The Channel

A special “thank you” to an existing client for this request! ASI has recently released a new mobile app feature that allows participants to track and be reimbursed for medical mileage claims!

In addition to filing claims, and now, mileage claims, participants can also view their annual election amount, account balance, payments, contributions, and previously submitted claims.

ASI’s app is free and available online at www.asiflex.com or through Google Play or the App Store.  ASI prides itself on being forward thinking with technology. Do you have a new feature you’d like to see on the app or online? Let us know at marketing@asiflex.com

Avoid USPS Mail delivery delays
With the recent increase in postage costs, and the many consolidations of processing facilities, the USPS has indicated there will be mail delivery delays. Plan participants can avoid these delays and get reimbursements and communications instantly!

Simply go to asiflex.com, login to the Employee Portal, go to Account Settings and sign up for:

• Direct deposit – No need to wait for check reimbursements. Participants can get their money faster when signed up for direct deposit.
• Email and text alerts – Receive email and text alerts from ASI about when a claim is received, paid, or if additional documentation is necessary to process claims. 

To submit claims, participants can skip the mailbox. ASI offers multiple, convenient claim submission options:

• Mobile app
• Online Employee Portal at asiflex.com
• Recurring provider payments
• FSA Store Cardless Pay

This year, we are expanding the costume contest fun to include our entire CRAEA family.  What does this mean? 

It means we will have two contests this year to compete in to win bragging rights in the “Spooktacular Hall of Fame” and prizes.

This year’s prizes are extra special as we will be awarding vouchers in various amounts to purchase books for the school of your choice!

Halloween Costume Contest #1

Categories: 

• Group: (2+ co-workers): 1st place $50 / 2nd place $25 
• Solo: 1st place $40 / 2nd place $20
• Snap a picture and upload it to this Halloween Costume Contest#1 (All Staff) – Google Form or email it to Robin Billerbeck before 9:00 am on Friday, October 29.
• Voting will begin at 10:00 am and end at 1:00 pm with winners announced via email. 

Halloween Family Photo or Pumpkin Contest #2 

Categories: 

• Family (photo of you with your kids/pets): 1st place $30 / 2nd place $15
• Pumpkin creations (photo of your unique pumpkin): 1st place $10 / 2nd place $5 
• Snap a picture and upload it to this Halloween Costume Contest#2 (Family/Pumpkins)- Google Form or email it to Robin Billerbeck before 9:00 am on Monday, November 1
• Voting will begin at 10:00 am and end at 1:00 pm with winners announced via email.

The agency has a large supply of PPE available for staff which includes face masks, wipes, and hand sanitizer. If you need any items, please contact your regional administrative assistant.

The agency is once again partnering with HyVee Pharmacy to offer flu/Covid vaccine clinics for employees and their families. The vaccination schedule is as follows.

October 12, 2021, from 8:30-10:00 AM

• River Hills School – 2700 Grand Blvd, Cedar Falls (large conference room)

October 19, 2021 from 7:45-10:00 AM

• Cedar Falls Office – 1521 Technology Parkway (Central Perk)
• Clear Lake Office – 9184 265th Street, Suite B  (Room D)
• Marshalltown Office – 909 South 12th Street  (Room F)

Registration for the 2021 Flu/Covid vaccination is now open and will close Tuesday, October 5.   Please remember to bring a copy of your driver’s license and a copy of your insurance card (front/back) and a completed Flu consent form and/or Covid-19 consent form.

Flu shots are covered 100% to employees & their family members with proof of insurance. The cost is $42.99 without insurance.  The Covid-19 vaccination is free for everyone. 

Please contact Betty Hesseling, Benefits Specialist with any questions bhesseling@centralriversaea.org or 319-273-8202. 

Central Rivers AEA is introducing a new digital accessibility plan to help employees learn about creating inclusive digital content and establishing best practices.  Digital accessibility is not only a legal requirement, but an obligation to ensure everyone can utilize our products and services.  Creating an inclusive digital environment will provide access  to our resources and limit barriers while enhancing participation among those we support and serve.  Please note that the required training module is for all staff. 

REQUIRED: Self-Paced Training Module – This Canvas course will cover topics such as creating accessible documents, images, and videos while ensuring *ADA (Americans with Disability) compliance.  Additional modules will cover accessibility within Google Workspace and Zoom. (Please do not try and login with your Google login credentials.) Please confirm your completion of all modules by December 1, 2021.

OPTIONAL: Zoom Help Sessions – Experienced staff will be available during four Zoom sessions to assist employees with questions and completion of the training modules.  Registration is not required.

(Two options- either add the event to your calendar via the Calendar Event Link that includes the Zoom link in the event, or go directly to the Zoom link for that help session.)

Grackle Tip Sheet – Grackle is a Google Workspace add-on that checks digital content for accessibility and helps users remediate issues with a built-in correction tool.  Central Rivers AEA has purchased Grackle for our entire domain, and it is currently installed for all users.

If you have any questions or need technical assistance, please contact the Help Desk at 319.273.8231 or helpdesk@centralriversaea.org. 

