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Big Sky resident represents Montana mothers in D.C.
Published
12 years agoon
By Emily Stifler, Explorebigsky.com Managing Editor
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Big Sky resident Barbara Rowley joined 50 other mothers April 28-30 in Washington, D.C., for the third annual Mom Congress.
Hosted by Parenting magazine, the conference this year was held by Georgetown University and the National Press Club. Delegates from each state and the District of Columbia attended, each selected for her involvement in education. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan was one of the featured presenters.
The conference theme was parental engagement in the schools, and other topics of interest included global education, wellness, the state of public schools, fundraising and social media.
“As parents, being involved in schools is a huge factor in student and school success,” Rowley said.
A number of delegates from past years returned, including lobbyists, Rowley said. One, she noted, met with the President the previous week. In total, about 100 people attended the conference, not including speakers and the magazine staff.
During the global education discussion, the group heard from the executive director of the Model UN.
“I’ve heard about [the Model UN] for years, but was glad to be reminded of what a great fit it could be in Big Sky for teaching geography, politics and current issues,” Rowley said, noting that the University of Montana has one of the longest running programs in the country.
Rowley described Secretary of Education Arne Duncan as dynamic and interesting. She said he gave a great overview of the public school situation in the U.S. that included statistics about high school and college.
“When the president and I were growing up you could get a good job with a High School degree,” Rowley recounted Duncan telling the group. But today, “without some kind of training beyond high school, you can’t.”
“He was also all about early childhood education,” Rowley said. “Schools must invest in education from cradle to career.”
Mark Kennedy Shriver, vice president of Save the Children, also made an impression on Rowley.
Shriver was passionate about the 6 million kids living in poverty, Rowley said, and about how many of those kids won’t learn to read. Kids don’t get the resources and help they need because “they don’t vote,” he said, encouraging the delegates to call their representatives and demand early education intervention.
“It’s good to see somebody fired up and passionate about these issues, especially when we live in Big Sky, and we don’t experience how real these issues really are,” Rowley said.
The event’s official ‘cause partner’ was Shot@Life, a program through the United Nations Foundation that works to vaccinate children worldwide.
Rowley found that relevant because the Lone Peak High School sophomore curriculum for science, history and English focuses on studying plagues—how they’ve affected history, the way they’re transmitted, and reading literature related to them.
Getting involved with a program like Shot@Life could be a way for the Big Sky kids “to realize how lucky we are, and how much we owe to the world to try to do a good job and educate our kids,” Rowley said. That way, “they can go out and keep working on these problems.”
Rowley has two daughters in the Big Sky School system and is a contributor to Parenting magazine.
“I wanted to go because I wanted to learn,” she said. “There’s nothing like getting out and meeting people from around the country that are engaged in public education, as well as speakers who are professionally committed to and leading public education.”
Megan Paulson is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Outlaw Partners.
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april, 2024
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We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a
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Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a limited palette to create different color combinations? Are you tired of carrying around 15-20 different tubes when you paint plein air? Have you ever wanted to create a certain “mood” in a painting but failed? Do you create a lot of mud? Do you struggle to achieve color harmony? All these problems are addressed in John’s workbook in clear and concise language!
Based on the bestselling “Limited Palatte, Unlimited Color” workbook written by John Pototschnik, the workshop is run by Maggie Shane and Annie McCoy, accomplished landscape (acrylic) and plein air (oil) artists,exhibitors at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery and members of the Big Sky Artists Collective.
Each student will receive a copy of “Limited Palette, Unlimited Color” to keep and take home to continue your limited palette journey. We will show you how to use the color wheel and mix your own clean mixtures to successfully create a mood for your paintings.
Each day, we will create a different limited palette color chart and paint a version of a simple landscape using John’s directives. You will then be able to go home and paint more schemes using the book for guidance.
Workshop is open to painters (oil or acrylic) of any level although students must have some basic knowledge of the medium he or she uses. Students will be provided the book ($92 value), color wheel, value scale and canvas papers to complete the daily exercises.
Sundays, April 14, 21 and 28, 2024
Noon until 6PM.
$170.
Time
14 (Sunday) 12:00 pm - 28 (Sunday) 6:00 pm
Event Details
Trivia from 7 to 9 p.m. at The Waypoint in Town Center. Participation is free, food and beverages available.
Event Details
Trivia from 7 to 9 p.m. at The Waypoint in Town Center. Participation is free, food and beverages available.
Time
(Wednesday) 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Location
The Waypoint
50 Ousel Falls Rd