Volume 7 Issue 2

MTEA News

Winter 2002

FROM THE PRESIDENT:

The climate in Montana is involved in an interesting change. As I sit in my Helena classroom composing this letter, it is nearly 60 degrees and the Holiday Season is just around the corner. All of this unseasonable weather will have a long lasting impact on our state. 

Weather patterns have historically come and gone and we here in Montana make adjustments, life goes on. Big Sky residents have a history of being able to handle change.

My message, however, is not aimed at weather. The climate change I’m addressing is our terrible budget issue in Montana and its potential impact on traffic education. We need to prepare ourselves to defend our programs. If we remain silent, if we don’t speak out regarding the great job we do, we will take BIG hits. Our Profession needs to start being better advocates for Our Profession!

The other change that needs to happen in Montana relates to a GDL. In the USA there are four states that do not have some type of graduated licensing law, Kansas, Montana, Oklahoma, and Wyoming. There are only 13 states that don’t have a three stage graduated licensing system. Montana is one of them.

We are all familiar with the statistics. For example, from 1997-2001 fatalities involving drivers ages 14 through 17 dropped by 205 fatalities. Passenger fatalities in the same age group have dropped 188. Graduated licensing is working. We need to pass a GDL bill this session. Advocate for your profession! We need to contact our legislators. Help them overcome their linear water-foul disease relating to a GDL. This type of legislation will provide a significant change in Montana. 

Have an enjoyable Holiday Season. Do what you can to help it snow. Mark your calendar for the 34th MTEA Annual Conference in whitefish at the Grouse Mountain Lodge, April 27-29.

Jim 

ADTSEA NEWS

The 47th ADTSEA conference will be held July 27-31, 2003, at the Hilton Charlotte University Place in Charlotte, North Carolina. More information will be shared at the spring conference for those interested in attending.

ADTSEA on the Internet is:
http://adtsea.iup.edu/adtsea

WATCH OUT FOR CHILDREN

With more and more children walking to school than ever before because of budget cuts in local school districts, there is a greater need for motorists and pedestrians to look out for each other. Unfortunately, when drivers ignore school zones and exceed the speed limits, children are at risk for being injured by a motor vehicle.

While vehicle injuries and fatalities among youth ages 16-20 increased dramatically, the blame for these crashes can no longer be placed solely on alcohol and drugs. A number of other factors have been identified as common occurrences among youth driver crashes, including speed, lack of seat belt use, driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, driver inattention or inexperience, or being run off the road.
Driver Education News Service

Associated Press
Traffic Educator & Contributor 
Of the Year Awards 

Nomination forms for the Outstanding Traffic Educator of the Year and Contributor/Sustainer of the Year awards will be sent to all Montana high school principals and active MTEA members. A reminder that the deadline for all nominations is March 1st. Send nomination forms to the MTEA address. MTEA keeps an active file of all nominees from the most recent three- year period. Those previously nominated are eligible, provided they meet the criteria. Consider honoring fellow traffic educators and local supporters of your program. The more nominees, the better!

How To Contact Your Legislators

Take an active part in helping our young people become safe drivers. Contact your state legislators on a regular basis and let him/her know why traffic education is important for Montana.

Montana House of Representatives:
Phone: 444-4800
Fax: 444-1865
Address: P.O. Box 200400
Helena, MT 59620-0400
Montana Senate:
Phone: 444-4800
Fax: 444-3472
Address: P.O. Box 200500
Helena, MT 59620-0500

Senate Highways & Transportation Committee

Ed Butcher, Chair, R-Winifred
Duane Grimes, Vice Chair, R-Clancy
Sherm Anderson, R-Deer Lodge
Vicki Cocchiarella, D-Missoula
Mike Cooney, D-Helena
Aubyn Curtiss, R-Fortine
Bob DePratu, R-Whitefish
Dan Harrington, D-Butte
Sam Kitzenberg, R-Glasgow
Jerry O’Neil, R-Kalispell
Gearld Pease, D-Lodge Grass
Glenn Roush, D-Cut Bank

House Transportation Committee

Karl Waitschies, Chair, R-Peerless
Sylvia Bookout-Reinicke, Majority Vice Chair, 
R-Alberton
Dave Gallik, Minority Vice Chair, D-Helena
Joe Balyeat, R-Bozeman
Bob Bergren, D-Havre
Ron Devlin, R-Terry
George Golie, D-Great Falls
Jim Keane, D- Butte
Bernie Olson, R-Lakeside
Allen Rome, R-Garrison
Don Steinbeisser, R-Sidney
Sandy Weiss, D-Billings
Bill Wilson, D-Great Falls

ADTSEA and MTEA on the Web

Check out ADTSEA on the Internet. Their address is http://www.adtsea.iup.edu/adtsea. While you are there, check out the new MTEA link! Once onto the ADTSEA site, click the state affiliates section. Then click on Montana to see what is posted. If you want to bypass the ADTSEA site, go to www.adtsea.iup.edu/montana. A special thanks to Dennis Davenport of Colstrip for getting this site up and running. If you have suggestions for improvement, let us know!

