A new project from Montana State University’s Extended University and the Montana Girls STEM Collaborative offers free science, technology, engineering and mathematics -- known as STEM -- resources and training to educators who work with middle school students in after-school programs.

The program is a combination of two efforts: Science Action Club, a hands-on STEM program from the California Academy of Sciences, and Small Town STEM, a Montana Girls STEM Collaborative program supported by the Women’s Foundation of Montana. It is open to sites that serve both boys and girls. Participants from Montana’s smallest towns are highly encouraged to apply.

Participating educators will receive a complete Science Action Club kit featuring high-quality science equipment and classroom supplies for 20 students, plus digital resources to provide opportunities to extend learning.

Educators selected for the program will complete a two-hour online module and attend a half-day training at MSU in Bozeman on Thursday, Oct. 20. Travel scholarships are available.

Afterschool programs serving grades 5 through 8 can apply online at: http://bit.ly/MT-SAC. The application deadline is Oct. 6.

The Montana Girls STEM Collaborative has co-leaders at MSU’s Extended University and the University of Montana and is supported by the National Science Foundation’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research program.

For more information, contact Suzi Taylor, MSU Extended University, (406) 994-7957 or taylor@montana.edu.

The Bozeman Winter Farmers’ Market (BWFM) is gearing up for its’ ninth season. The market has grown from just a few markets during the winter months to 15 markets over the course of three seasons. Saturday, September 24th marks the beginning of the winter market season with a special harvest festival from 9 AM to 12 PM at The Emerson Center in downtown Bozeman. The event is fortunate enough to feature some live “beets". The Dirt Farmers, a foot-stomping strong band, who call their musical style “paisley grass” will play a mix of old school country, bluegrass blues and rock. The event signifies the best time of the season where summers’ bounty is still available along with all of the fall gems.

Local vegetables do exist during winter in Montana! Even though Bozeman has a shorter growing season, shoppers can buy fresh, local vegetables all winter long. Winter markets are notorious for offering a few root vegetables and mostly crafts. The Winter Farmers’ Market is truly driven by farms. At each market, Gallatin Valley Botanical, Amaltheia Organic Dairy, Strike Farms and Three Hearts Farm will offer a variety of vegetables and greens at each market including spinach, arugula, mizuna, cabbage, carrots, parsnips, beets, potatoes, winter squash, onions, shallots, garlic, cabbage, turnips, leeks, and more. That’s quite a spread!

 
The winter farmers’ market showcases an additional 25 food and farm product vendors that allow you to cross off everything on your grocery list. Shoppers will find eggs, cheeses, beef, pork, lamb, honey, bread, MT grown grains, fermented vegetables, jams & syrups, soaps & salves, locally made dog treats, wool, coffee, locally grown and blended teas, hot breakfast, and much more all under one roof in the Emerson Ballroom.

 
The market dates for 2016-2017 are: September 24, October 8 & 22, November 5 & 19, December 17, January 7 & 21, February 4 & 18, March 4 & 18, and April 1, 15 & 29.
 
In addition to food and live music, each market will feature coloring for the kids and drawings for BWFM tote bags filled with products from featured vendors. The market will continue the Farmers’ Market Fan Cards program. As shoppers leave the market with purchases, volunteers will stamp their Fan Cards. Cards that are filled with twelve (12) stamps by noon on April 30th (the end of the fifteenth market) will be entered into a drawing for prizes from market sponsors, farms and vendors.

 
The BWFM is sponsored by Downtown Bozeman, Community Food Co-op, Gallatin Valley Botanical, Montana Parent, Rocky Mountain Gardening Magazine, Broken Ground and Bozeman Magazine. Join us for another season of fine local foods!  Who’s your farmer?
 
For more information, visit www.bozemanwintermarket.com or contact Stephanie Archer, Market Manager, at wintermarketbozeman@gmail.com.

The sections opening Friday include the reach from Point of Rocks Fishing Access Site to Emigrant Fishing Access Site along with the reach from Pine Creek Fishing Access Site to Highway 89 Bridge Fishing Access Site. The Shield River, a main tributary of the Yellowstone, will also reopen entirely Friday.

The 17.2 mile section of the Yellowstone from Emigrant Fishing Access Site to Pine Creek Fishing Access Site remains closed to all recreational use. FWP remains concerned that the disease has not run its course in this area most highly affected by the fish kill.
 
More information on the Yellowstone fish kill can be found at http://fwp.mt.gov/news/newsReleases/headlines/nr_4278.html.
 
FWP also reminds recreationists to Clean. Drain. Dry as this mantra is the key to preventing the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species and other harmful organisms.

Universal Athletic along with Montana/Alberta American Legion Baseball has announced their AA All-State and A All-Conference, All-State teams for the ninth year. Teams are selected by coaches by vote, and the awards are sponsored by Universal Athletic.
 
