The Channel

We would like to extend a big thank you to Lifetouch for being part of our opening day in Cedar Falls. They graciously took over 400 photos of our staff and, from our point of view, did an excellent job. They have also supplied us with courtesy photos for everyone who had their picture taken.  These will be distributed, along with new ID badges, in the next couple of weeks.  If you were not able to get your picture taken on the opening day, your previous photo will be used or you may stop in one of the main offices to have your picture taken.

As a service to our Central Rivers AEA staff, we have once again invited an IPERS representative to offer individual counseling sessions at each office. Due to limited IPERS resources, we will not be having a group presentation. Also, due to the popularity of this service by IPERS in previous years, we were not able to accommodate all staff who were interested; therefore we ask that only those who are planning on retiring in three to five years schedule an appointment with priority given to those retiring within three years.

Please contact the AEA contact person in the linked flyer if you desire to schedule an individual counseling session with IPERS. Please allow one-half hour per session. After scheduling an appointment, a form will be sent to you from the contact person below to be filled out and returned to the contact person before the individual counseling session. Please see this flyer for specific dates and locations.

Cedar Valley Cyclists (CVC) will host Ride For A Cause on Saturday, September 23 to support IHOPE. IHOPE is the local chapter of AMBUCS, a national nonprofit charitable organization with the mission of creating mobility and independence for people with a disability. IHOPE stands for Iowans Helping Others Participate Everyday. IHOPE focuses specifically on the AmTrykes program of AMBUCS which helps provide adaptive tricycles for children and adults that can be individualized to meet the needs of almost any rider.

There are currently five local children on the IHOPE wish list waiting for their very own AmTryke.

Proceeds from Ride For A Cause will go towards the purchase of an AmTryke for one or more of these children and Cedar Valley Cyclists will match all funds raised up to $1000.

The ride will begin at Key West Fitness, 2325 Crossroads Blvd., in Waterloo. Registration begins at 9:30am and the ride leaves at 10:00am. Riders can collect punches at local Waterloo stops along the route (Briqhouse Bar & Grill, Jameson’s Public House, SingleSpeed Brewing, Smitty’s Bar, and Waterloo Bicycle Works). The first 30 people to register will receive a free gift from CVC and there will be a prize drawing at 2:00pm at Waterloo Bicycle Works.

All abilities of riders are welcome. The route is 20-25 miles total on paved Waterloo bike trails. The event will occur rain or shine. Helmets are required. Registration is $25 for CVC members and $30 for non-members. For more information, contact Eric Penning, president, Cedar Valley Cyclists, at 319-239-1208 or eric@ridecvc.org.

The Department of Education is transitioning to a new statewide data system for K-6 literacy through FASTBridge Learning. To help school districts with this transition, comprehensive training via webinars and regional face-to-face meetings are being offered now through the end of October. These training slots are limited and information needed to register for the training is being distributed to district participants by their principals or superintendents.

Here are a few key answers to recent questions the DE has received about the training and the transition:

• The DE has the capacity to train a few people from each school or district, and the expectation is that the people who receive training will use the available resources to help train others in their building.
• The DE is still considering how to collect screening data from schools not using the FAST system.  
• The screening windows for 17-18 for all schools (other than the three Iowa year-round schools) are defined by the IDOE and shall not be changed by the district:
  • Fall: September 11 to October 6
  • Winter: January 15 to February 9
  • Spring: April 23 to May 18

The Department will provide ongoing communication and support throughout this important transition. AEA Staff who are interested in more frequent updates can sign up to receive regular Early Warning System email updates.

(Please note: This information is useful for those with office space in the Cedar Falls Office given the design and arrangement of that office. Other norms may apply in Marshalltown or Clear Lake.)

In order to safeguard the work performed during the renovation and maintain a professional, shared work environment, the following guidelines have been developed for work spaces at Central Rivers AEA.

1) So as not to compete with the building’s architecture or create a maintenance issue, please do not bring plants, live or artificial, into the work space. (If the agency has sufficient funds at a future time, plants may be added in key areas.) Please note that this does not apply to fresh flowers or plants that may be delivered to you for a special occasion. Please enjoy!

