The Channel

All agency documents and presentation materials that staff create to present to their school districts or in team meetings are expected to follow official Central Rivers AEA branding guidelines to maintain a consistent look. When writing for the website (including blogs), please use the online writing guide, which includes important accessibility information. If you have accessibility questions, please review the Accessibility Module.

The Communication Guides and Agency Templates page on the staff website offers many Central Rivers AEA branded resources. Some reminders to staff:

• If you want a custom Google Slide theme, you can place an order through Creative Services.
• Do not create your own themes from scratch or by editing/customizing copies of the themes found in the Google Slide gallery.
• The Branding, Copyright, Accessibility & LMS Guidelines presentation is the “one-stop-shop” resource for all guidelines.

If you have questions regarding branding guidelines and requirements, please reach out to Beth Strike, Director of Communications & Creative Services or Contessa Van Buskirk, Communications Specialist, for assistance.

Whether you are new to Central Rivers AEA or had a recent title change, business cards are available to staff and can be ordered through Creative Services. The order form can be found on the staff website under Resources. Contact Randy Darst, Print Facilitator, with questions.

If you are new to Central Rivers AEA or need new CRAEA-branded clothing added to your closet, we have a branded clothing storefront through Iowa Sports Supply. Browse the store and check out all of the items that are available for purchase! For more information, check out the storefront page on our staff website.

The 2023 All-Staff Kickoff Meeting will be held at the Cedar Falls office on Friday, August 18, beginning at 9:00 am (please consider arriving before to enjoy social time, purchase a smoothie bowl and find your seat in time for kick-off)! This is going to be a wonderful opportunity to get to know our new Chief Administrator Joel Pedersen and connect with your various teams and colleagues!

This year’s theme is, Let’s Partner Together to Tell Our Story. Did you know that we are going to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the creation of Iowa AEAs? For nearly 50 years, agencies have been providing services for children, families and educators! As part of our advocacy work this coming year, we are going to be finding some of those students, families and educators we have helped over the past 50 years and celebrate the partnerships we’ve created to ensure student success. We cannot share these stories without you! Check out our CRAEA student success story page on the staff website for details and a Google Form to submit an alumni story.

Some important details:

• From 7:30-9:00 am, Big Açaí will be offering a variety of delicious bowls and smoothies for individual sale in Central Perk.
• A wide assortment of sandwiches, chips and cookies will be provided for lunch. If you have dietary restrictions (gluten-free or vegetarian), please contact Lori Thomas, Executive Assistant by August 11 to ensure lunch is set aside for you at the front desk.  
• The meeting agenda and room locations for the afternoon sector and discipline meetings will be available on the morning of the meeting.
• Just for fun, from 1-3 pm, Cedar Valley Pitbull Rescue will be outside the main entrance with a couple of their foster dogs. Take a break from your meeting and de-stress with some sweet dogs! Cash or online donations are much appreciated for this organization – check out the flyer for more details.
• The quick links document is now available for all staff to view. Important resources and links that will be needed for the day can be viewed at any time.
• The day wraps up at 3:00 pm after the sector and discipline team meetings. 
• Support staff that are not assigned to a sector or discipline will be able to return to their offices after enjoying lunch. 

We look forward to seeing everyone on August 18 and kicking off another great year at Central Rivers AEA!

Beginning July 1, 2023, HF 672 will eliminate renewal credit requirements for licensed educators who have completed a master’s degree or higher and have at least 10 years of licensed experience in education. Requirements for eligibility can be found below.

• Completed a master’s degree or higher.
• Served at least 10 years in education.
  • Any PK-12 education experience in which a BoEE license is required.
  • Can also include out-of-state or out-of-country education experience.
  • Education experience does not need to be after a higher degree has been earned.

• Requirements at the time of application for renewal:
  • Valid Mandatory Reporter for Child Abuse and Dependent Adult Abuse certificates.
  • Verification of degree. (official transcripts from college/university).
  • Verification of 10 years or more of education (letters on school letterhead from current/previous school districts).
  • Administrators and evaluators will also need to include verification of Evaluator Training less than 10 years old.

Use the following link to log into the BOEE system: https://boee.force.com/s/login. Directions can be found below:

1. Start a “New Application.”
2. Choose “Renew Existing License.”
3. Select your Master Educator license and then select “Renew License or Authorization – Advanced Degree and 10 Years Experience.”

Check out the new, refreshed Central Rivers AEA public website! If your team has pages or information that needs further editing, please reach out to Phil Hendricks or Contessa Van Buskirk for support. There will be a fall training for all designated site authors/editors to learn WordPress block editor. More information is coming soon.

As we enter the month of August, we wanted to send a reminder that all staff must complete the mandatory AEA-required trainings. Certified staff are allowed to use one of your 2023-2024 contract days to complete the training. Simply indicate on your Google calendar, “AEA Mandatory Training Day.”

Please note, the following courses are no longer available so you can disregard any reminders you receive from the AEA Learning Online system:

• R2L: Health & Safety for Teachers & Staff 

• R2L: Health and Safety – District Leadership Teams

If you have any questions, contact Karl Kurt, Assistant Chief Administrator/Director of HR.

The employee cell phone reimbursement is for the necessary use of a personal cell phone in order to perform the responsibilities of the employee’s position, per Central Rivers AEA Board Policies 401.27R1 and 401.27R2. Staff approved for reimbursement will receive up to $120 annually and have their personal cell phone number listed in the Central Rivers AEA cell phone directory, which is published only on the internal staff website.

Apply for reimbursement by submitting the 2023-2024 Cell Phone Reimbursement Form before September 8, with all requests subject to the approval of the AEA Regional Administrator and Executive Director. Payment will be made on September 20. Changes to a staff member’s phone number must be promptly reported to Laura Rinnels at 641-329-4244.

New employees hired after the start of the year have 30 days from the date of hire to submit a request for reimbursement for a prorated amount. Mid-year separation from the Agency will result in a payroll deduction from the employee’s final pay for the unearned portion of the reimbursement ($10/month).

Central Rivers AEA is offering adult first aid/cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)/automated external defibrillator (AED) training at each of our offices at no charge to the first 19 Central Rivers AEA employees who submit a PD request and register for the training. Space is limited to 12 participants per location and open to those outside Central Rivers AEA. The training will be held from 8:30 am – 1:30 pm on September 29 at the Cedar Falls office.

Check out the Adult First Aid CPR AED Training flyer for more information.

Welcome back to a new school year! Did you move over the summer? Admin assistants/HR would like to remind everyone to update their information! Please go into Web Link and update the following:

• Telephone Number
• Van Mail Delivery Location (this is very important; you can receive van mail in a location of your choice – meaning a school you serve or one of the AEA offices).

Contact your administrative assistant to help with any of these changes.