The Suicide Prevention, Intervention and Postvention (SPP) & Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) trainings are required annual trainings for all school personnel who hold a license, certificate, authorization, or statement of recognition issued by the board of educational examiners, and who have regular contact with students in K-12.

A complete listing of mandatory training can be viewed here. Training that has been submitted to the Human Resources department can be reviewed by visiting the iVisions Portal > My Personal Information > Personal Information.  Please email HR any updated PDFs of training or if you have any questions.  

The Central Rivers AEA Media Team is excited to announce a new resource that is now available to the schools we serve—PebbleGo/PebbleGo NEXT! PebbleGo is a database that is used for research distinctly customized for our students in grades K-3rd. It’s intuitive and easy to use for our teachers and learners and helps students practice foundational research skills.  

PebbleGo also provides support such as audio voice-overs, the ability to highlight text, and complete scaffolding to support differentiated instruction. With the click of a button, PebbleGo has a full Spanish option as well. It’s perfect for ELL students or Dual Language programs to enhance content and increase language development.  PebbleGo NEXT is for our upper elementary students. The text is specifically engineered for students in grades 3rd -5th  and provides articles and activities that meet the curriculum unique to those grades.  

Another added benefit is both databases include features such as lesson plans, activities, videos,  as well as reproducible for our educators to use. PebbleGo and PebbleGo NEXT are available now on our Digital Resources page. 

Check out PebbleGo/PebbleGo Next using these sign-in credentials. For more information, contact Cari Teske, Director of Media.

• Username:  crmedia
• Password:  craea

Contact Manager is a tool created to allow staff to send email messages for targeted groups of educators. The system uses data collected and housed in the Central Rivers AEA Lending Library system (Medianet). This is a great tool for promoting your professional learning opportunities or meetings that are targeted toward specific audiences.

How do I use Contact Manager?

1. Go to: http://contactmanager.centralriversaea.org
2. If you are not signed in, click the “Sign in with Google” Button and follow the prompts to sign in through Google.
3. Click “Search Contacts” to begin.
4. Select the criteria from the options on the page to narrow your search from all the educators our agency serves to only those in your desired group.
5. Click the “search” button at the bottom of the page.
6. Select individuals or all the members of this group to email (create labels for and/or export into a spreadsheet) by using the check boxes next to each name.
7. Then, click your desired action at the bottom of the page (Email Selected Contacts, Export Selected Contacts, Generate Labels).
8. Follow the steps on screen to finish!

Who do I contact for help?

• Beth Strike, Director of Creative Services/Communications
• Kristine Kienzle, Technical Support Manager for Media

Note: These directions are archived on the Staff Website>Communications>Contact Manager for future reference.

A few years ago, the agency unveiled a new blog called The Stream targeted specifically to region staff. The Stream is published on an as-needed basis by Regional Administrators and strives to provide news and information that staff out in the field need to best serve schools. Please don’t confuse The Stream with this publication, The Channel, which goes out monthly to all Central Rivers AEA staff members and shares more general agency-wide news and information. Both blogs serve a unique purpose and are important to review upon receipt in your in-box. You can find a live link, including archived information, to each publication on our staff website.

Want more information on the variety of ways the agency communicates? Check out this Agency Major Communication Channels doc to learn more about all our tools and how they are used to share news and information about Central Rivers AEA.

In an effort to mitigate risk due to the uptick in COVID-19 cases, a decision has been made to meet regionally rather than everyone attending in the Cedar Falls Conference Center for our all-staff meeting on Wednesday, August 18.

Staff from Regions 1, 2, and 3 will meet in the Clear Lake office.  Staff from Regions 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and the youth shelters will meet in the Cedar Falls office.  Regions 9 and 11 will meet in the Marshalltown office. Please note that Region 10 is included with the Cedar Falls group. Staff members not assigned to a region (Information Technology, Creative Services, Business Office, etc.) will report to the office where they are primarily based.

The overall agenda for the day will remain the same with the presenter in the morning and regional and discipline meetings in the afternoon.  An overview of the afternoon’s agenda will be provided at each site. 

Social time begins at 8:30 am and our keynote speaker Kristen Anderson of the Brilliance Project, will begin promptly at 9:00 am.  Those attending in the Clear Lake and Marshalltown offices will be able to view the presentation via live stream.

Lunch is on your own and there will be a coffee truck on-site in the morning and La Calle food truck on-site for lunch at the Cedar Falls office, as previously arranged.  Unfortunately, due to the situation, we do not have time to secure food trucks for the Clear Lake and Marshalltown offices.  However, both areas have many wonderful restaurants to choose from and staff will be given plenty of time to enjoy lunch together. 

While wearing a face covering is not mandatory, it is encouraged in order for everyone to feel at ease when social distancing is not possible. Also, if possible, please consider wearing unscented products for the comfort of those with allergies. 

Even though the entire agency will not be all together in-person this year, the day will still be a wonderful opportunity to reconnect and network with your regional teams as we prepare for another incredible year of service!

