The Channel

April Hall of Fame winners (pictured with Sam Miller) JR Trembly and Donna Perry. Missing was Jen DuVall.

Congratulations to Donna Perry, Jennifer DuVall, and JR Trembly, our latest Hall of Fame Award Honorees!

Donna Perry, Receptionist/Secretary serving in our Clear Lake office has been with the agency since 1990. Serving in almost every department over the years, Donna enjoys the variety of responsibilities her current position brings to each day, which range from taking referrals to assisting with the paraeducator program.

Those who work with Donna describe her as someone who always has a smile on her face and makes everyone feel welcome at AEA 267. Donna told us the best advice she can give is to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and keep your sense of humor.

Jennifer DuVall, Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant began her career with the agency as a secretary in the Grinnell office. Jennifer earned her degree from San Jose State University and worked in Guam, Missouri and Fort Dodge prior to joining AEA 267.

Jennifer assists the SLPs with teletherapy, clerical duties, and implementing and reviewing IEPs. She finds her work very rewarding and enjoys working as part of a team. Jennifer focuses on trying to make a difference each day, whether big or small.

JR Trembly, Special Education Technology Specialist received his degree from Des Moines Area Community College and prior to joining AEA 267, worked as a tech support analyst. His days consist of troubleshooting problems with the web IEP/IMS systems as a web administrator for the East and South sectors.

JR believes in remaining positive no matter how overwhelming his responsibilities can be and to take everything in stride, putting service to students at the forefront of his days.

Please join us in congratulating these three outstanding team members!

Do you work with someone you consider to be the best-of-the-best? Submit your nominations for the the AEA 267 “Hall of Fame” recognition program. All nominations will remain on file for consideration during future months.

Spring is just around the corner and the target date for open enrollment of benefits has been set for May 2. All benefits-eligible employees must complete this process even if you are declining insurance, resigning or retiring. The deadline is May 22.

While it may seem like a long way away, the all-staff meeting will soon be upon us! This year’s meeting will be held on August 11 at the Marshalltown High School Auditorium, located at 1602 South 2nd Avenue in Marshalltown, Iowa. Details will be provided soon.

If you are considering retirement at the end of the 2015-16 year, please let the Human Resources office know as soon as possible. This will help to ensure that plans can be made for future staffing and also to celebrate your years of service with the agency.

Please contact Shirley Horak for more information.

Extreme winter weather can quickly turn to extreme spring weather in our area of the state. The agency would like to remind everyone about tornado and severe weather preparedness and the safest areas in each of our AEA 267 buildings.

Keep in mind that even though the weather may be calm at the time of a tornado watch or severe thunderstorm watch, conditions can rapidly deteriorate and become life threatening. Always heed warnings even if warnings issued for our area in the past did not result in severe weather. It is best to go to the shelter as early as possible. During the recent Wayne, Nebraska tornados it was reported that some residents waited too long and were not able open doors to their shelter areas due to the suction created by the tornado. You must leave and go to the designated shelter areas.

Tornado facts:

• Iowa averages 47 tornados per year
• On average we have 40-50 days when thunderstorms are in our area.
• The average tornado moves from southwest to northeast.
• Tornadoes are most likely to occur between the hours of 3 pm and 9 pm, but have been known to occur at all hours of the day and night.
• Tornadoes strike quickly with little or no warning.
• Before a tornado strikes the winds will die down and the air may become very still.
• A cloud of debris can mark the location of a tornado even if the funnel is not visible.
• Tornados can be rain wrapped and not visible until they are on you.
• It is not uncommon to see clear sunlit skies behind a tornado.
• Skies often have a greenish tint to them prior to tornado development.

During a Tornado Warning

Implement the “drop and tuck” procedure:

• Face an interior wall.
• Drop to your knees and roll forward to the balls of your feet.
• If physically unable to drop to your knees, sit on the floor.
• Tuck your head down and place your hands on top of your head.
• Do NOT lie flat on the ground.

In preparation for the unfortunate event of a tornado or severe weather, please be familiar with the tornado safe areas in each AEA office and the schools that you serve. Want more information? Consult the AEA 267 Emergency Procedures Manual on the staff website (use your email username and password to access).

The AEA 267 Board of Directors will meet on Monday, April 11 following a joint meeting with the area community college boards.

The agenda for the April meeting can be found on the agency website under About Us>Board of Directors>Board Meetings & Agendas. Official minutes will be posted the following month after board approval.

