Data-Driven Decision-Making Capacity Of State Vr Agencies, Catherine Ipsen, Christopher Clapp, Jordan A. Costello

Employment

Federal agencies are required to use data to support policy and program decisions. This factsheet explores VR capacity to use their data to shape decision-making and develop return on investment (ROI) models.

Purpose In Practice: A Master Of Social Work Professional Portfolio, Lexi M. Laird

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Msw Portfolio: Through Courage And Heart, Meghan N. Conklin

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio discusses my journey through the MSW program highlighting anti-oppressive frameworks, ethics, trauma informed care, and indigenous practice. This portfolio displays how I met the core competencies of advanced integrative practice with a focus on practice with youth in and out of institutional setting.

July 2026 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Montana’S Outfitting Industry - 2024 Economic Contribution And Industry-Client Analysis, Carter Bermingham, Kara Grau, Emma Keinath-Lopez

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

Montana's outfitting and guiding industry remains a vital economic sector driven primarily by nonresident visitors, generating an estimated $314 million in direct expenditures in 2024 and supporting more than $1.27 billion in total economic output when indirect and induced effects are included. This report, an update to ITRR's 2017 industry analysis, draws on a survey of outfitting businesses alongside ITRR's annual nonresident visitor survey to examine roughly 980,000 clients served by an estimated 1,500 outfitting and guiding entities statewide. While wildlife viewing and sightseeing attracted the largest share of clients, fishing generated the most revenue despite serving a smaller portion …

2026 Research, Policy, And Practice Summit: “Protecting Access To Rural Community Living For People With Disabilities”, Will Hoard, Lillie Greiman, Rtc: Rural

Independent Living and Community Participation

This summit summary examines the critical personal assistance workforce shortage in rural communities, where demand for care increasingly outpaces supply. Drawing on national data and expert panel insights, the event highlighted how structural barriers including low wages, administrative complexity, and limited data undermine the safety, independence, and dignity of disabled people in rural areas. The summit concluded that protecting rural community living requires coordinated policy investments in workforce wages, working conditions, and data systems, recognizing direct care workers as essential to the health and independence of the people and communities they serve.

June 2026 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.

Wilderness Watch V. U.S. Forest Service, No. Cv 23-133-M-Dwm, 2025 Wl 2985292 (D. Mont. Oct. 23, 2025)., Gardner Dee

Public Land & Resources Law Review

This comment argues that the District of Montana’s decision in Wilderness Watch v. U.S. Forest Service correctly applied the Ninth Circuit’s Kofa framework to strike down a multi-agency native trout restoration project in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness, holding that the Forest Service unlawfully prioritized Yellowstone cutthroat trout conservation over the Wilderness Act’s mandate to preserve wilderness character. Dee further contends that while large wilderness watersheds offer valuable climate refugia for native coldwater fish, watershed-scale restoration projects will continue to conflict with the Act’s prohibitions on motorized and mechanized intrusions so long as agencies rely on helicopter transport and rotenone application at …

Msw Portfolio, Sara J. Murphy

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio presents a comprehensive reflection of my development throughout the Master of Social Work (MSW) program at the University of Montana. It highlights the integration of knowledge, skills, values, and cognitive and affective processes across ten core social work competencies. Through critical self-reflection, I examine my positionality, biases, and professional identity while emphasizing the importance of lifelong learning and accountability in social work practice. Overall, this portfolio reflects my commitment to providing equitable, client-centered care while advocating for systemic change that supports individuals, families, and communities.

Msw Professional Portfolio, Sierra Trivaye Singer

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Msw Portfolio, Ellen Mittlestadt

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio describes how I have developed strengths, skills, values, and cognitive and affective processes through the ten competencies of the Master of Social Work program at the University of Montana. Through attending classes, engaging with professors and my cohort, and continuing to strengthen all I've learned in my practicum, I feel confident that these skills and strengths have grown tremendously, and I'll continue to grow through my practice. The following portfolio describes progress over the past years.

