The Channel

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, September 3 at 6 p.m. in the AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center for their regular meeting. During the meeting, the board:

• Heard a program review regarding the Accreditation (Site Visit) Report from Dr. Jon McKenzie.
• Removed Item #5, the approval of the 2013-14 Certified Annual Report (CAR) for submission to the Iowa Department of Education due to a technical problem with the uploading tool.
• Appointed Richard Vande Kieft as the AEA 267 delegate and Dr. George North as the alternate to the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) Delegate Assembly to be held on Wednesday, November 19, 2014. David Giese was appointed Legislative Action Network (LAN) representative for the next IASB state convention.
• Approved all consent agenda items.
• Approved an agreement with Charlson Physical Therapy for 2014-15.
• Approved the E-rate Management agreement with Let Me Help You With That, LLC for 2014-15.
• Approved a lease agreement for 2014-15 with Hampton-Dumont CSD for office space.
• Approved a lease agreement with Lutheran Services in Iowa, Inc for shelter classroom space for 2014-15.
• Approved the 2014 Iowa AEA legislative priorities.
• Held a discussion regarding the sale of the Eldora office, approved the resolution and set a public hearing date.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

The AEA 267 Foundation meeting was held immediately following the regular board meeting.

Nearly 130 staff members were recognized during the August Sector meetings for their years of service to children, families and educators served by the agency. Staff members receiving recognition included those staff members who had reached five, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35-year milestones. Although each individual recognized deserves congratulations, special recognition goes to our 40-year employees including Judy Moser, Janice Dykstra, Catherine Edwards, Rick Pearce, Georgine Myles, and Joanne Broadston.

A complete list of employees who were recognized is available on the staff website under Sector Resources and 2014 Sector Meetings. (Remember to use your email login and password to access the staff website.)

Congratulations to all!

Nearly 40 new AEA 267 staff members took part in this year’s New Employee Orientation which was held on August 8 at the AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center. Dr. Roark Horn and Kathy Enslin, along with other central office support representatives, helped welcome new team members and orient them to the agency and our work.

All of us remember what it was like to be “new” to the organization. As you go about your daily work, please reach out to any of the following new staff members you may come in contact with and help them to become better acquainted with the agency.

• Whitney Aldrich, Teacher of Mental Disabilities/Severe & Profound (River Hills)
• Jason Andersen, Teacher of Behavior Disorders (Pinecrest Center)
• Jennifer Anderson, Special Education Consultant (East Sector)
• Elizabeth Ascherl, Speech-Language Pathologist (NW Sector)
• Jeromiah Bliss, Teacher of Behavior Disorders (Bremwood)
• Wendi Coen-Ward, Sector Administrative Secretary (Charles City)
• Stephanie Collins, Special Education Consultant (South Sector)
• Michelle Cowell, Instructional Technology Consultant (Cedar Falls)
• Suzie (Doris) Cuellar, Educational Assistant (State Training School)
• James Fineran, Teacher of Mental Disabilities/Severe & Profound (River Hills)
• Patricia Foster, Consultant for Reading/Language Arts (Cedar Falls)
• Brooke Foster, Educational Assistant (River Hills)
• Kelly Gallagher, Consultant for School Improvement (Cedar Falls)
• Kara Graves, Detention Center Teacher (Central Iowa Juvenile Detention Center)
• Shannon Graves, Educational Assistant (Pinecrest Center)
• Michelle Haberman, Early Childhood Consultant (Clear Lake)
• Christopher Hamilton, Art Teacher (Bremwood)
• Angela Harvey, Audiologist (Clear Lake)
• Molly Johansen, School Psychologist (NW Sector)
• Jeremiah Johnson, Math Teacher (Bremwood)
• Jodie Klatt, Teacher of Behavior Disorders (Pinecrest Center)
• Jennifer Kluesner, Educational Assistant (Central Iowa Juvenile Detention Center)
• Hannah Korcuska, School Psychologist (East Sector)
• Ann Lasher, Special Education Consultant (NE Sector)
• Jenna Nasheim, Physical Therapist (NW Sector)
• Sara Nickel, Consultant for School Improvement (Marshalltown)
• Sara O’Brien, Audiologist (Cedar Falls)
• Audrey Putz, School Social Worker (East Sector)
• Corey Rogers, Consultant for School Improvement (Cedar Falls)
• Alayna Schutte, Assessment Intern (Cedar Falls)
• Jessica Sexe, Speech-Language Pathologist (South Sector)
• Kara Slagle, Speech-Language Pathologist (South Sector)
• JR (Scott) Trembly, Special Education Technology Specialist (Cedar Falls)
• Craig Tubbs, Educational Assistant (Pinecrest Center)
• David Valdez, Physical Education Teacher (River Hills)
• Diane Volkman, Special Education Consultant (South Sector)
• Jennifer Waterman, School Psychologist (NE Sector)
• Kami Wenzel, School Psychologist (NW Sector)
• Sara Wiley, Speech-Language Pathologist (NW Sector)
• Amy Williams, Technology Services Coordinator (Marshalltown)
• Dawn Williams, Special Education Consultant (NW Sector)
• Blake Yanda, Educational Assistant (Bremwood)

