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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

How to Keep Montana College Students Engaged Post-Election

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Wednesday, November 21, 2018   

MISSOULA, Mont. – Voting soared among students in Montana and across the country for the midterm election. But now that the election is over, what will keep them engaged in politics and civic life?

Campus Compact, an organization that works with colleges and universities to get students engaged in elections, hopes it can help answer that question.

The Montana chapter of Campus Contact, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, helped turn out student voters in the Treasure State.

Josh Vanek, associate director of the group, says with the election over, schools are still the perfect place to get young people involved.

"Engaging with public life has lots of different elements,” he states. “Students are very motivated to make the world a better place, and we see higher ed as having a huge facilitating role for this, and classrooms in particular being good venues for students to work on public issues."

Montana Campus Compact joined the consumer group MontPIRG in the lead-up to the midterms to get students involved, through voter registration assistance, nonpartisan voting guides and other support.

The organization has started a nationwide initiative known as Education for Democracy, which is connecting students with civic life outside of elections.

Vanek says now that the fanfare of the election is over, the daily grind of governing begins, in public meetings and the upcoming Montana legislative session. But he says this is no less important than the election.

"Perhaps not as 'in your face' as your thinking about the wide variety of things – like how do we use our public land, how do we make our city a good place to live – these huge questions that folks deal with on a daily basis," he says

The state legislative session begins Jan. 7.

Montana Campus Compact is offering $1,000 scholarships to students who are civically engaged while studying at universities and colleges that are part of the compact.


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