Turner Public School receives additional COVID relief funding

Staff and wire report

Turner Public School announced it received $35,784 in additional COVID-19 relief funding from the Montana Governor’s office to purchase new technology.

“This is a significant financial boost to our district,” Turner Public School Superintendent Tony Warren said in a release this morning. “We would not be able to upgrade this much technology so quickly without these additional financial resources. The improved technology infrastructure will benefit our entire K-12 student body.”

The relief funding grant will pay for five new Smart Boards, 20 new iPads and 11 new laptops, the district said in the release. The five new Smart Boards helps replace Smart Boards that are currently 15-20 years old.

Turner Public School was also awarded a $4,100 COVID relief grant by Montana Department of Health and Human Services. The grant helps pay for a SafeTALK Suicide Prevention training that is scheduled for Jan. 2021. Per the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, SafeTALK is a half-day face-to-face training program that teaches participants to recognize and engage persons who might be having thoughts of suicide and to connect them with community resources trained in suicide intervention. SafeTALK stresses safety while challenging taboos that inhibit open talk about suicide.

Since Feb. 2020, Turner Public School has received more than $50,000 in outside funding to help improve and enhance educational opportunities for the district, the release said. These most recent two outside funding sources are among others Turner Public School has received over the past year, such as:

• Triangle Communications technology grant to purchase document cameras for all teachers;

• Montana Masonic Foundation grant for the library to buy a cart, a mobile book display, classroom novel sets for grades seven-twelve, and books on Montana history and culture;

• Humanities Montana grant to bring Native American artist and cultural consultant Louise Fisher to the district in September;

• Montana Office of Public Instruction School Safety Grant to conduct a youth mental health training;

• Montana Office of Public Instruction Indian Education for All Grant to provide additional education on Montana American Indian culture and history;

• Walmart grant to purchase physical education and weight room equipment, and

• Two Donors Choose Project — physical education equipment and flat screen TV for the art classroom.

Warren said that outside funding sources like these can make a big difference for rural schools.

“The additional funding is great news for our district, and proof that if you keep persistent in working the grant angle, good things start to happen,” he said. “We want to provide the best educational environment possible and the outside funding helps to continue to update and expand learning opportunities for our students.”