Cedar Falls CSD teachers share learnings at a recent Workshop Model training.

AEA 267 Educational Services consultants Barb Shafer, Terry Boezinger, Patty Foster, Heather Gould, Shaelynn Farnsworth, and Drinda Williams are leading a major effort to implement a groundbreaking approach to supporting students in reading and writing. Known as ‘the workshop model,” the approach has proven a successful model to improve core instruction in reading and writing.

“This is the right time because the focus now is on addressing core instruction and creating a framework in which teachers can provide levels of support to all students,” said Drinda Williams. “This model really lends itself to the multi-tiered system of support.”

The workshop model is a structured instructional framework. To start, the teacher provides a 10-15 minute “mini-lesson”that has a focused teaching point. At the end of the mini-lesson students engage in a brief guided practice to try out their learning under close teacher supervision. Next there is independent practice, when students apply their learning to their own work–whether that be reading “just right” books they have selected, or as they write on topics of their own choosing. During this independent practice time, the teacher confers with students and provides additional teaching to those who need more support. Finally, students have an opportunity to share their learning.

Currently, seven schools/districts have been selected to participate in a pilot including Central Springs, Aplington-Parkersburg, Orchard Hill Elementary & Holmes Jr. High in Cedar Falls, Grundy-Center, East Marshall and West Marshall. Each of the seven were selected based on a readiness survey and overall goals in literacy. Two teachers from each building or district will receive on-going training and weekly coaching during the first semester of the year. During second semester, these model classroom teachers will also begin learning more about how to be coaches and change agents in their schools. Next yearthese teachers will serve as model classrooms and they will work with AEA consultants to train others in the school to realize the promise of system change.

“My greatest hope is that this changes a school building, moving them to best practices in a cohesive way,” said Williams. “This is not a shotgun approach where we just spill the professional development  out and hope a few get it. It’s got to be a systems change and student-centered.”

A huge thank you to everyone for participation in the August Sector meetings held August 11-14! It was great to reconnect, learn together and prepare for the school year ahead. Photos from the week will be available to view on the AEA 267 Facebook page in the near future.

Please take note of the following reminders from the Human Resources (HR) office:

• September 15 is the deadline for notifying HR of intentions to change lanes on the salary schedule (certified staff).
• All professional licenses must be kept current. Professional licenses renew on the last day of the month of the individual’s birthday.
• Unpaid days will not be granted except under unique circumstances at the discretion of Human Resources.

As of July 1, the agency implemented a time clock system to ensure compliance with both the Fair Labor Standards Act and Affordable Care Act which are laws that require employers to track and pay hourly employees for all of the hours they work, especially in relation to the benefits they may be eligible to receive. Many helpful resources have been developed to assist employees with adjusting to this change including a step-by-step video (below), frequently asked questions document, quick reference guide, and a specific list of regulations. All of these resources can be found within the iVisions portal under “My Toolbox” and “TimeClock Resources.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wEs57GdicOE&feature=youtu.be

Please review these helpful reminders regarding submitting leave requests in the iVisions portal.

Instructions for Submitting a Leave Request in the IVisions Portal:

1. Go to the AEA 267 home page > Click Staff > Click Portal
2. Click the “login” button on the right side of the page
3. Enter your universal ID (same login information as your AEA 267 email). The first time you log in, you will be asked to register in the system by entering in the last 4 digits of your SSN, home zip code, and date of birth. Click Register. Once your name and address appear, click Link.
4. Click on the My Leave menu option
5. Click “Add Request” to submit a new absence request.
6. Fill in the information fields for the type of leave, units (hours), specific use, date, times, and any applicable notes.
7. Click Submit.
8. The request will be time-stamped and sent to your supervisor.