Universal Athletic is a Montana based athletic dealer established in 1971 that services team sports throughout the state.
 
“Universal Athletic is proud to recognize outstanding players throughout the state and enjoys partnering with American Legion baseball. Many of our employees have played and coached American Legion baseball,” President of Universal Athletic Greg Miller said, “We love being part of the baseball community state wide.”

 
Recognition of American legion players can result in college sponsorships for the athletes.
 
The class A All State and All Conference Teams consist of players from the Southern, Northern, Eastern and Western divisions. Class AA All State and All Conference players are chosen from Eastern and Western Divisions.
 
The Class A All State team includes Jake Finley with the Bitterroot Bucs, Tyler Nixon and his teammate Jon Ringer with the Bitterroot Red Sox, Sheldon Danforth with the Deer Lodge Wranglers, Robert Fitzgerald with the Dillon Cubs, Kyler Elliott with the Gallatin Valley Outlaws, Vinny Smith from the Glacier Twins, Gunnar Garpstad from the Glendive Blue Devils, Trevor Meier, Mason O’Donnell and Dawson Cortese with the Laurel Dodgers, Andrew Lalum and Tyler Lee from Lewistown, Buck Spallone and Zander Petrich from the Livingston Braves, Jacob Harrod from the Mission Valley Mariners, Kory Halvorson with the Richland Co Patriots and Ryan Marshall, Jalen Lane and Vance Fode from Vauxhall.

 
The Class AA All State team includes Cole McKenzie with the Billings Royals, Gordan Sveinson, Jake McGovern and Caje Golden from the Billings Scarlets, Carter Pappas and Colin Sassano from the Helena Senators, Leif Ericksen from the Kalispell Lakers, Tevin Hall with the Lethbridge Elks, Intek Hong and Ryan Fauth from the Medicine Hat Moose Monarchs, and Jacob Bierig and Nick Yovetich with the Missoula Mavs.

The 2nd annual Bozeman's Choice Reader Poll is live and running on all cylinders. Bozeman's Choice is your chance to tell us what you like, don't like, where you go and what you love.

There is no shortage of options when it comes to our categories!

Bozeman's Choice 2017 will be live from Oct 1-31, 2016 at  http://bozemanmagazine.com/bestof we encourage local businesses to print a poster or table tent (available on our website) and share the poll via their social media venues in order to gain the most votes and be named Bozeman's Choice! Results will be revealed in the January 2017 issue of Bozeman Magazine.

We wish you all the best!!

The Montana State University School of Art, part of the College of Arts and Architecture, will host the fourth annual World Championship Belt Buckle Competition.

Bryan Petersen, professor in the MSU School of Art and one of the event's organizers, said the contest attracts buckle entries from countries throughout the world.

"The fourth annual World Championship Belt Buckle Competition is a juried online exhibition inviting all one-of-a-kind, handcrafted, wearable examples in the belt buckle format including western, modern, fashion, narrative and conceptual," Petersen said. Up to 60 finalists will be selected for the online gallery and an exhibition of prints.

Nash Quinn of Edinboro, Pennsylvania, a 2014 finalist, will join MSU’s Petersen as a juror for this year’s competition. As part of the event, Quinn will exhibit his metalwork at the Exit Gallery from Sept. 19-Oct. 7, with an opening reception from 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 21.  Quinn will also give an artist lecture from 6-7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, in Cheever Hall, room 214.

The winning entry will receive a cash prize and a World Champion Title Belt Buckle, while second and third place winners will receive cash awards. This year’s title buckle will be made by Pat Pruitt of Paguate, New Mexico, the 2014 World Champion buckle maker, whose buckles generally are valued at around $6,000, according to Petersen.

For more information, or to register, see: http://www.worldchampionbuckle.com/prospectus. There will be a $30 non-refundable entry fee. The registration deadline is Sept. 16.

The virtual exhibit will open Friday, Oct. 14, at: http://worldchampionbuckle.com/.

Three Montana State University graduate students recently presented their research about viruses and pathogens affecting bees at one of the premier gatherings concerning the health of honey bees and other pollinators.

Laura Brutscher, William Glenny and Alex McMenamin, along with adviser Michelle Flenniken, assistant professor in MSU’s Department of Plant Sciences and Plant Pathology in the College of Agriculture, attended the International Conference on Pollinator Biology, Health, and Policy. The event, which took place July 18-20, was hosted by Pennsylvania State University's Center for Pollinator Research.

"This is one of the largest international pollinator health conferences,” Flenniken said. “It is held every two to three years, thus it is an important opportunity for master’s and Ph.D. students to present their work at this conference during their graduate careers.”

