Week of Action Events in Montana
Montana’s Student Leadership Team, a statewide team comprised of two students from each higher ed. institution (private, public and tribal), decided to adopt voter registration and campus-community dialogues as the unifying threads within Montana’s Week of Action work.
The following is a summary of the work happening at each campus during the Week of Action:
Chief Dull Knife College (in Lame Deer) Student Leaders will work closely with the Lame Deer tribal district in mobilizing a community voter registration drive and opportunity to meet the newly elected members of the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Council. Students and faculty from the campus will gather information on tribal, county and national election processes as well as phone numbers, addresses, and email to disburse to community members through an information booth. The booth will be set up throughout the week, in a prime location near the college café. Students completing voter registration forms will be eligible for a drawing for Dull Knife Memorial College hooded sweatshirts and other items. Volunteers will design and hand out buttons promoting student civic engagement. Volunteers will also be awarded t-shirts and a meal for their efforts. The week will end with a forum in the Charging Horse Casino, where food will be served and discussions will revolve around civic engagement and public participation in the political process. (Student Leaders Lawrence and Regina White Dirt)
Montana Tech of the University of Montana (Butte) will host several events during the Week of Action. On Sunday, February 16th, 30+ students, faculty members, staff, and at large citizens will come together to paint, remodel and clean up the Butte Sunshine Camp. The Sunshine Camp is a gathering point for underprivileged children aged seven to thirteen years old. Much of the campground is in poor condition and needs repairs in order for children to safely reside during its summer sessions. The week will continue with a campus voter registration drive, followed by a raffle drawing. The Tuesday raffle’s proceeds will go to Camaron Evans, a child born with a heart condition. The week will end with a civic engagement forum, volunteer recognition and banquet for those who participated in the weeks events. (Student Leaders: Jennifer Preble and Josh Bullock)
Montana State University-Billings students will seek answers to the question “Whose Responsibility is It?” Activities at MSUB will be sparked by large photographs depicting controversial subject matter (famine and hunger, military torture, environmental degradation) in high traffic areas around the campus. Students will have the opportunity to answer the Whose Responsibility? Question on large sheets of butcher paper hanging next to the photos. MSUB Student Leaders will then lead campus dialogues around the issues. Between 10-15 faculty members will support the project and participate in the dialogues (both formal and informal) that emerge. Student Leaders plan to purchase T-Shirts to commemorate the event. They will also bring in a speaker from Deaconess Hospital to address community issues and lead a campus dialogue.
Montana State University-Northern (Havre) will host a food drive and a campus community event during Week of Action. The Havre Food Bank, the Feed My Sheep Community Soup Kitchen and the Golden Triangle Community Mental Health Center will work with MSU-Northern students during the Week of Action. Students will build a volunteer data base, poll students on their civic engagement and promote service and civic engagement opportunities. Additionally the food drive promises to provide food for the needy in Havre’s low income community. Local businesses will lend their support by sponsoring a community event at the week’s culmination. (Student Leaders: Glen McLoud and Amy Reynolds, MTCC VISTA: Juanita Kinniburgh)
Rocky Mountain College (Billings) will focus its attention on providing underprivileged children the opportunity to create art projects in a stimulating environment and with college-aged mentors. Twenty children between 1st and 4th grades will receive boxes filled with art supplies. The children will work with college students to apply their artistic skills to portrait collages. Each collage will use using cardboard cutouts of themselves, magazine pictures, words, and found objects to represent themselves. The finished projects will be displayed in an art gallery for parents, the Rocky community, and the community at large. (Student Leaders: Cody Hess and Loren Mostad)
The University of Great Falls will host three major events during the Week of Action. The first project will be to paint a gigantic mural at the For the Children Coalition’s new Family Advocacy Center using student volunteer labor. The mural project aims to further the center’s goal of “minimizing trauma by having child and youth friendly environments” through its focus on the aesthetics. Hundreds of children and families will have a chance to admire and reflect upon the uplifting mural, and there will be a closing reception to unveil the mural, open to the public and media as well. The second segment to this proposal is a student dialogue and voter registration; the event will involve faculty, staff and administrators as well as over 1000 students. Students will voice issues previously unaddressed in a safe and responsive environment. The third project will be a homeless awareness campaign. UGF students will build a “shanty town” to spark dialogue about the homelessness problem in Great Falls. (Student Leaders Dannette Fadness and Jennifer Borlinghaus)
The University of Montana’s (Missoula) Student Leadership Team (Afton Russell and Katie Roberge) will collaborate with UM’s Office for Civic Engagement, the American Humanics Student Association and Habitat for Humanity of Missoula in a joint Week of Action/UM Charter Week. Charter week marks the 110th anniversary of the university and has been chosen as an excellent opportunity to encourage public service and participation in civic life. Missoula non-profits and UM student groups will discuss ways to collaborate their efforts and recruit volunteers in the University Center. The Leadership Team will host a student panel discussion on UM student involvement and democratic participation among the student body. The Student Leadership Team will also bring a speaker (TBA) to address the UM Volunteer Fair, which attracts at least 400 students. The Student Leaders will organize a campus wide service day including four unique service sights in the Missoula community. A healthy competition will be used as an incentive to spark student involvement. Student teams will compete based on the number of volunteer and volunteer hours logged for different prizes.
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