The Channel

Melissa Hesner

Please join us in congratulating Melissa Hesner, AEA 267 Consultant for School Improvement, on being selected to fill the role of Regional Administrator for the East Sector in Region 8.

Melissa received her degrees from the University of Northern Iowa and prior to joining AEA 267 in 2011 as a science consultant, she served as a science teacher and coach for Postville and East Buchanan Community School Districts. Along with her current position as a consultant for school improvement, Melissa also serves as a lead coach for AIW.

As Regional Administrator, Melissa will oversee a team of staff members from all three service areas who are assigned to deliver service to the following school districts in Region 8; Dunkerton, East Buchanan, Independence, Jesup, and Wapsie Valley. She will assume her new duties on July 1, 2016.

March “Hall of Fame” winners pictured with Sam Miller (L to R) Chad Pinkston, Cindy Baker & Barb Schroeder

Congratulations to Barb Schroeder, Cindy Baker, and Chad Pinkston, our latest Hall of Fame Award Honorees!

Barb Schroeder, Administrative Assistant to Service Area Director Ed. Services is based out of the Cedar Falls office. Prior to joining AEA 267 in 1987, Barb attended Hawkeye Tech and worked as a circulation manager for a magazine publication in Grundy Center.

Barb’s days range from assisting the Educational Services staff with many day-to-day tasks to organizing and planning  a wide variety of meetings, trainings, and student events. She focuses on building relationships with staff members and letting them know she is here to support them in any way she can.

Finding humor and being thankful every day is Barb’s motto and her co-workers tell us it shows in every aspect of her work and is what makes her a “rock star.”

Cindy Baker, Special Education Technology Specialist began her career with the agency in 1979 as part of Northern Trails AEA, working in the Mason City satellite office as a special education secretary. She eventually became a systems manager before moving into her current position in 2014.  

Serving as the primary contact for the AEA web IEP and IMS systems for the Northeast and Northwest Sectors, Cindy’s day-to-day responsibilities involve working directly with AEA staff, LEA staff, and administrators in troubleshooting problems with the web IEP/IMS systems. Her biggest reward each day is the feeling that she is a part of the big picture in furthering the agency’s mission to improve student learning.

Cindy believes the key to working in education is to be patient and stay flexible, as she never knows what each day will bring. That belief has paid off for Cindy — after 37 years, she has kept her positive attitude and is greatly admired by both her co-workers and those she serves.

Chad Pinkston, Site Superintendent/School Psychologist received his degree from Louisiana State University in Shreveport and began his career with AEA 267 in 2004 as a psychology intern.

Chad wears many different hats at AEA 267, serving as a school psychologist, team representative for the south region, a member of the Crisis Response Team, and site superintendent for the Marshalltown office. His days are varied and consist of ensuring that operations run smoothly in the Marshalltown office, developing and supporting behavior intervention plans, assisting with secondary transition compliance, and being available to respond to crisis situations that might arise within the districts we serve.

Chad told us it is not hard to stay positive and dedicated to our mission each day because he is truly grateful to have the opportunity to serve kids, parents, and educators. Those who work with Chad describe him as a dedicated, effective leader who treats everyone with respect and appreciation.

Please join us in congratulating these three outstanding team members!

Do you work with someone you consider to be the best-of-the-best?  Submit your nominations for the the AEA 267 “Hall of Fame” recognition program. All nominations will remain on file for consideration during future months.

The current educational system in the U.S. was developed a century ago during the rise of the industrial age and was once the envy of the world. However, the world economy has since transformed profoundly, but the U.S. education system has not. Schools are attempting to teach and test skills, when mastered, that still leave graduates woefully unprepared for the 21st century.

Please join us for a screening and discussion of “Most Likely to Succeed”, a short documentary film about how and why our schools need to change to meet our needs today. The documentary tells the story of a school in San Diego that is completely rethinking what the experience of going to school looks like. As they follow its students, parents, and teachers through a truly unorthodox school experience, the audience is forced to consider what sort of educational environment is most likely to succeed in the 21st century.

Details:

• Tuesday, March 8, 2016 6:30-8:45 p.m.
• Auditorium, Lang Hall, UNI Campus
• This event is free and open to the public.

Need a parking pass? Email cet@uni.edu or call 319-273-3145

The Iowa legislature is stalled once again in setting funding for Iowa’s schools and many do not realize how important it is for districts to know the “state cost per pupil” amount in order to set their budgets for the upcoming fiscal year. This informative article will enlighten you as to what it actually takes in order to educate Iowa’s most precious resource-our students.

In the 2015 Iowa General Assembly a key democratic senator commented that he ‘wasn’t hearing from anyone’ with concerns about legislative funding. Legislators often report that their inaction on an issue is simply because not enough people contacted them about it.

Writing a letter or sending an email is a simple way to ensure that your legislators know how you want to be represented.

