Two programs aimed at 4th-12th grade students:

1. A Montana History poster contest for students 4-5th grades: $3,000

2. Three Montana history-themed student research prizes for students 6-12th grade: $1,500

Project Description:

In collaboration with National History Day in Montana (NHD MT)—an established academic program serving students 4-12th grades—the MT 250 Commission (MT 250) requests $4,500 to support programs to boost student engagement with Montana history through research, analysis, and presentation at local, state, and national levels.

Project Description:

“The Montana Tapestry: People and Places from 1776 to Today” will include six sets of pop-up banners with content on the people, places, resources, and structures that unite us as Montanans and Americans and give us common purpose as we look ahead to the next 250 years. This traveling interpretive exhibit commemorates the upcoming semiquincentennial, educates the public on lesser-known history, people and places of Montana, and highlights Montana's changing cultural, social and physical landscapes from 1776 to today. Six sets of banners and interpretive resources will travel throughout Montana State Parks visitors centers across each region of the state, delving into our unique past and sparking curiosity to help shape the next 250 years of our state.

Coming soon!

Amount Requested: $22,000 to support high school CTE (Career and Technical Education) classes involvement in a Burma Shave Sign- inspired project.

Project Description:

MT 250 will work with nine exemplary construction-skills high schools, one in each of the MASS (MT Association of School Superintendents) regions, to purchase supplies locally and produce a nine slogan roadway sign sets which school reps will erect working with landowners in their county. Modeled after the successful 1950s Burma Shave signs that used a series of advertising slogans along roadways, the goal is to have at least one Montana 250 slogan erected in each county by the summer of 2025.

The Montana 250th Commission and the Montana Historical Society are hosting a year-along series of virtual events designed to build excitement around the United States's 250th birthday in 2026. "Montana Reads: The Treasure State's Book Club" is a monthly online book discussion that will cover exciting topics and figures from United States, Montana, and Tribal history.

Each month, a member of the Montana 250th Commission will lead a presentation and discussion on books that explore myriad aspects of our shared history - from the Founding Fathers to Montana statesmen and women, cultural traditions to amazing innovation. These monthly discussions will feature conversations around the books' central themes, seeking applications to current challenges and initiatives facing our state and nation. Montanans are encouraged to participate in any and all of these events that they find interesting, and where possible to read the book in advance.

The Montana 250th Commission is excited to share these stories with all Montanans and will be bringing in special guests where possible to further bring this history to life. Events will be held on Zoom each second Thursday of the month from 6:30 to 7:30pm.

The first two book club meetings will be on the book Rush: Revolution, Madness & the Visionary Doctor Who Became a Founding Father, by Stephen Fried. The discussion will be led by Molly Stockdale, MT 250th Commission member and executive director of Travelers' Rest.

By the time he was thirty, Dr. Benjamin Rush had signed the Declaration of Independence, edited Common Sense, toured Europe as Benjamin Franklin’s protégé, become John Adams’s confidant, and was soon to be appointed Washington’s surgeon general. He was only just beginning his role in 1776 in the American experiment. Discover Rush's singular life and towering legacy in this illuminating book by Stephen Fried.

Register via the links below:

Thur., July 10 ~ 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Part I: Turbulent Spirit, pages 1 - 250

*NOTE: Author Stephen Fried will join us live for the July event

Thur., Aug. 14 ~ 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Part II: American Hippocrates, pages 251 - 510

Upcoming Book Club Events are:

Thur., Sept. 11 ~ 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11, by Garrett Graff

NOTE: Author Garrett Graff will join us live for this special event in honor of the victims of September 11, 2001

Thur., Oct. 9 ~ 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Mansfield and Dirksen: Bipartisan Giants of the Senate, by Marc Johnson

NOTE: Author Marc Johnson will join us live for this event

Registration links for September and October are forthcoming. Please email laura.marsh@mt.gov for any issues with registering and receiving the link.