The Channel

by Karl Kurt, Assistant Chief Administrator and Director of Human Resources

In November, Central Rivers AEA hosted a Zoom “Lunch and Learn” meeting with an IPERS representative who did a great  job of reviewing important information for those interested in starting the discussion around retirement. (You can view the PowerPoint here)

We know that IPERS is a “defined benefit” plan and retirement income is determined by a formula based on your years of service and salary earned.  Although, IPERS is an excellent plan, it is often unable to meet the level of income that you receive as a full-time employee. 

One key action you can take to improve your financial future is by taking additional steps to save for your retirement.  A Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (VRSP) allows you to save additional before-tax and/or after-tax money for retirement. Central Rivers AEA offers a 403b voluntary retirement savings plan through the State of Iowa Retirement Investors Club.  The salary reduction form and more information can also be found on in the iVisions portal.  

Before tax: By participating in a VRSP with before-tax contributions (i.e. 403b), you lower your federal and state taxable wages, but not Social Security or Medicare taxable wages. The contributions and any earnings become taxable when a qualified withdrawal is made in retirement.  

After tax: By participating in a VRSP with after-tax contributions (i.e. Roth), you won’t lower your federal and state taxable wages, but qualified withdrawals will not be taxable in retirement and any earnings are tax-free.

In an effort to be fully financially prepared for retirement, we encourage all of our staff to go beyond IPERS, and contribute to a secondary retirement vehicle (i.e., 403B, IRA).

Please let the HR/Business Office know if we can assist you in any way.

(Disclaimer: The content above is for informational purposes only, you should not construe any such information as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.)

Effective January 1, 2020, the contribution limits for Health Savings Accounts (HSA) are increasing as outlined in the table below:

Take advantage of this pre-tax benefit and save for future medical expenses or your retirement. You may change your contribution to your health savings account at any time during the year by contacting Betty Hesseling.

The Iowa Retirement Investors’ Club (RIC) is our voluntary retirement savings program that allows you to set aside a portion of your salary for use as income in retirement. Through automatic salary reductions, you choose how much to save per paycheck up to the IRS maximum annual limits.  Complete the RIC 403b Salary Reduction Form to enroll or contact Betty Hesseling for more information.

IRS 403b maximum contribution limits are:

Existing participants – You may make changes to the amount of your contributions at any time by completing the RIC 403b Salary Reduction Form and submitting it as instructed on the form.

New to RIC? Check out the great benefits and find out how to enroll by visiting the RIC website.

At roughly the half-way point, a preliminary report has been generated and to date, the agency will be paying out over $40,000 to staff who have completed challenges through December 29, 2019.

Anyone who has earned incentive dollars will automatically receive a separate electronic direct deposit on January 23, 2020.  It’s also a great time to start thinking about your New Year’s Resolution and your dedication to earn more money.

Remember to log your final entries for any ongoing challenges into the Navigate system by December 29, 2019.  

Fiducius provides relief to agency employees to improve their student loan situation. Click on this flyer for additional information to learn more about your potential savings options! 

Please change your voicemail greeting and set an away message to your email during the holiday breaks so that callers and/or e-mailers will know when they can expect to hear from you.

Voicemail example:

“Hello, this is (your name). Our office will be closed beginning Monday, December 23 and will reopen on Thursday, January 2. Please leave your name, telephone number and a detailed message and I will call when I return. Thank you and happy holidays from all of us at Central Rivers AEA.”

Email “away” message example:

“Thank you for your email. I will be out of the office beginning Monday, December 23 through January 2 and will respond to your email upon my return. Thank you and have a wonderful holiday!”

If you need assistance with either task, please visit with your supervisor or administrator.

Gloria Hill, Linda Decker, Georgine Myles and Rhonda Gleason pictured with the items they coordinated to be donated to the House of Hope.

Are you involved in a Navigate wellness initiative such as Charmed by Charity? The Channel is the place to share what you are doing and invite others to help! Check out what Rhonda Gleason in Creative Services was able to accomplish with the help of others in the agency as part of her Navigate challenge. Rhonda coordinated a food drive to benefit the House of Hope in Waterloo.

Get ready for the next team challenge getting kicked off soon! Sign-up for “Healthy U” is already underway and is bound to keep everyone on track with healthy eating and habits through the holiday season!  

Holiday giving opportunities

The Cedar Falls, Clear Lake and Marshalltown offices will once again be sponsoring a holiday giving event in December.