When writing a letter:

1. Keep your letter short, a single page is best.
2. Be concise and specific, but add a personal touch.
3. Rather than writing as a “concerned AEA employee”, write from the perspective of a parent, grandparent (whichever the case may be) or concerned taxpayer.
4. Don’t use your AEA 267 email address or letterhead.

The sample letters below have been created for you to use when writing letters to legislators to advocate for adequate school funding. In addition, a directory of legislators is included for you to use in accessing the contact information for the legislators in your area.

Finally, the advocacy toolkit below was created with general tips that can be useful in speaking up for education funding! We need your support.

Here are three sample letters that you can choose from in expressing your support. Be sure to ADD YOUR NAME vs. sending any one of these letters “as is.” (They may need some re-formatting when you cut and paste them into your email message.)

This directory of legislators has contact information for our area’s legislators.

This Advocacy Toolkit was created by Iowa’s AEAs and is full of tips and resources to help you and others advocate. Please review it!

While it may seem like a long way away, the all-staff meeting will soon be upon us! This year’s meeting will be held on August 11 at the Marshalltown High School Auditorium, located at 1602 South 2nd Avenue in Marshalltown, Iowa. Details will be provided soon!

If you are considering retirement at the end of the 2015-16 year, please let the Human Resources office know as soon as possible. This will help to ensure that plans can be made for future staffing and also to celebrate your years of service with the agency.

Please contact Shirley Horak for more information.

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, March 2, 2016 in the Cedar Falls AEA 267 Conference Center at 4:30 p.m. for a work session. The regular meeting was held at 6 pm with the AEA 267 Foundation meeting immediately following.

The agenda for the March meeting can be found on the agency website under About Us>Board of Directors>Board Meetings & Agendas. Official minutes will be posted the following month after board approval.

Sam Miller, AEA 267 Chief Administrator

During my first several months on the job, I spent a lot of time just listening. Listening to you, to superintendents, to principals, to board members, and to others that we serve. As I reported during my presentations this fall, what became clear from all that listening is that your services are greatly appreciated. If those we serve had any complaint, it was that they needed more of your time and expertise.

My leadership challenge during the second quarter of this year has been to look for ways to make that happen. How could I get more expertise into the field and better utilize our current resources?

First, we’ve chosen a new role for leadership known as a “Regional Administrator” to be implemented next year. (See last month’s edition of Intersections for a full description.) The Regional Administrator approach is used successfully by at least three other AEAs and purposefully integrates our three services areas. Here are some other benefits of this move:

1. Two of the 11 Regional Administrators chosen for the position are currently holding positions that are primarily internally based (Dr. Carol Sensor and Kim Swartz). Transitioning Carol and Kim out into the field next year will be a huge benefit to the school districts they serve. In addition, with the transition of Bremwood School to oversight by the Waverly-Shell Rock Community School District, we were able to redirect the talents of Greg Koppes from principal at Bremwood School to this important new role where his expertise can be shared on a larger scale.
2. The Regional Administrator role “gets” the big picture of all the services that AEA 267 has to offer. They make sure that the “right hand” and the “left hand” of the agency are working together and help broker the right services at the right time–regardless of the service area it comes from.
3. As a staff member, you’ll be able to spend more time serving and less time trying to coordinate with staff from other service areas. While integration will be more important than ever, ensuring that it happens will be a built-in part of the Regional Administrator’s job. You serve, they coordinate (with your help of course!).

Along with the announcement of the Regional Administrator model, you are also no doubt curious about the closure of the Charles City and Grinnell offices and how that decision fits with the other changes that are occurring.

As we reported last month in Intersections, making the decision to close these two offices made good financial sense. It’s no secret that funding for AEAs is stagnant; and simply put, we have to make decisions between people and buildings in cases like this. We are also studying the space in our Cedar Falls, Marshalltown and Clear Lake offices. While we remain committed to having a presence in these three regions, we are studying whether the spaces we currently occupy makes sense for our needs now. Could we operate more efficiently with less space? Could we redirect saved resources back out into the field? I expect to be able to share the results of the facilities study we are conducting (with the help of Struxture Architects) in late spring.

Bundled with the changes described above is the recent announcement of the transition of oversight of the Bremwood and Pinecrest Schools. A decision was made by the Iowa Department of Education that special schools with a residential component (thus excluding River Hills) are best operated by the resident school district and a consortium of other schools whose students attend. And, although difficult to accept on many levels, it makes sense when you think about it. Even this transition is yet another example of how we are directing our resources where we can have the biggest impact and better align to our mission–even if budget wasn’t the main driver.

Still, all this change can feel a bit unsettling and I fully acknowledge that. Our agency is no stranger to transitions and those who have been here for many years can share many stories that underscore the evolution and continuous improvement of not only this AEA, but the system in general. Continuously improving is our responsibility as stewards of taxpayer dollars and although it isn’t always comfortable, we owe it to those we serve to make the best decisions we can to ensure that we are providing the highest quality service both now and for years to come. I am honored to walk side-by-side with you as we do this important work on behalf of children, families and educators.

