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A new booklet released by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and other government agencies helps parents and teachers steer kids safely through the online and mobile-phone worlds.

Yellowstone County voters will find many candidates for office on the June 8 primary election ballots, but only one ballot issue: a proposed 3.2 mill countywide levy to help sustain mental-health services. The three county commissioners, Bill Kennedy, John Ostlund and Jim Reno were unanimous in their decision to put the question to voters. The commissioners are asking voters to consider funding a portion of some local crisis mental-health services that help local law enforcement agencies do their job of protecting public safety.

Students' ability to learn depends not just on the quality of their textbooks and teachers, but also on the comfort and safety they feel at school and the strength of their relationships with adults and peers there.

Montana’s mental health safety net is full of holes.Stigma, lack of insurance, Medicaid restrictions and a shortage of mental health professionals all contribute to the “state of despair” that reporter Cindy Uken has been detailing in a Billings Gazette series on suicide. The state’s suicide rate — the highest among the 50 states and double the national average — is cause for alarm. Yet it isn’t the only terrible symptom of Montanan’s mental health care gap.

Overall, researchers found that families dealing with aggressive behavior struggled with social isolation, concerns about the safety of people and property, lack of respite care and limited professional supports as well as the added expense of repairs and home modifications. What’s more, the families were concerned about being able to find alternate housing for their child with autism as they aged, according to the study published online this month in the journal Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities. Though the study was small, researchers behind the report emphasized that little has been done to understand the daily experiences of families coping with autism and aggression. Their findings suggest that there’s far too little support for individuals with aggressive tendencies and those affected by them.

1.  If your child is exhibiting new behavioral problems that are interfering with their ability to access the curriculum; your school may need to implement a Behavior Support Plan to extinguish the negative or off task behavior. 2.  If your child is struggling academically in the first semester, don’t wait until second semester to address the problem.  If you have to request new assessments; keep in mind the timeline from the day you authorized the assessments.  The school has 60 days* in which to conduct the assessments and hold an IEP, so if you wait until second semester, the school year might be coming to an end; basically, your child has lost the entire year.  * Some States have different timelines so please check the timelines in your State. 3.  If your child will be attending Kindergarten, Middle School or High School the following year; you need to know all the areas of strengths and weaknesses to help them transition into the next phase of their education. 4.  If your child has been bullied in school, you need to make sure there is a safety plan implemented to protect your child from harm.  In addition, your child should know the name of the school personnel they can approach if the situation arises again; providing a safe place in the school environment. 5.  If your child’s placement is no longer working, do not wait to address this problem; otherwise, your child may lose an entire year of academics. 6.  If your child has been suspended repeatedly for behavioral problems, do not wait until the school is about to expel your child from the district.  Call an IEP to discuss changes in the Behavior Support Plan or ask for additional assessments immediately such as a Functional Behavior Assessment. 7.  If your child has been assigned an Aide that is not experienced enough to prevent your child from eloping, you need to call an IEP as soon as possible to request a BCBA (Board Certified Behavior Analyst) or additionally training for the Aide.  Remember, every time your child leaves the classroom they are not being educated! 8.  If your child is experiencing depression, lack of self-worth, anxiety…etc.  You should call an IEP and request a Social/Emotional Assessment for in-school counseling.  If your child already has in-school counseling and that’s not working then you need to request an Educationally Related Mental Health Assessment to address these issues before they escalate into more serious behavior. 9.  If the services you agreed to at your child’s last IEP meeting are not working, you need to call an IEP to ask your school to increase the amount of services, or file for Due Process if you feel it’s necessary to take the matter directly to the school district. 10. If the School has not been following your child’s IEP; therefore, is out of compliance, call an IEP right away to allow the school to remedy the situation.  If they are not willing to rectify the situation then you need to either file for Due Process or file a complaint with the State Department of Education.

When Medicaid twice denied a SleepSafe Bed for Mikayla Wisher, her family, friends, community and many strangers stepped up. Mikayla Wisher is a 21-year-old Kalispell woman who can neither speak nor walk and who suffers multiple seizures and uncontrolled movement, Sabrina Wisher, Mikayla’s mom, said she was overwhelmed by the outpouring of love . “Strangers [have been] coming up to me and giving me hundreds of dollars,” she said. “The community and my family and friends have been huge.”