RETIRING

If you retired last spring or have plans to retire from education this year and are an active MTEA member, please let Jim Carroll know at the MTEA address. We would like to honor you at the next spring conference. Remember that we have implemented an application process to help in recognizing years of service and contributions to MTEA. A general mailing will be going out in January, but you may request the application form earlier if you desire.

MTEA Membership

If you attended the spring conference in Bozeman, your membership into MTEA automatically renewed with your conference payment. If you know of someone who is not a current member of MTEA, encourage him/her to join. Contact Jim Carroll at the MTEA address and he will send an application form and letter to those people you identify as potential members.

OPI Web Site

You may want to check out the traffic education web site that the Office of Public Instruction has posted. Log on to the OPI page at www.opi.state.mt.us. Once there, scroll down the page to the Health Enhancement & Safety section. You will then find access to both the Advanced Driver Education program and Traffic Education. There will soon be links to information on MTEA as well.

MTEA 2003 CONFERENCE

The 2003 conference is scheduled for April 27-29 at the Grouse Mountain Lodge in Whitefish. The format will follow what we have done the past few years, with registration on Sunday morning followed by workshops Sunday afternoon, all day Monday, and concluding around noon on Tuesday. Conference registration fees will remain at $135, which includes five meals and all sessions. Look for registration materials in the next couple of months. One important thing to note is room reservations. To ensure a single occupancy room rate of $50, plus tax, it would be a good idea to make your reservations by March 1. Reservations made beyond this date may not be able to get the special rate. Be sure to indicate you are with the MTEA group and specify what nights you need to get the special rate. To make a reservation, refer to the reservation form included in this newsletter. You may either call them or fax the form in for reservations. Plan now to attend! If you have any questions about the conference, contact MTEA Executive Secretary Jim Carroll at (406) 278-3285. The best time to reach him is between 8:00-10:00 AM. You may also reach him by e-mail at tjcarrol@rocketmail.com.

Status Report Magazine

This publication, published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, is available free of charge for single copies to traffic educators. Issues typically give an overview of current traffic-related studies. If you would like to get on their mailing list, contact them at: IIHS Status Report, 1005 North Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 2201. You may also contact them by phone at (703) 247-1500 or by the web at www.highwaysafety.org.

Insurance Educator Magazine

This publication, published by the Insurance Education Foundation, is available free of charge for single copies to traffic educators. To get on their mailing list, contact them at: Insurance Education Foundation, PO Box 68700, Indianapolis, IN 46268. You may also contact them by phone at 1-800-443-4811 or on the net at www.ief.org.

 David Huff, Office of Public Instruction

It’s that time of year again. My wish for each of you is that you have a great holiday season.

NTSB Safety Recommendation
The National transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has contacted Governor Judy Martz with a recommendation that Montana adopt and implement a graduated driver license. In the communication, issued November 8, 2002, the NTSB recommended the governor:
“Require that the supervising adult driver in the learner’s permit stage of your graduated licensing law is age 21 or older. (H-02-31) 
“Enact laws to provide for a three-stage graduated licensing system for young novice drivers, and restrict young novice drivers with provisional or intermediate licenses (second stage), unless accompanied by a supervising adult driver who is at least 21 years old, from carrying more than one passenger under the age of 20 until they receive an unrestricted license4 or for at least 6 months (whichever is longer). (H-02-32)”

The full NTSB safety recommendation can be located at http://www.ntsb.gov/Recs/letters/2002/HO2_31_32.pdf.

Liability and Professional Development for TE Teachers
In information he provides to TE teachers, OPI attorney Jeff Weldon lists three duties owed by Traffic Education Teachers: 1) Supervision of Students; 2) Proper Instruction; and 3) Maintenance of Equipment. Liability may be associated with failure to provide these three duties at an appropriate level. The annual traffic education conference conducted by the MTEA and OPI provides valuable and ongoing information to assist TE teachers and school districts in meeting their duty. It is permissible and appropriate that traffic education funds be used to provide professional development to TE teachers. 

TE Teacher Shortages
As is the case with most specialized teachers, some Montana communities are experiencing a shortage of TE qualified teachers. In order to help alleviate this shortage, Montana State University at Northern will offer the six credits of foundation TE coursework in two locations during the summer of 2003 – one section at Havre, and one at Billings. Administrators may want to ask and assist a promising teacher to obtain this coursework in exchange for a commitment to teach the district’s TE classes. For more information contact Bob Kurtz at MSU-N; 1-800-662-6132 x 3738.