• The Cedar Falls office will be adopting four families from the Boys and Girls Club in the Cedar Valley once again this year.
• The Clear Lake office will be honoring the charitable contributions and actions of staff by having staff identify at the December 19 meeting which charity they have contributed to and what town.
• The Marshalltown office will be sharing a food advent calendar with staff to collect canned goods to give to the local food bank.

Watch for more details with specifics on these great events to help those in need this holiday season.

Contacts:

Cedar Falls Office – Barb Schroeder bschroeder@centralriversaea.org

Clear Lake Office – Laura Rinnels lrinnels@centralriversaea.org

Marshalltown Office – Carolyn Wanatee cwanatee@centralriversaea.org

One Sock at a Time

Wear your crazy socks for a $2 donation to the Northern Lights Alliance for the Homeless in Mason City, Iowa. Northern Lights Alliance for the Homeless has been in operation since 1999 and have increased the program from helping men to now helping women and their children, families and veterans. Donation buckets will be available at each location.

Details can be found on this flyer!

Fun with Frosty event

Central Rivers AEA has committed to serving our community during the holiday season by supporting the Boys and Girls Club “Fun with Frosty” event. This event will take place on Tuesday, December 17 from 4:30-6:30 at the Boys and Girls Club (515 Lime Street, Waterloo). 

Volunteers will help serve dinner and assist with crafts and games. We need 12-15 volunteers who will commit to helping make this event a wonderful night for the kids. Sign up by Monday, November 25. Contact Lori Thomas (lthomas@centralriversaea. org) with any questions. 

Do you have four minutes? Check out the latest edition of Agency Update to learn more about a new challenge being launched through Navigate as well as agency supports for mental health.

Resource: Employee Assistance Program details

Do you ever wonder how your other Central Rivers AEA co-workers spend their work life? On the Job @ Central Rivers AEA is a monthly series we’ve just launched to give you a peek into the work of others in the agency. Each month, Chief Administrator, Sam Miller, will spend time with a Central Rivers AEA employee and learn more about the work involved in their position. These highlight videos will also be shared on our website and social media sites to help educate the public about the work of an AEA.

This month? Angie Dickey and the crew in Media.

American Education Week is a great time to celebrate the amazing work that each and every one of you do for the children, families, and educators that our agency serves. Simply put, you make a tremendous positive difference! On November 15, everyone will receive a small token of appreciation from the agency. Take time during American Education Week to reflect on your many contributions…and thank you!

Are you a veteran? Please get in touch with Human Resources so that we can honor you for your service on Veteran’s Day! Contact Robin Billerbeck.

The Business Office is excited to announce that Pam Morrissey has accepted the accounting manager position.  Pam has over 25 years of school finance experience, most recently as the school business official for Van Buren County Community School.  Prior to working for Van Buren, she worked for Great Prairie AEA, Council Bluffs, and Riverside schools. Pam will begin her new position on November 11. Please join the Business Office in welcoming Pam to Central Rivers AEA!  

Iowa’s Area Education Agencies (AEAs) have solidified their commitment to all of Iowa’s 500,000 K-12 students, 327 public school districts, 182 accredited, non-public schools and thousands of children birth to age 3 with its updated strategic plan. The plan, which builds on the work outlined in the AEA Compact, reflects our renewed commitment to the priorities and actions that Iowa’s nine AEAs will take to meet the needs of those we serve.

The work outlines the essential functions of Special Education, Media and Educational Services that were identified when the AEAs were established in 1975. It also incorporates recent efforts to maximize efficiencies and align equities in services, such as children’s mental health and well-being and real-world, in-depth work experiences into schools (i.e., Future Ready Iowa).

Central Rivers AEA has staff members represented on the teams to support the work outlined in the action plans including Sam Miller, Dr. Julie Davies, Amy Knupp, and Jen Sigrist. We are also aligning our priorities and focus areas with the Iowa AEA Strategic Plan. 

While each AEA may differentiate its services slightly according to the needs of its districts, the state-wide system is committed to uniting all of our essential services with this common plan.  We believe we’re stronger together, and our state-wide system is grounding the equitable, efficient, and effective experience of our districts with this strategic, system-wide plan.

The Iowa Public Employees Retirement System (IPERS) will offer a lunch and learn on November 19 from 11:30 -12:30 via Zoom. Join the meeting if you would like to learn more at https://zoom.us/j/374789348.