Dillon Public Library Upcoming Presentation

January 24, 2026 Saturday at 11 a.m. 

At the Dillon Public Library 

Open to the Public   

Program – How Schools and Communities can Support Families Experiencing Homelessness to Decrease the Risk of Abuse and Neglect

This workshop will focus on the US Department of Education’s program that support students experiencing homelessness, and how school districts and the communities in which they are located can implement programs to help decrease the risk of abuse and neglect. We will discuss federal education laws such as the Every Student Succeeds Act and the McKinney-Vento Act, the requirements for all schools, and how implementing promising practices can support students and families and reduce abuse and neglect.

This will be the first program for the Strengthening Families, Safeguarding Futures: A Community-Based Approach to Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect presentations that will be going on throughout the year. (Grant received from the Montana Children's Trust Fund)

Heather Denny is a Montana educator certified as a secondary Social Studies teacher, K-12 School Counselor, and K-12 Administrator. She has a bachelor’s degree in history and Secondary Teacher Certification from the University of Texas at El Paso. She also has two Master’s degrees in Education, School Counseling and Administration, from Montana State University – Bozeman. Heather began her career in education as a classroom teacher in Texas, and then in Florida, before serving as the homeless liaison for Bozeman Public schools. In 2011, Heather joined the Montana Office of Public Instruction where she provided support to school districts across the state as a Title I, Part A Specialist, and as the State Coordinator for both Homeless Education and the Title I, Part D – Neglected, Delinquent, and At-Risk Programs. In 2021, Heather broadened her focus by joining the US Department of Education (USED) to support the American Rescue Plan – Homeless Children and Youth Program. She is currently a program officer at USED with the Title I, Part D program where she bring her decade of experience in Montana to her continued work supporting at-risk students.

The Dillon Public Library would like to thank Heather, as a local Montana expert, for volunteering to provide this information on her own time.”