She graduated from Springbrook High School in 1983 and headed off to the University of Maryland, where she got a BA in radio-television-film in 1987.
After that it was off to Montana, the University of Montana specifically. She earned a master’s degree in environmental studies there in 1992.
Upon graduation she got a job at the Five Valleys Land Trust, a position that lasted until 1994.
At that point Stone-Manning fell back on freelance writing and media consulting work – something she’d been doing since 1990 – to carry her through the next four years.
It was in 1998 that Stone-Manning landed a job with the Headwater News as an editor.
That position lasted a year before she got on with the Clark Fork Coalition.
Stone-Manning’s professional resume begins in 1999 with her eight years at the Clark Fork Coalition. She eventually rose to the position of Executive Director.
That got her the attention of Senator Jon Tester and in 2007 she left the organization to work as Tester’s Regional Director in Missoula, a job that lasted for 5 years.
In 2012 Stone-Manning was bumped up to Acting State Staff Director and Senior Advisor for Senator Tester.
That position lasted a year before Stone-Manning was appointed to head up the Montana DEQ.
It was in December 2012 that Stone-Manning was nominated to head up the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.
Over at 4&20, the decision to move Stone-Manning to the Montana DEQ “does not bode well for wilderness or wildlife.”
Stone-Manning had to go through a confirmation process with the legislature, and most of the GOP legislators and commentors had good things to say about her, such as her door was always open (from Dave Galt) and that she’s a “tremendous listener” (from Pyramid Mountain Lumber).
Billings’ Senator Ed Walker brought up Stone-Manning’s role in a 1989 tree-spiking incident, one which saw a “rather disturbed man” give Stone-Manning a letter “to mail to notify the Forest Service” about a tree he’d spiked.
Stone-Manning sent the letter so the Forest Service would know of the crime.
After that Stone-Manning was asked about her time with the “radical environmental group,” EarthFirst! in 1989.
Stone-Manning said she was with that group but that she left because “they’re angry. Anger doesn’t do much. It doesn’t solve problems.” She made it a point to say, “What I do is solve problems.”
The DEQ position lasted for 2 years until Governor Steve Bullock decided to name Stone-Manning as his chief of staff, replacing Tim Burton, who left to head up the nonprofit Montana League of Cities and Towns.
Stone-Manning uses the hyphenated name because she married Richard Manning in…alas, I can’t find a year for this.
Richard Manning is a 65-year-old Missoula author, meaning he did pretty well for himself snagging the 50-year-old.
Manning wrote a book in 2004 called Against The Grain: How Agriculture Has Hijacked Civilization.
You can see that book and his other books on Amazon. From the rankings I’d say he sells a few copies of each every month.
We know that Manning’s son, Josh Manning (who’s currently running for SD 40) was born near Michigan’s upper peninsula but then moved to Montana when he was in 6th grade.
I’m assuming that move was made sometime in the 1980s, and shortly after that Richard Manning began working for the Missoulian, a job that lasted 4 years.
I bet you could learn more in the family’s autobiography.
So the Mannings are from out of state and Stone-Manning is as well.
I wonder how she ever got on with Tester? Clearly the work she did there got her the job with Bullock.
To many, Stone-Manning is one of the main reasons for the incompetency coming out of Bullock’s office…aside from Bullock himself.
I profiled Stone-Manning's role in Angela McLean's firing extensively.
Not a lot is known about the woman, or at least I don’t know that much.
I’d love to hear more, however.
Please feel free to fill in any holes in the comments.