Resilience In Recreation: Stories Of A Changing Climate, Casey L. Auberle

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

As the impacts of climate change become increasingly prevalent, the outdoor activities that bond us to our local communities and environments are under threat. In Missoula, MT, drought, rising temperatures, and wildfire smoke change what it means to fish, ski, run, and recreate in our town. In a series of Q&A style podcasts, environmental philosophy graduate student Casey Auberle creates a platform to share stories of a changing climate through the lens of local recreators and climate activists. Capturing these voices invites us to consider our relationship with nature on both an individual and communal scale, to find unity in …

Hi Friend! Msw Portfolio Of Community Building And Advocacy, River Gerard Segar

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This MSW Portfolio emphasizes the importance of being rooted in community and demonstrates how to engage in community building in a way that helps center marginalized voices. This portfolio also highlights advocacy in the United States for transgender people and asserts the need for increased cultural competency in clinical practice with people in non-monogamous and/or kink relational structures.

Moving Forward, Sarah Blackford

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio demonstrates my learning and development through the MSW program at the University of Montana.

Standing In The Middle: Planting Seeds Of Liberation, Halle V. Smith

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio documents the development of an ecologically grounded and theoretically integrated social work practice across two years of practicum with the Crime Victim Advocate (CVA) program in Missoula, Montana. Drawing on ecofeminism, Indigenous Cultural Responsiveness Theory (ICRT), and trauma-informed practice (TIP), the author frames healing, justice, and liberation as ecological processes rooted in the conditions that surround people rather than the deficits within them. Cherokee teachings on ayetli, or standing in the middle, and a seeds of liberation metaphor serve as orienting frameworks throughout, guiding critical self-reflection, survivor-centered advocacy, clinical practice with domestic violence survivors, and policy engagement. The …

Master Of Social Work Portfolio - Rooted In Relationship: A Journey Toward Integrated, Justice-Oriented Social Work Practice, Elisabeth Noel Marshall

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio represents my professional development throughout the Master of Social Work program at the University of Montana. Grounded in systems and ecological perspectives, trauma-informed practice, and the Just Practice framework, this work demonstrates the integration of clinical, mezzo, and macro social work practice across diverse settings, including therapeutic residential care, collegiate wellbeing, assisted living, and substance use treatment.

Through direct practice experiences, policy analysis, program evaluation, advocacy, and community engagement, this portfolio highlights the development of competencies aligned with the Council on Social Work Education’s Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. Particular emphasis is placed on relationship-centered practice, justice-oriented advocacy, …

Professional Portfolio: Becoming A Justice-Centered Practitioner, Akemi Nakagawa

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This professional portfolio reflects my learning through this program, including the knowledge and skills I have developed, how my learning has been shaped by the people I have learned from and alongside, and what I will carry forward into future practice. I share my developing theoretical orientation that guides my thinking and practice, grounded predominantly in the Reproductive Justice framework, Critical Social Work, Janet Finn’s Just Practice framework, and by the work and wisdom of Paulo Freire–particularly his pedagogy of popular education.

This portfolio also reflects my ongoing development as a social worker who is committed to advancing intersectional justice …

Master Of Social Work Portfolio, Tara L. Beckman Ballis

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio demonstrates my professional growth throughout the MSW program through the application of social work competencies. It includes coursework, practicum experiences, research participation, advocacy, and volunteer work. Areas of focus include Wellbeing Support Coaching, cultural responsiveness, reproductive justice, maternal health advocacy, Indigenous research methods, and strengths-based practice.

Integrative Synchronicity: Learning To Hold The Space Between, Kelsey M. Bogumill

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Msw Portfolio, Hannah N. Vasquez

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio documents my development as a Master of Social Work student, demonstrating integration of relational, trauma-informed practice with systems-level analysis. Drawing on coursework and practicum experiences, it illustrates competency across micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice. Selected artifacts highlight the application of theoretical frameworks, engagement in critical self-reflection, and a commitment to advancing social justice. Particular emphasis is placed on caregiver engagement, community-based practice, and addressing structural barriers that impact well-being. Overall, this portfolio reflects my readiness for professional social work practice and my commitment to equitable, relationship-centered, and systems-informed approaches.

