The Education Interim Committee (EDIC) will meet on March 19-20, 2020, in Room 102 of the State Capitol to examine a range of education issues, including assessment and pre-kindergarten.

The meeting will begin at 1:00 PM on Thursday, March 19, with a video chat with 2020 Montana Teacher of the Year Linda Rost from Baker High School. Rost is one of 4 finalists for National Teacher of the Year.

Testing has been a hot topic for a number of years and the committee will hear from several school district administrators and assessment coordinators about the state of assessment in Montana, as well as from a policy expert with Education Commission of the States on innovations taking place in other states through the testing flexibility afforded under ESSA. Thursday afternoon will also include presentations from the Montana Library Association and Montana No Kid Hungry.

Friday highlights include:

• a panel discussion with school counselors covering counselors' role in supporting student mental health and in providing career guidance;
• a joint working lunch on school funding and property taxes with the LFC MARA study committee; and
• a committee work session on pre-kindergarten that will begin with a look at policy frameworks of state programs that allow for mixed delivery (public schools and community-based providers) of voluntary pre-k with local school districts leading/coordinating the effort.

The meeting will be live streamed at http://leg.mt.gov and will be broadcast on the Montana Public Affairs Network (MPAN). For more information about the meeting, including a full agenda, visit the committee’s website or contact Pad McCracken, committee staff.

Committee Website: https://leg.mt.gov/committees/interim/2019edic/

Committee Staff: padmccracken@mt.gov or (406) 444-3595