REGISTER
The 26th Annual AUGUST INSTITUTE
Connecting Innovators and Educators Under the Big Sky
Join us in-person or virtually
July 31st - August 2nd, 2024 at Missoula College, Missoula, MT
(Friday, August 2nd will be virtual ONLY)
MTPLC HOSTS MONTANA CONVERSATIONS “MONTANA’S POET LAUREATE” WITH CHRIS LA TRAY at the 2024 August Institute
The 26th Annual AUGUST INSTITUTE
Connecting Innovators and Educators Under the Big Sky
Join us in-person or virtually
July 31st - August 2nd, 2024 at Missoula College, Missoula, MT
(Friday, August 2nd will be virtual ONLY)
MTPLC HOSTS MONTANA CONVERSATIONS “MONTANA’S POET LAUREATE” WITH CHRIS LA TRAY at the 2024 August Institute
Our Sponsors of the August Institute:

Registration:
Blackfoot Communications is providing FREE REGISTRATIONS to all educators serving Blackfoot schools. Additional free registrations will be provided to Montana educators while supplies last. Apply today. WMPLC will notify you, via email, once you have been approved for a free registration.
This conference for educators will focus on technology integration into core content areas including sessions on topics such as Artificial Intelligence, media literacy, cybersecurity, and apps such as Curipod and Diffit. Additional sessions may include mindfulness, IEFA, visual arts, SEL, STEAM, suicide intervention, grief support, and Mandt training. Join us for one, two or three days of the conference. This year's conference will be a hybrid platform: You can choose to attend In-person at Missoula College or attend virtually. In most cases, you will not need to select the sessions you plan to attend in advance. Specific sessions will be announced in the coming months, but examples from last year's conference can be viewed here: https://www.mtplc.org/sample-schedule-2023.html
Additionally, we will be offering asynchronous courses/sessions using the Thinkific platform. These sessions will run concurrently with the in-person and live zoom options, and also be available for several days prior to the start of the conference and for two weeks after the conference concludes! PLEASE NOTE: You will need to select the Thinkific courses you wish to attend in advance so we can enroll you. However, your completion of the courses will be on your own schedule. Additional information will be provided for how to register at least two weeks prior to the start of the Institute.
The Montana Professional Learning Collaboration (MTPLC) hosts Montana Conversation “Montana’s Poet Laureate” with Chris La Tray on Thursday, August 01, 2024. The program is at Missoula College at 8:00 AM. The presentation is free and open to the public. Funding for the Montana Conversations program is provided by Humanities Montana through grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Montana’s Cultural Trust, and private donations. We are funded in part by coal severance taxes paid based upon coal mined in Montana and deposited in Montana’s cultural and aesthetic projects trust fund.
Métis storyteller and Little Shell Chippewa member Chris La Tray approaches the practice of poetry the same as he does the spiritual life of an Anishinaabe person: which is to say, if one lives an Anishinaabe life, with particular attention to the seven guiding principles of the Seven Grandfather teachings – Humility, Courage, Honesty, Wisdom, Truth, Respect, and Love – then every footstep becomes a prayer. Similarly, if one approaches poetry in a similar fashion, recognizing that everything that happens may be viewed as a poem, and that every moment in life is an experience best paid constant and careful attention to, then every footstep becomes a poem. Whether as words on a page or shared orally, poetry becomes another means for telling and sharing stories; La Tray's programs exist to remind people that their stories matter, that they are the only ones who can properly tell them, and that poetry, however it is defined, is a beautiful means for doing so.
La Tray is a Métis storyteller and an enrolled member of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. He is the author of One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large. His next book, Becoming Little Shell will be published by Milkweed Editions in 2024.
Dates:
Wednesday, July 31st, Registration from 7:00 - 8:00 a.m. and workshops from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 1st, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Friday, August 2nd, 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m. Virtual only.
Where: The Missoula College, 1205 East Broadway Street, Missoula, MT 59802 (See website for hotel blocks. Hotel blocks end early in July so please make your reservations as soon as possible to ensure you will be able to get one.) Or you can attend some of the sessions via Zoom. These sessions will be identified on the schedule as it becomes finalized. Not all sessions will be available both face to face and virtually!
Coffee will be provided each day and lunch will be provided on July 31st and August 1 for those attending in person.
Credit Options:
July 31st: 6 OPI renewal units
August 1st: 6 OPI renewal units
August 2nd: 3 OPI renewal units
or
2 semester credits at an additional charge of $155. (not part of Blackfoot's free registration). A separate Semester Credit Registration Form will be provided at the conference.
The third day of the conference (August 2nd) is a virtual-only, half day session that is required if you choose to take the August Institute for University of Montana semester credits.