What do Te teachers make? They make far too little in dollars, but they make a difference in the lives of hundreds of teens – and the value of that to families and society cannot be measured in dollars. On behalf of my wife and I and other parents who have had TE teachers teach our kids, thanks you! And, keep up the good work!

DID YOU KNOW THAT IN…

1894 The first brick surface was laid on rural road, Wooster pike, near Cleveland, Ohio

1898 H.H. Franklin produced the first air-cooled engine

1905 Spyker produced the first front-wheel-drive car, in Holland


Did you know that MTEA budgets money, mostly from the proceeds of our 50/50 drawings, for the purchase of door prizes? We can always use more door prizes though. Consider asking at least one business in your community if they would donate something to the conference. Bring it with you to the conference in Whitefish and turn it in at the registration tables. We will add it to our collection to make the prizes even more appealing!
 

BECOME AN ACTIVE PART OF MTEA

In Motion Magazine

Are you one of many teachers who used to use In Motion magazine in your classes? It used to be distributed free to schools, but went out of publication last year due to lack of sponsorship by General Motors. Quaker State has been secured as the new sponsor. If you are interested in receiving a classroom set (up to 65 copies), contact the publisher by phone at (847) 205-3000 and ask to be placed on the new mailing list. You may also contact them by mail at General Learning Communications, 900 Skokie Boulevard, Northbrook, Illinois 60062-4028.

CONGRATULATIONS to Jeff M of Sidney! He was nominated by the MTEA Executive Board to represent Montana as a nominee for the ADTSEA Traffic Educator of the Year! Jeff will now complete an application process as outlined by ADTSEA. Way to go, Jeff!

A LEGISLATIVE PHONE TREE has been developed should we need to alert you to pending legislation. Ten different regions have been assigned to the various Board members. If you receive a call from them, or other key persons helping to relay information, please respond as soon as possible by contacting your legislators. Should the tree be activated, timing will be of the essence. Please help to the extent you are able. Thanks.

President-Elect And Board Nominations

Please give serious consideration on becoming more involved in MTEA by running for the office of President-Elect or serving on the Executive Board. If you would be interested in finding out more about these positions, contact Jim Carroll.

Class C Director Position Opening
There is currently an opening for a Class C Director position. Former director David B was appointed to an “at large” position due to his move from Heart Butte to Wolf Point. A new director will be selected at the classification meetings at the spring conference. Seriously consider a nomination to this position.

Most Of Us CD-ROM

By now, you or your school should have received several copies of a newly developed traffic safety CD-ROM for use in your program. The “Montana Rules” DD-ROM was created by the Most Of Us Campaign at MSU-Bozeman with funding from the Montana department of Transportation. At this time, it is available at no charge to schools in helping prepare young drivers in safety, traffic laws, and preparation for the state-driving exam. Many teachers are currently using this CD-ROM and have found it to be very useful. If you cannot put your hands on a copy and would like to see one, contact the producers at: Most Of Us, MSU-Bozeman, and PO BOX 170520, BOZEMAN, MT 59717-0520. You may also contact them by phone at (406) 994-7873 or by the Internet at www.mostofus.org.

IF YOU HAVE A NEW ADDRESS SINCE THE LAST SCHOOL YEAR, PLEASE FORWARD IT TO JIM CARROLL AT THE MTEA ADDRESS

MTEA 2003 CONFERENCE

THE 2003 CONFERENCE IS SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 27-29 AT THE GROUSE MOUNTAIN LODGE IN WHITEFISH. PLAN NOW TO ATTEND! LOOK FOR MORE DETAILS AS THE SCHOOL YEAR PROGRESSES.


IF YOU HAVE ANY ARTICLES YOU WOULD LIKE TO SHARE IN THE NEWSLETTER, PLEASE SEND TO:

HAROLD LAIR
POLSON MIDDLE SCHOOL
111 4TH AVE. EAST
POLSON, MT 59860

FAX: 406-883-6334
E-MAIL hlair@polson.k12.mt.us

NEWSLETTER DEADLINES:
FALL NEWSLETTER OCTOBER 1
WINTER NEWSLETTER DECEMBER 1
SPRING NEWSLETTER MARCH 1

OFFICERS

Members at Large:
David B (Wolf Point, B)
Karen C (Chinook, B)
Christian F (Hamilton A)
Terry G (Box Elder C)
Harold L (Polson A)
Dan M (Anaconda, A)
Jeff M (Sidney A)
Gary P (Laurel A)
Dan P (Helena, AA)

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