2) In order to ensure the uniform appearance of signage pertaining to agency operations that are needed for display in the public areas, the Creative Services & Communications Office will serve as the sole source for such items. This will ensure that printed materials have a uniform, branded appearance, utilizing type fonts and other production specifications that are part of the building’s overall signage system.

3) To maintain the building’s energy and light management systems, windows and glass surfaces must remain clear; nothing is to be taped or otherwise adhered to any glass or mirrored surface. Curtains, draperies and other materials cannot be hung or taped over any exterior or interior windows. Furniture and shelves should not be placed directly in front of glass walls within the offices (where possible), so as to block views between individual offices and shared spaces.

4) To avoid potential hazards, minimize energy costs, and maintain the functionality of the building’s heating and air conditioning systems, the refrigerators, microwave ovens and other food storage and preparation appliances provided in Central Perk and the kitchenette areas throughout the building should be used. Such appliances are not allowed in other spaces, and cannot be brought into the building from other locations or from home. While fans can be used in work areas if needed, space heaters cannot be used because of the intricate HVAC system.

5) To ensure a uniform, professional appearance, please do not place items on top of book cases, office dividers, or book shelves in open areas.

Phew! That’s a long list…now for the fun stuff!

1) DO be social and collaborative here at work. Our new space is designed specifically around the goals of collaboration, integration and the efficiencies that can be created by working together. Rather than send an email or picking up the phone, more often consider getting up out of your seat and going talk to someone when possible.

2) DO provide suggestions to administration that you think will improve our work environment. From a physical standpoint, we are working more closely than we ever have before. If you have a suggestion for how the experience could be improved, let us know.

3) DO your part to maintain a healthy, positive culture in our building. Assume positive intent with your co-workers, bring in a snack to share on your birthday, smile a lot…spread joy! We spend more time with each other than with our own families most days. Help to make this a positive, productive place to work.

4) DO get up and move! If you need a break from your office space, go sit somewhere else. Is it a nice day? Go work outside at one of the tables or head up to Central Perk and find a spot there to work. Just make sure your supervisor or office mates know where you are in case someone needs to reach you. (If you are in Central Perk, you can forward your phone to the spot you’ve chosen in many cases.)

5) DO go for a walk. A morning and afternoon break are encouraged to keep creativity, productivity, and energy levels high. Have you noticed that we have an amazing walking path right outside the back door? Go check it out. Consider having a friendly competition with your co-workers to see who can make it around the fastest.

Enjoy this great space and help us keep it as beautiful and professional looking as it does now for years to come. Welcome!

The Central Rivers AEA Board of Directors met Wednesday, September 6th in the Cedar Falls Conference Center. The board packet is available online and the minutes will be published online after approval at the next month’s board meeting.

Welcome back to another exciting year for our agency as we are now “officially” Central Rivers AEA!  

The purpose of this communication is to provide you with some important details as you prepare for Monday’s all-staff meeting at our new location at 1521 Technology Parkway in Cedar Falls. (Please be sure to read the following carefully as hard copies of this information will not be provided.)

Please review the agenda for the day, including details for the afternoon’s meetings. Note that while sign-in begins at 8:30 am, we are asking that all staff have their photo taken before our 9 am start time or during the morning break. Thus, staff members within the Cedar Falls region are encouraged to come as early as 7:30 am to have their photo taken early and help alleviate congestion.

Carpooling with other employees to defray mileage expense and help to ease parking concerns will be critical. If you are in the Clear Lake or Marshalltown Office, carpooling arrangements have been organized by either Chad Pinkston (Marshalltown) or Dr. Carol Sensor (Clear Lake). Please reach out to one of these individuals if you have any further questions. Parking at 1521 Technology Parkway is available in all of the main building lots (upper and lower) along with both sides of the street on Technology Parkway.

Plenty of staff members will be available to help guide you at our new site. In addition, floor maps will be available on several monitors for you to refer to throughout the day. Lactation rooms are available for those who may need them on the lower level. Maps of both the upper and lower levels are available to download for your convenience. 