Leave Guidelines

• Consult with your building principal/line administrator regarding procedures on reporting absences. You must contact your supervisor in the event of a same-day absence.
• Leave is calculated by units of hours.  (Ex: A 1.0 FTE 8-hour employee has 16 hours of personal leave time available; a 7-hour employee has 14 hours of personal leave time available).
• The minimum leave time request is 1 hour (unit). Increments less than 1 day must be submitted in whole hourly units.
• Using the My Leave menu option, you may modify or cancel a request in IVisions. Click on Modify or Cancel at the bottom of the page and follow along.  After approval, the modification is posted to your total by Human Resources.
• By clicking on the magnifying glass next to each type of leave (sick/personal/vacation), you can see further leave posting details.
• Subtract pending approvals from the “Available” balance to get a true available leave balance.
• Medical Emergency requests require an explanation to Human Resources.
• Doctor’s notes are required for any absence exceeding 6 days.
• Unpaid leave must be authorized by Human Resources.
• Hourly employees: IVisions leave requests are transferred to the TimeClock Plus system on a weekly basis. Thus, leave requests cannot overlap weeks (i.e. Friday & the following Monday). If your leave occurs within a two week span, you will need to submit two leave requests. All leave requests should be requested in advance if possible. If a request in advance is not possible, the request must be submitted within 24-hours of the return to work. All leave requests are final once they have been transferred to TimeClock Plus (generally the Tuesday following the pay week). If your leave request is not approved and posted by the time leaves are transferred to TimeClock Plus (Tuesdays), you will be deducted those hours. For extended absences, work with your supervisor on submitting your leave time.

A great deal of work was completed over the summer months to refine the evaluation process and convert all associated materials to Google. This change eliminates confusion regarding the sequence of evaluation steps, contains useful references for both the evaluator and the staff member being evaluated, and provides a more user-friendly format. You will find the link to the Evaluation Systems via the iVisions Portal >My Toolbox>Evaluation Forms>Staff Evaluation System.

Supervisors received training on the new system earlier this month. If you have not attended a Supervisor/Evaluator training session, it is highly recommended that you familiarize yourself with the updated procedures.

In the near future, staff members will receive a link their individual Google workbook that contains all of the pertinent forms and/or rubrics needed for the coming year. If you have questions, please contact your supervisor directly.

Special thanks go to Julie Davies, Kathy Enslin, Shirley Horak, Sarah Kundsen, Kim Neal, Laura Rinnels, Dr. Carol Sensor, Kay Schmalen, Barb Schroeder, Beth Strike, Lori Thomas, and Kerri Wilson for their work on this project.

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, August 13 at 6 p.m. in the AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center for their regular meeting. During the meeting, the board:

• Took a tour of the Cedar Falls Conference Center buildings led by Dr. Jerry Schnabel and heard plans for the remodeling that will take place over the next couple of years.
• Held a discussion regarding the Eldora Office property.
• Accepted the Excellence in Education Enrichment Grant from R. J. McElroy Trust for 2014-15.
• Approved an agreement with School Administrators of Iowa (SAI) for participation in the 2014-15 School Administration Managers (SAMs) program.
• Approved the lease agreement with Quakerdale for a shelter classroom for the 2014-15 school year.
• Reviewed the AEA 267 mileage reimbursement rate and agreed to leave the rate at $.37/mile.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, July 3 at 6 p.m. via Polycom for their regular meeting. During the meeting, the board:

• Approved renewal of the Ethernet Lease with Iowa Communications Network for the Cedar Falls and Clear Lake campuses for July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2019.
• Approved the Fiscal Agent Agreement with Cedar Valley Promise for 2014-15.
• Approved the Orientation and Mobility Services Agreement and the Itinerant Teacher Services Agreement with Statewide System for Vision Services for 2014-15.
• Approved an agreement with the Iowa School for the Deaf to provide professional development for 2014-15.
• Approved the Transportation Agreement with the Iowa Northland Regional Transit Commission and Exceptional Persons Incorporated for 2014-15.
• Approved the Four-Year Facilities Plan.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

Thank you to the 343 of you who participated in the 2014 Culture and Climate Survey. This important survey provides feedback on how AEA 267 employees feel about critical issues such as recognition for their work, the extent to which their opinions count in decision making and knowing what is expected of them.

Earlier this month, the AEA 267 all-agency Leadership Team reviewed the results of the 2014 survey and brainstormed actions to continue down the path of continuous improvement. In the fall, a more thorough plan will be shared with you via Intersections including specific actions the agency will take to keep improving. Overall, however, results are overwhelmingly positive! Please review them by downloading this PowerPoint presentation put together by Janelle Brouwer, who has been assisting with the analysis process.