Page 27 - Flathead Beacon // 11.26.14

FLATHEADBEACON.COM NEWS
NOVEMBER 26, 2014 | 27
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FVCC RECEIVES $15,000 GRANT FROM THE APPLIED MATERIALS FOUNDATION
Flathead Valley Community Col- lege, the Flathead Business Expansion and Retention (BEAR) Program and the Flathead Nonprofit Development Part- nership will join in a collective approach to address nonprofit capacity issues in the region. Beginning this month, the partnering organizations will conduct a needs assessment of approximately 175 nonprofits headquartered in Flathead County.
The results of the assessment will be used by FVCC Continuing Educa- tion Center and the Flathead Nonprofit Development Partnership to develop curriculum around the top four issues hindering nonprofit operations and ca- pacity building. In addition, the data will be shared with foundations focused on awarding capacity-building grants.
“We are pleased to embark on this project,” stated Susie Burch, executive director, economic development and continuing education at Flathead Val- ley Community College. “It’s a means to support and train our entire commu- nity of vital nonprofit organizations and their employees.”
The Applied Materials Foundation recently granted Flathead Valley Com- munity College $15,000 for the assess- ment project. This joint initiative will use the BEAR survey and a checklist of legal requirements for operating in Montana. Targeting a representative sample of regional nonprofits, the as- sessment will be completed in March and the report will be released in May. To maximize the learning and impact, the grant provides a number of tuition waivers for nonprofits with limited pro- fessional development budgets, allowing the training to benefit organizations of various sizes.
SECOND ANNUAL KALISPELL MINI MAKER FAIRE SEEKING EXHIBITORS
Back by popular demand, the Ka- lispell Mini Maker Faire will return Feb. 28 to Flathead Valley Community Col- lege. Sponsored by FVCC and ImagineIF Libraries, Kalispell Mini Maker Faire is an all-ages gathering of tech enthusiasts, do-it-yourselfers, hobbyists, engineers, scientists and artists. All of these mak- ers come to Maker Faire to show what they have made and share what they have learned through interactive exhib- its, hands-on demonstrations and infor- mative presentations.
Kalispell Mini Maker Faire is now accepting applications from makers who would like to exhibit their work at the
event. There is no charge to be an exhibi- tor. The application form is available at www.kalispellminimakerfaire.com and must be submitted electronically by 5 p.m. on Feb. 6. Preference will be given to makers who can teach skills through hands-on activities and/or demonstrate unique skills or crafts.
For more information about the Ka- lispell Mini Maker Faire, visit www.ka- lispellminimakerfaire.com or contact Jill Seigmund at 756-3834.
MOUNTAIN EXPOSURE
FLATHEAD NATIONAL FOREST HOSTING OPEN HOUSE
The Flathead National Forest is hosting two open house sessions in De- cember on the topic of vegetation mod- eling efforts for forest planning. These sessions are a follow-up to the two ses- sions that occurred last August. They will provide a brief review and expand on information and outputs presented in the earlier sessions.
The first open house will be on Wednesday, Dec. 3, 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Flathead National Forest Supervisor’s Office, 650 Wolfpack Way in Kalispell. The same material will be presented the following evening, Thursday, Dec. 4, 6:30 to 8 p.n. at the Swan Ecosystem Center in Condon.
For more information, call (406) 758-5243.
DEER HARVEST UP SLIGHTLY
Deer harvest in Northwest Montana is slightly ahead of last year at the same point in the season, according to check station results around Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Region One.
At the six stations through Nov. 23, a total of 14, 194 hunters checked 879 white-tailed deer — 766 bucks — com- pared to 842 whitetails last year. Also in the count were 124 mule deer, and 43 elk for an overall 7.4 percent rate of hunters with game.
Harvest was up slightly as compared to last year when 6.7 percent of hunt- ers checked game. Hunter numbers are down about 6 percent as compared to last year.
The Highway 2 Check Station west of Kalispell has led the way in whitetail counts, followed by the Olney Check Sta- tion, and then the Swan Check Station. The counts at the six stations represent a sampling of the harvest and do not rep- resent the complete number of animals taken.
The wolf take is behind last year at this same point in the general deer and elk season. Hunters have taken 22 wolves in Region One to date, compared to 28 last year.
Hunting season ends Nov. 30.
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