Flagship Fund Investments 2025
Immersive Science Communications Professional Development Program
Recognizing the urgent need to counter misinformation, this pilot program trains UM faculty and graduate students in effective science storytelling and media engagement. Participants attend an intensive two-day workshop, followed by a six-month support period for applying new communication skills to real-world science outreach. After that, a follow-up one-day session fosters knowledge exchange and lessons learned. The plan is to run such workshops annually, potentially expanding to a revenue-generating model open to external partners. By leveraging UM’s strengths in journalism, marketing, and the sciences, the program aims to establish the university as a leader in strategic, trustworthy science communication.
Obit Podcast
“Obit” is a collaboration between the 91视频 School of Journalism, Montana Media Lab, host Jule Banville, and Radiolab founder Jad Abumrad. The 10-episode series explores the art of the obituary, blending universal themes of death, life, and journalism while sharing stories of diverse Montanans. UM students gain hands-on experience producing audio obituaries, working alongside professionals to develop storytelling skills. Short segments will air on Montana Public Radio, with a full podcast distributed digitally and potentially nationally via the NPR app. Ultimately, this project enriches the conversation around an often taboo topic and highlights UM’s commitment to experiential, innovative media education.
Report for Montana
Report for Montana is a new UM School of Journalism course that sends students into small Montana communities to learn the operational realities of community journalism. Participants explore both editorial decision-making and business management at local newspapers and radio stations, seeing firsthand the value and sustainability of hyper-local reporting. By shadowing professionals, they gain practical experience while also investigating how local media outlets shape civic discourse. The course addresses an often-overlooked challenge: succession planning in small markets, where younger journalists might not realize the opportunities that exist. Ultimately, it aims to nurture the next generation of community-oriented news leaders who uphold journalistic excellence across Montana.
Strengthening Democracy: How U.S. Federal Indian Law has Influenced Conceptions of Tribal Sovereignty
This single-day pilot event in Fall 2025 engages about 20 Native American high school students in exploring the legal concept of tribal sovereignty. Through two lectures—one by UM faculty in Native American Studies and another by a specialized attorney—students analyze key readings on sovereignty and “domestic dependent nations.” Workshop sessions encourage participants to apply these legal concepts to real-life experiences and envision future policy changes. By boosting awareness of civic and tribal engagement, the program also provides a welcoming introduction to UM, potentially increasing Indigenous enrollment. If successful, the plan is to expand into a multi-day summer workshop that reaches students across Montana reservations.
The Big Event
The Big Event is an inaugural student-led service day at the 91视频, designed to bolster student-community connections and boost retention. Inspired by Texas A&M’s successful model, it will mobilize hundreds of students to support local residents, nonprofits, and businesses through tasks like yard work and minor repairs. This large-scale event serves as a “bookend” to a student’s first year, echoing the values introduced in the Big Sky Experience. It offers hands-on leadership and teamwork practice while contributing tangible benefits to the Missoula community. By celebrating the day with a festival, participants deepen their sense of belonging and service-oriented purpose.
Uplifting Communities and Empowering Future Leaders: UM’s Alternative Breaks Program
UM’s Alternative Breaks immerses student cohorts in service-learning trips, addressing issues from homelessness to environmental restoration. Each trip offers about a week of hands-on service, contributing hundreds of volunteer hours and fostering personal growth in critical thinking and civic engagement. Demand for these trips is high, prompting a request to expand from two trips to three and to keep participation costs low. The program also plans to add faculty advisors and deeper community partner collaborations, enriching the educational impact. By building lasting ties between student volunteers and community organizations, the initiative promotes ongoing service and a culture of civic responsibility.
Yes, Our Libraries are Open
In Missoula, two strong library systems—Missoula Public Library and UM’s Mansfield Library—plan to collaborate in promoting Open Access (OA) to scholarly resources. By hosting 6–8 community workshops during global Open Access celebrations, they’ll introduce local officials, nonprofits, and the public to OA materials and best practices. This collaboration addresses challenges posed by AI-driven misinformation and information “echo chambers,” highlighting libraries’ vital role in bridging knowledge gaps. Participants learn to find, evaluate, and ethically use open-access content, promoting civic literacy and inclusive knowledge sharing. Ultimately, the project exemplifies how libraries can be community hubs for learning and engagement.