will consider your nominations as they feature people who are bringing about change in their communities to share their ideas on how to win the future. Champions of Change, for example, are: Longstanding businesses that are expanding or investing in new ideas, companies that are adding jobs, hiring back those they laid off and investing in their workers and entrepreneurs who are “betting on winning the future” - starting new companies or commercializing new ideas. People rebuilding neighborhoods, putting brownfields, vacant housing and buildings back to work, making the streets safe for children to play in, creating opportunities for neighbors to come together and harnessing the power of the arts to forge awareness and new bonds. Innovative teachers and school leaders creating engaging and rigorous learning environments that get results, out of school programs providing hope, inspiration and opportunity, young adults setting off to be entrepreneurs or leaders in their communities, programs giving adult learners the skills they need to succeed in a 21st century economy. Communities restoring our waterways and preserving our parks, prairies and preserves for future generations, programs investing in our farmlands and rural America, inventors and innovators harnessing America's natural resources for our shared clean energy future. For more information on the Champions of Change Series and past Champions, please visit:www.whitehouse.gov/champions.  To nominate someone as a Champion of Change, please visit: www.whitehouse.gov/champions/nominate. 

When: 10:00am-12:30pm,  Saturday,  July 17   Where: The Rural Institute Conference Room   700 SW Higgins, next to the Pattee Creek Market What: PLUK and the Rural Institute are pleased to welcome Dr. Taylor as a guest speaker to our community.  The focus will be on sensory processing in children and adolescents. Dr. Taylor is a family psychologist, parent and the author of The Survival Guide for Kids with ADD or ADHD, Helping Your ADD Child, and From Defiance to Cooperation. Questions? Email Mary Hall at mary.hall@pluk.org or call 888-406-1914 (toll free)

Grantee Spotlight Project Access grantees are implementing unique and innovative strategies to address the challenges children and youth with epilepsy face within their health care system, schools, and communities. Learn more as we highlight a new grantee each month. How can I help improve care for children and youth with epilepsy? Explore the resources and best practices from the National Center for Project Access (NCPA) to learn about what others have done to improve systems of care. News & Events Stay informed with current epilepsy and Project Access news, funding opportunities, and upcoming events. Next About Project Access is a national initiative funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration that seeks to increase awareness of epilepsy and improve access to coordinated, comprehensive care for children and youth with epilepsy in medically underserved and rural areas.

Project Access is a national initiative funded by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration that seeks to increase awareness of epilepsy and improve access to coordinated, comprehensive care for children and youth with epilepsy in medically underserved and rural areas.

We are looking for examples of young people, age 18-30, in Montana who have a developmental disability according to the Montana definition and have creatively organized their supports to: Live in the community (on their own or with family or  friends) and/or Work in the community (including owning their own business) and/or Access inclusive education (high school, college, trade school, community classes) and/or Participate in recreation and leisure activities that are inclusive (that is, alongside people without disabilities) We want examples of supports that have been creatively organized around the person, individualized to their interests and needs.  These supports can be organized and managed by a funded adult agency or family and friends.  We are also looking for examples of creative funding such as blended services and natural supports, use of Social Security Administration work incentives, privately funded services or traded or bartered supports. Selected leaders will have their stories featured on the Montana Transition Listserv and in the annual Emerging Leader Showcase. They will also receive a monetary stipend for their time. To nominate yourself or someone you know as an Emerging Leader, visit the Rural Institute Transition Projects Website for a brief nomination form and a consent form.

Exposure to traumatic or violent experiences negatively affects the health, education, and development of preschool-aged children in Kansas City's urban communities and in rural and suburban communities throughout the state of Missouri. Without intervention, these children often experience lifelong emotional disturbance, social developmental delays, and learning problems.

What: As a part of the Mayo Clinic’s outreach to rural communities, we are fortunate to have Dr. Tanya Brown come to Missoula to share information about non– verbal learning disabilities. The purpose of these sessions is to understand the history, identify core features and review case illustrations of non-verbal learning disabilities for parents, educators and medical staff. Monday’s lecture will focus on core features and strategies to support students in home and school . Tuesday’s lecture will provide more of the medical background behind diagnosis, review case illustrations and relevant treatment recommendations and accommodations.

Go to http://www.geneticalliance.org/webinars to register now! What: The interest and use of health information technology (HIT) has greatly proliferated over the past decade, largely due to the increased focus the Federal Government has given to components of HIT, including electronic health records (EHRs), personal health records (PHRs), clinical decision support systems, and functionalities such as electronic prescribing and electronic lab ordering and results. However, for communities that are located in rural or underserved areas, the use of financial incentives will not be enough to implement an EHR. This “digital divide” has been a source of concern for both policymakers and consumer advocates. This presentation will focus on the origins of the digital divide and discuss access to and effective use of technology. When: Wednesday, February 9, 2011 10:00am - 11:00 a.m. Mountain Presenter: Jason C. Goldwater – Health IT Project Manager, NORD

Click here to read the article (PDF) The FFA motto is simple but challenging: Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve. More than a half million agricultural education students in nearly 7,500 FFA chapters across the U.S. and its territories have accepted the challenge to live out that motto. This article showcases a few examples of how AgrAbility interfaces with FFA, how FFA provides bridges to new levels of learning for rural youth with and without disabilities, and how some chapters are serving people with disabilities in their communities.