Msw Portfolio, Trebor J.C. Riddle

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

Introduction

My development throughout the Master of Social Work program at the University of Montana has been guided by a longstanding understanding that social work is more than direct service. This belief was central to my decision to pursue an MSW rather than a master’s degree in counseling. While I value clinical skill and therapeutic relationships, I have always been drawn to the broader scope of social work, the profession’s commitment to social justice, systems change, and the integration of individual well-being with structural transformation. Over the course of this program, that orientation has deepened and become more theoretically grounded, …

Msw Portfolio, Kyle Dyrud

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

From Sea To Shining Sea: A Mastery Of Social Work Through A Critical Thinking And Social Justice Lens, Paige M. Gilchrist

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

Completing a Master of Social Work degree across three years and two universities, Paige Gilchrist outlines how she has mastered the Five Elements of Advanced Integrated Practice and Ten Competencies required by the University of Montana to prove social work competency through a social justice lens.

Transforming Experience Into Practice: A Portfolio Of Growth, Identity, And Leadership, Ana I. Loli

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This professional portfolio documents the integration of my academic learning, practicum experience, and personal transformation throughout the Master of Social Work program at the University of Montana. Drawing from trauma‑informed, anti-oppressive, and culturally responsive frameworks, I demonstrate competency across micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice, with particular emphasis on ethical decision-making, ADEI engagement, community assessment, policy analysis, research-informed practice, and collaborative leadership. Through narrative reflections and applied artifacts—including case analyses, simulated clinical sessions, community-based research, organizational evaluation, and leadership implementation—I illustrate how meaning, context, power, history, and possibility shape my approach to social work. This portfolio highlights my development …

Protecting Access To Rural Community Living For People With Disabilities, Rtc: Rural

Independent Living and Community Participation

RTC:Rural's 2026 research, policy, and practice summit, exploring rural home health care and ways to strengthen the direct care workforce. The summit includes a presentation by RTC:Rural researchers and a panel discussion.

On The Trail, In The Towns: Visitor Use And Community Perspectives Along Montana’S Continental Divide Trail, Ava Worbets, Kika Bradford, Melissa Weddell

Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research Publications

As outdoor recreation participation has steadily increased nationwide over the past decade, reaching record levels in 2024 amid long‑term growth trends (OIA, 2025), the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) is drawing rising numbers of hikers traveling through Montana’s gateway communities. Yet little is known about who these hikers are or how their presence affects the towns that support them. This report examines CDT hikers and their relationships with Montana gateway communities from two complementary perspectives. First, understanding hikers’ demographics, spending patterns, and trail behaviors using data from 507 respondents who completed Montana’s CDT sections between 2022 and 2024. Second, exploring how …

Things Montaigne Got Right About Medicine, Stewart Justman

Global Humanities and Religions Faculty Publications

In an article in Perspectives in Biology and Medicine a few years ago, I documented a number of Montaigne’s insights into medicine that have held up over time.  Not everyone was convinced.  Therefore I here augmented my case, adducing several other Montaignean insights and adding some particulars to one or two that were mentioned in the original article.

Beyond The Straight Road: A Narrative Of Growth Toward Integrated Social Work Practice, Samantha Bymaster

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Msw Portfolio: Advancing Social Work Practice In International And Marginalized Communities, Emily L. Curtis

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

My portfolio presents an integrated reflection of advanced social work practice developed through my academic training and immersive field experiences across the United States, Germany, and New Zealand. Grounded in trauma-informed care, cultural humility, and strengths-based approaches, it demonstrates my application of the ten core social work competencies and five elements of advanced integrated practice within diverse and marginalized communities.

Drawing on my work with Māori and Pasifika women, refugee populations, and rural communities, this portfolio explains the importance of understanding individuals within broader cultural, historical, and systemic contexts. It emphasizes the need for socially just, culturally responsive, and relationship-centered …

May 2026 News Releases, University Of Montana--Missoula. Office Of University Relations

University of Montana News Releases, 1928, 1956-present

No abstract provided.