Dress for the day is professional casual (shorts, flip flops, polos, etc. are all acceptable). If you would like, bring a pair of walking shoes to enjoy the trail. We hope you will look forward to learning, great food, team building, and door prizes. It’s going to be a great day!

Cell phone reimbursement applications for the 2017-18 school year will be accepted now through September 15, 2017. The request form can be found on the Staff Website. Payment will be made to employees on September 29, 2017. Cell phone reimbursement requests are approved when the use of cell phones are appropriate and necessary in an employee’s role to provide effective and efficient operations of Central Rivers AEA.

Please remember to submit applications 6-8 weeks prior to an expiration date (or prior to when a new license is needed). Background checks can take 4-6 weeks, in addition to the time the Board of Educational Examiners office needs to process the request. Educators cannot remain on the job, even if their materials have been submitted if their license expires.

Due to our name change, there is a change in staff username/password to access our digital resources, such as any of the Iowa AEA Online resources, MackinVIA or Literary Reference Center.  Central Rivers staff username is now: crmedia. The password is: craea.

For our school district partners, their username will remain the same for digital resources, but the password does change to: craea.

Please contact Cheryl Carruthers, Deb Culp or Cari Teske if you have any questions about media resources available to you and the schools that you serve.

The Department of Education is transitioning to a new statewide data system for K-6 literacy through FASTBridge Learning. To help school districts with this transition, comprehensive training via webinars and regional face-to-face meetings are being offered now through the end of October. These training slots are limited and information needed to register for the training is being distributed to district participants by their principals or superintendents.

Here are a few key answers to recent questions the DE has received about the training and the transition:

• The DE has the capacity to train a few people from each school or district, and the expectation is that the people who receive training will use the available resources to help train others in their building.
• The DE is still considering how to collect screening data from schools not using the FAST system.  
• The screening windows for 17-18 for all schools (other than the three Iowa year-round schools) are defined by the IDOE and shall not be changed by the district:

Fall: September 11 to October 6

Winter: January 15 to February 9

Spring: April 23 to May 18

The Department will provide ongoing communication and support throughout this important transition. AEA Staff who are interested in more frequent updates can sign up to receive regular Early Warning System email updates.

Dr. Monte Selby
August 14th Keynote Speaker

The August 14 all-staff meeting is quickly approaching and represents a great opportunity for us to learn, connect, and explore our new facility in Cedar Falls. Click here to see the schedule for the day as well as details for the afternoon team meeting. As in past years, we ask that you please carpool with other employees to defray mileage expense and help to ease parking concerns. If you are in the Clear Lake or Marshalltown Office, carpooling arrangements are being organized by either Chad Pinkston (Marshalltown) or Dr. Carol Sensor (Clear Lake). Please reach out to one of these individuals to sign-up for ride sharing if you have not already received information.

We are excited to be bringing back last year’s planned main speaker, Monte Selby. If you remember, a plane issue kept Monte from presenting last year. We were fortunate to have a back-up plan last year and more fortunate that Monte was available this year!

Dress for the day is casual. Flips flops, shorts, polos, etc. are all fair game! If you would like, bring a pair of walking shoes to enjoy the trail outside our new Cedar Falls office. We hope you will look forward to learning, great food, team building, and door prizes. It’s going to be a great day!

On July 5, many of the year-round Cedar Falls-based staff began moving into our new digs at 1521 Technology Place. While the majority of staff are settling in, the print room will not be completed and ready until closer to August 1. In addition, professional learning classes and workshops are still being held at our former location at 3712 Cedar Heights Drive until August 14.

In addition, renovation work in the Marshalltown office as well as the installation of new furniture and other touch ups in the Clear Lake office are nearing completion.

Here are a few photos from this summer’s work! A huge thank you to everyone involved.

Expense reimbursements must be submitted and approved before July 10th to be eligible for payment. Requests for June mileage may be submitted for reimbursement after the last day worked in June.