McMenamin, a second-year doctoral student in MSU’s Molecular BioSciences Program in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology in the College of Agriculture and the College of Letters and Science, presented the Flenniken lab's research on Lake Sinai viruses, a prevalent and abundant group of viruses that have been detected in honey bee samples throughout the globe, including samples obtained from honey bee colonies in Montana. The viruses, as well as other pathogens, have been associated with honey bee colony losses, which have averaged 33 percent annually since 2006.

"These viruses were only recently discovered, so we think it's important to understand whether they're having an impact on colony health," said McMenamin, who is pursuing his doctorate in microbiology. "Part of that is understanding the viruses themselves."

With support from the Montana Department of Agriculture's Specialty Crop Block Program, McMenamin and others in the Flenniken lab, including research associate Katie Daughenbaugh, who earned her doctorate in veterinary molecular biology from MSU in 2005, are documenting which strains of the Lake Sinai virus are present in Montana. By investigating how the different strains are transmitted, the research team is looking to find ways to reduce the virus' spread.

Glenny, a graduate student in MSU's Department of Ecology, received funding from the university's College of Letters and Science and the Montana Institute on Ecosystems to attend the conference and present his research, which involves detecting Lake Sinai virus in North American bumble bees. Glenny is co-advised by Flenniken and Laura Burkle, MSU assistant professor of ecology.

"Bees are really important to promoting biodiversity and ecosystem function," Glenny said. "The fact that we're seeing declines in pollinators worldwide should be a concern for scientists, as well as people who care about food security."

Brutscher, a doctoral student in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, said the conference was "a really good opportunity to talk to other scientists and get feedback."

"I've been reading all these papers from big-name scientists, and it was exciting to meet them in person," she said.

In 2012, Brutscher, who is co-advised by Flenniken and Carl Yeoman, assistant professor in the Department of Animal and Range Sciences, received a Honey Bee Biology Fellowship from Project Apis m., a nonprofit organization that supports honey bee research, to research honey bees and the pathogens that infect them. The fellowship is the result of a partnership between national nonprofit Project Apis m., named for the western or European honey bee, and Costco, which has used sales of Kirkland Signature honey to support honey bee research.

The research Brutscher presented at the conference is focused on observing the individual genes that are expressed, or “turned on,” when a honey bee is infected with a virus.

"The goal of my research is to better understand honey bee antiviral immune responses at the organismal and cellular level," Brutscher said. "It's really exciting to begin to identify and characterize the immune pathways that honey bees utilize to fight off virus infections."

For more information about pollinator research at MSU, go to http://www.montana.edu/pollinators.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks reopened the upper stretch of the Yellowstone River and its tributaries to fishing Tuesday – from the border of Yellowstone National Park to the Carbella Fishing Access Site. Recent surveys show this stretch has not experienced additional fish mortality since the department moved to open it to non-angling activities last week.

The section of the Yellowstone from Carbella Fishing Access Site downstream to Highway 89 Bridge Fishing Access Site remains closed to all use. FWP continues to see some dying fish in portions of this reach.
 
FWP will continue to monitor Yellowstone River conditions, and take into account fish mortality and test results when making decisions as to any changes in closure status.
 
More information on the Yellowstone fish kill can be found at http://fwp.mt.gov/news/newsReleases/headlines/nr_4278.html.
 
FWP also reminds recreationists to Clean. Drain. Dry as this mantra is the key to preventing the introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species and other harmful organisms.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has received results from additional testing performed last week on fish samples collected as part of the effort to better understand the distribution of the parasite in the Yellowstone River and its tributaries.
 
From the upper Yellowstone, tests were performed on 30 trout collected at spring creeks close to the area experiencing the highest level of Whitefish mortality. Two Brown Trout from Nelson’s Spring Creek tested positive for the presence of the parasite, while all other fish (13 Rainbow Trout and 15 Brown Trout) tested negative. It is important to make clear that there was no evidence of disease detected (presence was that of parasitic infection only) at any of these locations and no mortality documented. All the samples tested were healthy and alive when collected.

Tests were also performed on Whitefish samples collected at the mouth of the Boulder River, at Holmgren Ranch Fishing Access Site near Columbus, and at Laurel where 11 Whitefish tested positive. From these same downstream locations, three Rainbow Trout tested positive, one tested negative.
     
All tests on Yellowstone River samples are being performed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Bozeman Fish Health Center. Results are pending on a number of additional samples collected at the mouth of Big Creek near Emigrant, on the Shields River below the Chadbourne diversion dam, the Jefferson River at Sappington Bridge, as well as the Stillwater River and Boulder River where they meet the Yellowstone.

FWP fish health specialists note that fewer dead fish and less disease have been observed recently, but crews are continuing to perform surveys.

FWP continues to evaluate these results and will keep the public informed as to any decision related to reopening sections of river to recreational uses.
 
Updates on the Yellowstone fish kill can be found on our website here: http://fwp.mt.gov/news/newsReleases/headlines/nr_4278.html.