If you are taking the conference for UM credit, or if you are uncertain and want to know more, you will need to register for this on-demand Thinkific course. This course will cover everything you need to know about the requirements for earning credit. Click this link to register and view the course, it should take about 20 minutes. Requirements for UM Credit at AI 2024
Event Number: 24570002
Register here: https://forms.gle/8PuTbf1LjDDbXwHa9
Keynote:
Beyond the Chalk presenters; Jeff Crews and Dean Phillips
HOTEL BLOCKS 2024
Hotel blocks: Hotel blocks end by June 30th so please make your reservations as soon as possible to ensure you will be able to get one.
AUGUST INSTITUTE 2024 SCHEDULE
MISSOULA COLLEGE FLOOR PLAN MAPS
LIST OF BLACKFOOT SCHOOLS 2024
CREDIT OPTIONS FORM
OPI Renewal Units
Virtual Attendees: We will send the OPI units via email for remote participants after the conference. There will be one renewal unit form for each day, and it will reflect the actual number of hours you attended. We will be asking participants to fill out an evaluation of each session they attend, in the last few minutes of the session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. That is how we will take our attendance and know how many hours each person earned remotely.
In Person Attendees: All in person attendees will check in at the registration desk at the start of the day on July 31 and Aug 1, and check out upon leaving the conference. We will also be asking in person participants to fill out an evaluation of each session they attend, in the last few minutes of the session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. Your OPI renewal units will be calculated accordingly and provided upon check out each day. SInce Aug 2 is a fully remote day, you will follow the procedure described above for Virtual Participants on that day, and your OPI units earned that day will be emailed to you.
Hybrid Attendees: If you are attending some sessions face to face and some remotely, you will check in upon arriving physically at the conference, and check out upon leaving. You will also fill out an evaluation of each session you attend, in the last few minutes of that session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. Your OPI renewal units will be calculated accordingly and provided upon check out each day or emailed to you at the end of the conference as applicable, depending on method of attendance each day.
UM Credits
In order to earn UM credits, you must attend a session each hour one is offered, either remotely or in person. Please see the attached syllabus and read it carefully in order to understand the additional assignments you must complete to earn either Undergraduate or Graduate Credit. Earning Grad credit requires completion of an additional assignment.
You will also fill out the UM Credit Registration Form, attached, and either turn it in at the registration desk if attending in person, or email it to me at [email protected] by Friday, August 2, 2024. You must include your debit/credit card information on the form, or send the form to me at the post office box listed in my signature line ASAP with a check for $155. This fee goes to UM to register your credits. Make checks out to the University of Montana. We will have copies of the syllabus and the UM credit form at the registration desk and they are also uploaded to the Whova Conference App in the Documents section and attached to this email.
More information detailing the requirements for earning UM credit will be provided in an on-demand Thinkific, which will go live the week of the conference.
Blackfoot Communications is providing FREE REGISTRATIONS to all educators serving Blackfoot schools. Additional free registrations will be provided to Montana educators while supplies last. Apply today. WMPLC will notify you, via email, once you have been approved for a free registration.
This conference for educators will focus on technology integration into core content areas including sessions on topics such as Artificial Intelligence, media literacy, cybersecurity, and apps such as Curipod and Diffit. Additional sessions may include mindfulness, IEFA, visual arts, SEL, STEAM, suicide intervention, grief support, and Mandt training. Join us for one, two or three days of the conference. This year's conference will be a hybrid platform: You can choose to attend In-person at Missoula College or attend virtually. In most cases, you will not need to select the sessions you plan to attend in advance. Specific sessions will be announced in the coming months, but examples from last year's conference can be viewed here: https://www.mtplc.org/sample-schedule-2023.html
Additionally, we will be offering asynchronous courses/sessions using the Thinkific platform. These sessions will run concurrently with the in-person and live zoom options, and also be available for several days prior to the start of the conference and for two weeks after the conference concludes! PLEASE NOTE: You will need to select the Thinkific courses you wish to attend in advance so we can enroll you. However, your completion of the courses will be on your own schedule. Additional information will be provided for how to register at least two weeks prior to the start of the Institute.
The Montana Professional Learning Collaboration (MTPLC) hosts Montana Conversation “Montana’s Poet Laureate” with Chris La Tray on Thursday, August 01, 2024. The program is at Missoula College at 8:00 AM. The presentation is free and open to the public. Funding for the Montana Conversations program is provided by Humanities Montana through grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Montana’s Cultural Trust, and private donations. We are funded in part by coal severance taxes paid based upon coal mined in Montana and deposited in Montana’s cultural and aesthetic projects trust fund.