During their regular board meeting on July 28, the Central Rivers AEA Board of Directors approved a contract with The Leadership Academy, a nationally-recognized nonprofit organization, to perform an equity audit for the agency. 

The purpose of the audit is to gather broad input on the current state of equity within the agency, which will surface learning needs for our organization and engage leadership in collaborative action planning and shared development of metrics for tracking process. This will take place from September 2021 – February 2022 as part of Phase 1.

Once learning needs are identified, personnel from The Leadership Academy will help the agency develop an internal definition of equity and a multi-year professional learning plan, focusing on what learning will need to be offered over the next two to three years to help us build capacity to strengthen our support for diverse populations and improve culturally responsive practices. In addition, we will use our awareness and experience to provide future support for our district partners. This work is considered Phase 2.

The work of the audit, and subsequent steps, will be guided by the agency equity committee, which is made up of staff representing a variety of service areas.

It’s important to note that this initiative is not about prescribing a set of beliefs that staff must adhere to but rather collectively developing a definition and accompanying learning to further our goal of being a respectful and inclusive organization that values diversity. All aspects of the project fall under the scope of HF 802 and adhere to all components of the intent of the law. Please note that this has been a sensitive topic statewide and we take our responsibility to adhere to the law very seriously.

All staff should know and understand the language and intention of HF 802. These FAQs provided by School Administrators of Iowa (SAI) serve as a helpful resource that staff are asked to review.

For more information, contact Karl Kurt, Assistant Chief Administrator/Director of HR.

We recognize that employees may from time to time experience stress, trauma or other life events that affect both their personal and work lives as well as their overall quality of life.  Our EAP offers confidential professional assessment and referral assistance for employees to help them address such challenges.  

Examples of the major life issues for which you may receive support from an EAP professional include: 

• Depression, anxiety and other mood disorders
• Relationship or family problems, including divorce and abuse
• Substance abuse (e.g., drugs, alcohol) and other addiction problems
• Job-related stress or anxiety

Information regarding the EAP is provided below:

• Central Rivers AEA Employee Assistance Program (EAP) 
  • You have access at no cost
  • EAP advisor services 24/7, 365 days a year
• Phone:  1-866-451-5465 
• Online: workhealthlife.com 
  • (We are listed as: AREA EDUCATION AGENCY 267)
• App: QR Code
• Electronic ways to access your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Virtual Fitness opportunities

Also, a reminder that other programs exist for Employees with concerns regarding their mental health.  Please contact your direct supervisor or Karl Kurt, Assistant Chief Administrator/Director of Human Resources for further information or support.

• Personal Health Care Provider (as part of your insurance package)
• Dr on Demand (as part of your insurance package)

As working from home and providing virtual service become a greater part of our work lives, please take time to review these parameters that will be followed agency-wide. If you serve in a Region, your Regional Administrator will be reviewing these with you during your upcoming meeting next week.

Questions? Please contact Karl Kurt, Assistant Chief Administrator/Director of HR or your direct supervisor.

This is a reminder that 2020-21 COVID accommodations/modifications have expired. The  agency took multiple steps this past school year to mitigate the risk of infection from COVID for our staff and provided increased flexibility based on individual needs and circumstances.

As we move into the 2021-22 school year, we anticipate a more normal year with consistency around our established policies and procedures. If you have specific needs or requests based on documented medical needs, we would ask you to contact the HR department to discuss possible modifications or accommodations.

Updates relating to the agency insurance and wellness programs for the new year are listed below. Please contact Human Resources with any questions.  

• Medical Plan
  GymPass is the rebranding of the Healthways wellness benefit through Blue365 – no changes from the current program other than the name. 

• Delta Dental
  Teledentistry for emergency situations are now available. Please view this flyer and FAQs for more information. 

• Wellness
  The Wellness program is paused for this year, in an effort to decrease expenditures as we continue to manage insurance costs.  Stay tuned for 2022-23.

• Quantum Workplace
  The Quantum Workplace program was discontinued last year and is not being used by the agency.

The 2021-22 all-staff kickoff meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 18 in the Cedar Falls conference center, beginning at 9:00 am.  If you are not able to be in attendance for the meeting, please notify your supervisor/HR.  Be sure to submit the appropriate leave.

Social time begins at 8:30 am and Natural Grind coffee truck will be on site with delicious coffee drinks & assorted pastries available for purchase before the meeting.  

The morning will feature an inspiring and informative presentation by Kristen Anderson of the Brilliance Project.  Regional and discipline meetings will be held in the afternoon. 

Lunch is on your own with a wide variety of restaurants close by in both Cedar Falls and Waterloo.  La Calle food truck will also be on site for those who wish to grab some great Latin American food!  Treats provided by Farmers State Bank will be available through-out the day.

We look forward to seeing everyone face-to-face for the first time in well over a year and having the opportunity to reconnect, network, and prepare for another incredible new year of service!

The master calendar for key administrative meeting dates for 2021-22 has been updated. This calendar is where you will find the dates for regional meetings, all-staff meetings and other large agency meetings.

When you click the link, you will be asked if you want to “add” this calendar. Be sure to check back regularly for updates.