When your child is being bullied the number one issue should be your child, not the other child’s punishment. This is an extremely hard pill to swallow but is necessary for your child’s safety and well-being. Children with disabilities are very often the target of bullying but these same children will most likely have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) which can be used as an effective way to address the bullying.

For more information and registration click here!What:The Mandt System builds on skill development through a system of gradual and graded alternatives for deescalating and assisting people using a combination of interpersonal communication skills, conflict resolution strategies and physical interaction techniques.The goal is to assist others in managing themselves and the safety of all involved through skillful and nonphysical means. Physical strategies are also taught to provide additional “least restrictive” options in the event the person poses a clear threat of substantial harm to self or others if physically unassisted. The focus of The Mandt System is primarily on prevention.When:February 3, 20128:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.February 4, 20128:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.Where:Havre, MTFifth Avenue Christian ChurchContact:Aileen CouchPhone: (406) 265-4356 ext. 322

Creating a Community and Solving Challenges 1. You, A Caregiver for a Child with Autism 2. Autism and the Family 3. Grandparents and the Extended Family 4. Safety at Home 5. Building Your Faith Community 6. Creating a Community in Your Neighborhood 7. Creating a Community at School 8. Evaluating Interventions, Treatments and Resources 9. Technology 10. Your Child’s Health Care Providers and Medical Home

If your child is 6 to 12 years old, he or she may be eligible to participate in the ConnectMe clinical research program. The program includes three clinical research studies evaluating the safety, tolerability, and effectiveness of an investigational drug on social interaction and communication skills in children with autism, Asperger’s Disorder, or Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS).

The U.S. Department of Education (ED), in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), today released a school discipline guidance package that will assist states, districts and schools in developing practices and strategies to enhance school climate, and ensure those policies and practices comply with federal law. Even though incidents of school violence have decreased overall, too many schools are still struggling to create positive, safe environments. Schools can improve safety by making sure that climates are welcoming and that responses to misbehavior are fair, non-discriminatory and effective. Each year, significant numbers of students miss class due to suspensions and expulsions—even for minor infractions of school rules—and students of color and with disabilities are disproportionately impacted. The guidance package provides resources for creating safe and positive school climates, which are essential for boosting student academic success and closing achievement gaps.

As Secretary Duncan has noted, the Department of Education is committed to making sure that all of our young people grow up free of fear, violence, and bullying. Bullying not only threatens a student’s physical and emotional safety at school, but fosters a climate of fear and disrespect, creating conditions that negatively impact learning—undermining students’ ability to achieve to their full potential. Unfortunately, we know that children with disabilities are disproportionately affected by bullying.

HELENA -- The Montana Office of Public Instruction announced on Monday that it has received three grants totaling more than $12.5 million to improve school climate and school safety and support the mental and emotional health of Montana students. The Office of Public Instruction was awarded a $3.75 million School Climate Transformation grant, an $8.5 million Project AWARE grant, and a $250,000 School Emergency Planning grant.

Click here to download the full agenda (PDF)This conference is an intense, interactive two day event with a goal to provide educators and parents with an action plan for our community in dealing with the serious issue of bullying and technology. We encourage and invite you to actively participate in this important conversation.

A school and community that do not address bullying cannot ensure that each student is healthy, safe, engaged, supported, and challenged. Bullying influences each critical dimension of a whole child approach to education because it compromises students’ physical and emotional health and safety; affects their relationships with peers and adults in the school; creates barriers that prevent them from engaging in learning and connecting to the school and broader community; and affects their academic performance. When bullying goes unaddressed, it can create a negative school culture and organizational patterns that shape students’ learning and development.

Farming is not only a way of living, but it is many peoples' passion. When individuals who have had an amputation wish to return to work on the farm, there are a variety of adaptations that can be made to assist in their return to work. It is important to return famers to their desired functional level so they can reach their goals of independence. It is also imperative to consider their safety and to protect them from getting injured. Use of electronics and technology, such as centralized controls, hydraulics, monitoring systems, and computerization, on modern farms is making it easier to apply assistive technology to help those that have been faced with an amputation.[1]