The Channel

Sarah Nelson, Director of Information Technology/Consultant for School Improvement for Region 10, has been named Director of Information Technology and Special Programs, beginning July 1, 2021.

In her new role, Sarah will continue to lead the Information Technology team while also providing instructional leadership for the agency shelter programs and Career and Technical Education in collaboration with Rod Ball. In addition, Sarah will supervise staff carrying out services under Title III, English Learners.   

Sarah has served the agency as a consultant for technology and school improvement for the past four years. Prior to joining the agency, she served the Waverly-Shell Rock CSD for four years as a K-12 tech integrationist and instructional coach. She has also taught literacy, Spanish, and ELL at Waterloo CSD.

Sarah holds a Masters degree in Secondary Education along with endorsements in K-12 English as a Second Language, 5-12 Spanish, Middle School, and Reading. She completed the Advanced Studies Certificate Principalship Program at the University of Northern Iowa in 2016.

“Sarah brings a host of skills to this role,” said Sam Miller. “Her leadership in the areas of technology, teaching, and learning will advance our programming in the areas she will oversee and further integrate our services between general and special education. She’s a great fit.”

Please join us in congratulating Sarah on her new role!

As part of a unified effort with all nine of Iowa’s AEAs, the Central Rivers AEA Creative Services department is proud to roll out a new ordering system. The new system offers several benefits to our customers which include: 1.) the ability to retain a personal order history; 2.) an expanded array of products and sizes; 3.) faster re-orders; and 4.) the ability to view the production status of each order including a notification once complete. The system also estimates the cost of your order based on the information provided. (Please note that this is only an estimate.)

When you are ready to place your next order, please begin using the new system and let us know about your experience! If this isn’t typically a heavy order time for you, we’d be happy to walk you through the system with previous orders in mind so that you have a sense of how it works. Simply contact Deb Hanson, to schedule a time to Zoom and learn more.

To assist you, we have created this set of directions and quick video tutorial to get you started. (If you have ideas for making these clearer for future users, feel free to use the comment feature and offer suggestions!) We will be rolling out the new system to local school districts beginning January 18.

Thank you for your continued partnership with Creative Services. We are excited to create for you in 2021!

Mental health professionals from Iowa’s nine AEAs recently collaborated to create a website for Iowans who are searching for mental health assistance. The website at www.IowaAEAMentalHealth.org came from a request by the state legislature to help educators, parents, and students navigate resources related to mental health and well-being in Iowa. In addition to AEA contacts for the schools, the site provides contacts for the home setting from Iowa’s Mental Health and Disability Services (MHDS).

The website features vetted sources to educate visitors about addiction and substance abuse; anxiety and stress disorders; attention deficit disorder; depression; eating disorders; and self-harm.

A listing of Iowa groups and agencies that advocate for children and families is part of an education component of the site, as well as reducing the stigma associated with mental health.

MHDS employees who work with community partners and clients are encouraged to check out the site, especially the “Find Support” page, in order to demonstrate how to navigate the resources.

The Health Savings Account (HSA) calendar-year limits are set for 2021.  Please email Betty Hesseling, Benefits Specialist, if you would like to change your HSA contributions.  Betty will create a life event on the Portal that will allow you to change your monthly contribution. 

As we look forward to 2021, it’s a great time to review your retirement plan.  Employees contributing to a 403b will want to double check to make sure their contributions do not exceed the maximum contribution limit for 2021.  The table below explains the maximum contribution amounts.  Please complete the salary reduction form found on the Portal > My Benefits > Retirement and submit to Betty Hesseling, Benefits Specialist.

If you don’t have a retirement account such as a Roth IRA or a pre-tax 403b account, maybe this is the year you consider saving a little extra for retirement.  (Note: Those of you on our $3,500 High Deductible Health Plan could consider maximizing contributions to a Health Savings Account as part of your retirement plan as well). 

As the new year begins we want to remind staff about our Employee Assistance Program (EAP). The EAP can help you with your day-to-day concerns or provide guidance through challenging situations. Agents are available 24 hours per day, every day of the year and can be accessed by calling 1-866-451-5465. More details can be found on this flyer.

The EAP is a no-cost, confidential resource for a variety of issues, including:

• Depression
• Stress management
• Financial or legal concerns
• Marital difficulties
• Anxiety
• Eldercare, and more.
  

New in 2021 is the LIFT session, a virtual fitness platform. LIFT is an accessible, effective, and affordable way for you to reach your fitness goals. It features personalized programs, access to coaches for questions, and the ability to work out under the live supervision of a coach online in 1-1 personal or group sessions.

Zoom regularly provides updates to their platform in order to make the application more efficient & effective for their users. Below are a couple feature updates that recently were made. In order to make these new features available, you will need to be running the latest version of Zoom. 

Enhanced Zoom Co-Host Privileges over Breakout Rooms
With the latest feature update, Zoom has announced an enhancement that will allow co-hosts to have the same breakout room controls as the meeting host, such as starting or ending breakout rooms, assigning participants, etc.  Hosts and co-hosts will now also have the option to assign a participant back to the main session, rather than ending all breakout sessions.

Enabling Screen Sharing and Chat for Participants
A security change impacted several agency users who have reported that screen sharing and chat capabilities have been reset to “Host Only” rather than “All Participants.” To re-enable these settings, first verify that you are signed into Zoom and running the latest version, 5.4.7 and follow the steps outlined in this document.

If you have any questions or need technical assistance on any of the new Zoom updates, please contact the Help Desk at 319-273-8231 or helpdesk@centralriversaea.org.

ClassLink recently received a feature update that will help staff organize and customize their personal dashboard. 

Once you login, the new features will automatically be available. More information can be found in this document. 

Contact the Help Desk at 319-273-8231 or helpdesk@centralriversaea.org if you need assistance.   

As of Dec. 31, 2020, Adobe is no longer supporting Flash Player. Adobe will begin blocking Flash content from running in Flash Player beginning January 12, 2021. We recommend all users turn off or uninstall Flash Player to help protect our systems. Further instructions can be found here.  

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

The 2021-22 office calendar has been approved by the board and is now available to view/download on the staff website under Resources > Office Calendar.