A Year of Programs
Montana Conversations
Montana Conversations programs are available to community groups, museums, parks, and libraries across Montana. Organizations can access over 60 presentations on topics like the poetry of Montana, native cultures, state and regional histories, media literacy, and civic engagement. Montana Conversations programs are always free and open to the public!
Mary Jane Bradbury at the Petroleum County Community Center
On September 30, 2023, Montana Conversations presenter Mary Jane Bradbury traveled to Winnett, MT, to present her program, Kid Gloves and Brass Knuckles: The Life of Nancy Cooper Russell at the Petroleum County Community Center (PCCC). In her presentation, Bradbury, who portrays Russell, discussed her against the backdrop of the social and political reform of the early 1900s. Nancy Cooper Russell was a woman ahead of her time: a self-taught businesswoman with the ability to take charge, she helped her husband, Charles M. Russell, become the highest-paid living artist of his time.
Thank you to all of our Montana Conversations speakers for making their public humanities programs available to all Montanans!
The audience loved the performance! Attendees were aged from kindergarten through adults and all were very entertained and intrigued by the history. The storytelling was phenomenal as well! At the end, there were a lot of questions asked, and the performer knew the answers. We heard nothing but good reviews from everyone and look forward to having Miss Bradbury back again.”
– Lance Olson, PCCC Director
2023 Montana Conversations Numbers
1%
of Montana Conversations programs took place in rural communities.
1%
of Montana Conversations programs took place in urban communities.
1%
of Montana Conversations programs occurred statewide for virtual audiences.
1
Montanans attended a program.
Speakers in the Schools
With our Speakers in the Schools programs, Humanities Montana presenters interact with students across the state, leading workshops and conversations on topics like current affairs, untold histories, native cultures, literature, and more. Teachers work with speakers to tailor programs to suit classroom needs. Speakers in the Schools programs are free to students across Montana, including students at public, private, and charter schools and homeschool groups.
Chris La Tray, Montana Poet Laureate
On September 13, 2023, Montana State Poet Laureate, Chris La Tray, visited 55 students in two literature classes at Flathead High School in Whitefish, Montana, to present his Speakers in the Schools program, The Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians: Métis Buffalo Hunters of the Northern Plains. The objective of La Tray’s visit was to reinforce the understanding of tribal history in Montana by sharing cultural knowledge and history of The Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians, who were only federally recognized in 2019.
I have talked about the idea of ‘stolen land’ but it had a much more powerful impact for the students hearing it expressed in a Native voice. Thank you to Chris and all of our Speakers in the Schools presenters who bring their programs to classrooms across the state!”
– Allison Kress, Teacher at Flathead High School
2023 Speakers in the Schools Numbers
1
total Speakers in the Schools programs were booked.
1
individual Speakers in the Schools presentations occurred.
1
students were served.
1%
of Speakers in the Schools programs occurred in rural communities.
1%
of programs occurred in Native American Communities.
1%
of Speakers in the Schools programs occurred in urban communities.
The Democracy Project
The Democracy Project is a teen-led, non-partisan initiative supported by local libraries, community partners, and Humanities Montana. This program gives teens the resources to meet community needs while learning their role in an evolving democracy. Through direct civic engagement, teens work for six months on projects they feel are vital to their community, ending with a public showcase. The program sites cover Montana’s diverse geography and demographics, including rural and Tribal communities as well as bigger towns and cities. Teens build skills in civic education and leadership, collaboration, media literacy, and critical thinking. Projects respond to local community needs, for example: revitalization of libraries, school facilities, and parks; creation of educational greenspaces; anti-bullying initiatives and websites; preservation of stories and culture; and expansion of existing programs like recycling and resource closets for students in need.
Teens presenting at the state legislature
The Democracy Project at Helena’s Lewis and Clark Public Library During the 2023 legislative session, teens from Lewis and Clark Public Library’s Democracy Project wrote a bill addressing teen mental health which, was picked up by a legislator and became HB-875. The Montana Office of Public Instruction attached $1M of funding to the bill, and the teens went before the education committee to provide testimony. Although the bill did not pass out of committee, House Education Committee Chair Rep. Fred Anderson told the teens, “I’d like to also add my thank you to the students that came, both for your testimony and also for being proactive rather than just sitting and feeling bad about the current system not working well. So, thank you.” Without giving up, the teens pivoted and created a website to raise awareness of teen mental health issues.
In my many years of being a librarian, working with the Democracy Project and its group of dedicated, caring, teens who have been meeting all year long and using their time to write a House Bill and developing a website dedicated to Teen Mental Health has been the highlight of my career. It has been an honor to work with this group of forward-thinking young people. They give me hope.”
– Sherry R. Schlundt, Teen Services Librarian, Lewis & Clark Library, Helena
2023 Democracy Project Locations
The Montana Center for the Book
The Montana Center for the Book is a program of Humanities Montana and the state affiliate of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress. Its mission is to promote awareness of books, writing, reading, the book arts, publishing, and literacy in Montana. Each year, the Montana Center for the Book participates in the National Book Festival’s “Great Reads from Great Places” program in Washington, DC, by selecting an adult and a youth title that exemplifies Montana literature and culture. Montana Center for the Book programs such as Montana Reads/Montana Writes and the Montana State Poet Laureate are available through the Montana Conversations and Speakers in the Schools program catalogs. Further, Big Sky Reads grants are available to rural communities to support book clubs and literacy across the state.
Thompson Falls Book Club
The Big Sky Reads grant supports public book clubs in rural communities that engage in thought-provoking discussions about literature. This grant is a great resource to find new books, new participants, discussion questions, and book club facilitators. In 2023, 11 book clubs were awarded Big Sky Reads grants of $500.00 apiece. These book clubs included groups in Thompson Falls, Cascade, Forsyth, Soobey, Troy, Harlem, Havre, Gendie, Dillon, Chester, and Bozeman, Montana.