Métis storyteller and Little Shell Chippewa member Chris La Tray approaches the practice of poetry the same as he does the spiritual life of an Anishinaabe person: which is to say, if one lives an Anishinaabe life, with particular attention to the seven guiding principles of the Seven Grandfather teachings – Humility, Courage, Honesty, Wisdom, Truth, Respect, and Love – then every footstep becomes a prayer. Similarly, if one approaches poetry in a similar fashion, recognizing that everything that happens may be viewed as a poem, and that every moment in life is an experience best paid constant and careful attention to, then every footstep becomes a poem. Whether as words on a page or shared orally, poetry becomes another means for telling and sharing stories; La Tray's programs exist to remind people that their stories matter, that they are the only ones who can properly tell them, and that poetry, however it is defined, is a beautiful means for doing so.
La Tray is a Métis storyteller and an enrolled member of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. He is the author of One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large. His next book, Becoming Little Shell will be published by Milkweed Editions in 2024.
Dates:
Wednesday, July 31st, Registration from 7:00 - 8:00 a.m. and workshops from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Thursday, August 1st, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Friday, August 2nd, 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m. Virtual only.
Where: The Missoula College, 1205 East Broadway Street, Missoula, MT 59802 (See website for hotel blocks. Hotel blocks end early in July so please make your reservations as soon as possible to ensure you will be able to get one.) Or you can attend some of the sessions via Zoom. These sessions will be identified on the schedule as it becomes finalized. Not all sessions will be available both face to face and virtually!
Coffee will be provided each day and lunch will be provided on July 31st and August 1 for those attending in person.
Credit Options:
July 31st: 6 OPI renewal units
August 1st: 6 OPI renewal units
August 2nd: 3 OPI renewal units
or
2 semester credits at an additional charge of $155. (not part of Blackfoot's free registration). A separate Semester Credit Registration Form will be provided at the conference.
The third day of the conference (August 2nd) is a virtual-only, half day session that is required if you choose to take the August Institute for University of Montana semester credits.
If you are taking the conference for UM credit, or if you are uncertain and want to know more, you will need to register for this on-demand Thinkific course. This course will cover everything you need to know about the requirements for earning credit. Click this link to register and view the course, it should take about 20 minutes. Requirements for UM Credit at AI 2024
Event Number: 24570002
Register here: https://forms.gle/8PuTbf1LjDDbXwHa9
Keynote:
Beyond the Chalk presenters; Jeff Crews and Dean Phillips
HOTEL BLOCKS 2024
Hotel blocks: Hotel blocks end by June 30th so please make your reservations as soon as possible to ensure you will be able to get one.
AUGUST INSTITUTE 2024 SCHEDULE
MISSOULA COLLEGE FLOOR PLAN MAPS
LIST OF BLACKFOOT SCHOOLS 2024
CREDIT OPTIONS FORM
OPI Renewal Units
Virtual Attendees: We will send the OPI units via email for remote participants after the conference. There will be one renewal unit form for each day, and it will reflect the actual number of hours you attended. We will be asking participants to fill out an evaluation of each session they attend, in the last few minutes of the session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. That is how we will take our attendance and know how many hours each person earned remotely.
In Person Attendees: All in person attendees will check in at the registration desk at the start of the day on July 31 and Aug 1, and check out upon leaving the conference. We will also be asking in person participants to fill out an evaluation of each session they attend, in the last few minutes of the session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. Your OPI renewal units will be calculated accordingly and provided upon check out each day. SInce Aug 2 is a fully remote day, you will follow the procedure described above for Virtual Participants on that day, and your OPI units earned that day will be emailed to you.
Hybrid Attendees: If you are attending some sessions face to face and some remotely, you will check in upon arriving physically at the conference, and check out upon leaving. You will also fill out an evaluation of each session you attend, in the last few minutes of that session. It will be in a Google form, unique to each session and embedded in the session description on the Whova App. Your OPI renewal units will be calculated accordingly and provided upon check out each day or emailed to you at the end of the conference as applicable, depending on method of attendance each day.
UM Credits
In order to earn UM credits, you must attend a session each hour one is offered, either remotely or in person. Please see the attached syllabus and read it carefully in order to understand the additional assignments you must complete to earn either Undergraduate or Graduate Credit. Earning Grad credit requires completion of an additional assignment.
You will also fill out the UM Credit Registration Form, attached, and either turn it in at the registration desk if attending in person, or email it to me at [email protected] by Friday, August 2, 2024. You must include your debit/credit card information on the form, or send the form to me at the post office box listed in my signature line ASAP with a check for $155. This fee goes to UM to register your credits. Make checks out to the University of Montana. We will have copies of the syllabus and the UM credit form at the registration desk and they are also uploaded to the Whova Conference App in the Documents section and attached to this email.
More information detailing the requirements for earning UM credit will be provided in an on-demand Thinkific, which will go live the week of the conference.

august_institute_flyer_4.23.24.pdf |