Sam Miller, AEA 267 Chief Administrator

A few months ago, we shared our plan to move to a Regional Administrator model of leadership which will purposefully integrate our three service areas and their staff. I’m pleased to announce a few other important changes that will support this approach, along with accompanying shifts in leadership.

Given that Dr. Jerry Schnabel, Director of Information Technology, will assume a greater role in the integration of services, it made sense to shift his focus from some components of his current work such as technology infrastructure and print and production. Beginning July 1, our new Assistant Chief Administrator/Director of Human Resources, Karl Kurt, will begin oversight of our technology staff who work primarily with tech infrastructure (hardware, servers, etc.). This is a good fit with Karl’s role as these services are really better aligned with central administration than any one service area. In addition to leading the Human Resources department and technology infrastructure, Karl will also be overseeing our maintenance staff to ensure consistency and uniformity in all of our AEA 267 sites.

Beth Strike’s role is changing to bring together all aspects of agency communication including print and production, the agency website, and video production to establish a new department known as “Creative Services.” The vision is to package and streamline these services in ways that bring added value to both our schools and the internal customers in the agency. Beth will be leaving her role as Site Superintendent in the Clear Lake Office and Jerry Schnabel will step in to provide oversight of the building, splitting his time between Clear Lake and Cedar Falls. In addition to focusing on integration and the Clear Lake Site Superintendent role, Jerry will also maintain oversight of the Media portion of Info Tech.

For many of you, these changes likely present little impact on your daily work. Still, I wanted you to feel informed. As always, feel free to drop me an email, stop by, text or call anytime you have questions, concerns or just want to talk through the organizational changes we are in the midst of. I would welcome the opportunity to talk through my vision (and yours!) as we walk this journey together.

As you probably recall, AEA 267 was designated as one of the “Top Workplaces” in Iowa following our participation in a workplace survey last year facilitated by WorkplaceDynamics LLC. We were honored to learn that so many of you find the agency a positive place to work. This year we will again participate in the survey to gather current information about how you feel about working at AEA 267.

You will receive an email with a link to an online survey within the next week.  Please take a few minutes to complete the survey and provide us with your feedback.

The survey is being conducted by WorkplaceDynamics LLC, an independent research company.  To protect your confidentiality, WorkplaceDynamics will not disclose your individual responses to AEA 267. Furthermore, your department or group scores will only be disclosed if there are at least 6 survey takers in your group.  However, please note that supervisors and administrators at AEA 267 may see the optional written comments on the final page of the survey.  If you wish to make a comment please do not write anything that will identify you as an individual.

Please note:

• If you do not receive the survey email within the next week, then please check your spam or junk email for a message from “Workplace Survey”. To open the survey invitation, you may first need to mark the email as not spam.
• If you accidentally delete the survey email, then you will receive a reminder email a few days later that will allow you to take the survey.
• Please do not forward the survey email to a colleague, as each email has a unique code to prevent multiple responses from a single person.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact WorkplaceDynamics directly at (800) 749-0187 or reply to your survey email.

Thank you for taking the time to complete the survey.

Chief Administrator Sam Miller will deliver a “spring update” presentation for staff on the following dates and times. If your schedule allows, please plan to join the conversation! The update will cover further detail around initiatives such as the Regional Administrator model, recent changes within the InfoTech service area, the agency facilities study, and budget. Bring your questions and ideas!

All meetings will begin at 3:30 p.m. and end by 4:30 p.m.

• March 21: Clear Lake Office (Room A)

• March 22: Cedar Falls Office (Room F)

• March 23: Marshalltown Office (Room G)

Melissa Hesner

Please join us in congratulating Melissa Hesner, AEA 267 Consultant for School Improvement, on being selected to fill the role of Regional Administrator for the East Sector in Region 8.

Melissa received her degrees from the University of Northern Iowa and prior to joining AEA 267 in 2011 as a science consultant, she served as a science teacher and coach for Postville and East Buchanan Community School Districts. Along with her current position as a consultant for school improvement, Melissa also serves as a lead coach for AIW.

As Regional Administrator, Melissa will oversee a team of staff members from all three service areas who are assigned to deliver service to the following school districts in Region 8; Dunkerton, East Buchanan, Independence, Jesup, and Wapsie Valley. She will assume her new duties on July 1, 2016.