Feel free to call, email or stop in my office if your travels bring you to Cedar Falls. Your thoughts and ideas matter.

Yours in education,

Sam

The AEA 267 “Hall of Fame” recognition program honors one or more individuals  who do a great job demonstrating what our Core Operating Principles look like in action.

Do you work with someone you consider to be the best-of-the-best?  Submit your nominations for the the AEA 267 “Hall of Fame” recognition program. All nominations will remain on file for consideration during future months.

Please join us in congratulating Amy Harmsen, Amy Thoms-Starr, and Rick Pearce, our latest honorees!

• Amy Harmsen, AEA 267 Technology Services Coordinator, is based out of our Marshalltown Office and earned her degrees from Iowa State University. Previously, Amy worked in professional video production, collaborating with academic professionals to create online learning videos and modules. Amy then realized her passion for education was actually in K-12 and joined AEA 267 in her current position.

Amy’s day to day work is a blend of applying her knowledge of technology to troubleshoot issues that arise in districts and in our agency. Her focus is on encouraging schools to use technology to equip learners with skills necessary to advocate for themselves and others, to inspire educators to re-imagine teaching and learning, and to motivate schools to adopt effective and secure technology.

Amy believes it is very important that anyone working in education keeps in perspective that the goal is always to foster environments that prepare students to go on to be the best version of themselves.

• Amy Thoms-Starr, AEA 267 Special Education Consultant, serves at Rock Run Elementary in Iowa Falls and earned her degrees from UNI. Prior to joining AEA 267, she taught six years in the Waterloo School Community School District as an elementary special education teacher.  

Along with her consultant position, Amy serves as a member of the Brain Injury Resource Team, is a resolution facilitator, provides professional development, and served as a compliance coach. Her days are diverse and afford her the opportunity to serve in many capacities.

Amy told us she strives to remain student focused as it helps her find value in all tasks and remain optimistic about our youth.

• Rick Pearce, AEA 267 Lead Maintenance, works in our Clear Lake Office and began working for the AEA system in 1975, first with the Joint County system and later Northern Trails AEA. He spent the first 31 years in the Print Production department before moving into his current position in 2006.

Rick’s position with the agency calls on him to handle a variety of situations. He is responsible for all maintenance issues in the Clear Lake Office and on the grounds, as well as spearheading major facility projects. Not only does Rick do an awesome job for our agency, but he has also served his community as a firefighter for the past 26 years and as an EMT for 30 years.

When asked what advice he would give to others, Rick said he believes in remaining positive and upbeat. He keeps his job fun and realizes each day that it is never too late to learn something new.

Please join us in congratulating our honorees on the great job they do every day demonstrating what our Core Operating Principles look like in action!

Given scheduling conflicts, the date for Office Support Professionals’ Day has been moved from April 29 to April 22 (still to be held in the AEA 267 Clear Lake Office). The new date will coincide  closely with Administrative Professionals’ Week which means prizes, learning and lots of fun! Please mark your calendar for this date. Official invitations and a full agenda will be available in the spring. Thanks for your patience as the date has shifted.

Let’s learn Google forms

Cari Teske, AEA 267 Integrated Learning Specialist, will be hosting sessions for staff members to improve their skills and confidence in using Google Forms. Participants will learn how to create a form and use it in a variety of ways. Register online through My267 for course #15404. See dates and locations below:

Google Apps for education training

Cari Teske will be conducting training sessions for Google Apps in March and April. Participants will learn how to create and organize files, as well as working through a Google document. Staff may sign up through My267 for course #15360. Dates and locations are listed below:

Online communities and learning networks are helping educators create innovative solutions to age-old problems, and fulfill the promise of today and tomorrow’s educational landscape. Because online learning is evolving quickly, it is especially important for online teachers to connect and collaborate.

 Educators at all levels and those who support them are encouraged to participate.  The first step is to join the community, which can be done in seconds at http://bit.ly/1wWps6k.  Once you’re signed up, you’ll get regular announcements about:

•       Webinars
•       Forums on topics related to teaching and learning online
•       Activities that you can be part of
•       Resources that are available
•       Badges you can earn
•       And much, much more!

The 28 days of OLLIE is an excellent opportunity for online teachers to benefit from each other’s ideas and experiences, as well as gain some insight into the newest innovations in online learning.

The AEA 267 Flex Room in the Cedar Falls Conference Center.

AEA 267’s Flex Room is a space for AEA and LEA learners to experience and experiment with student-centered, creative, and collaborative learning environments in a space designed to be flexible to meet the diverse needs of students during the learning process. The Flex Room draws its name from the flexibility that is required of today’s teachers and learning environments to meet the needs of today’s students and prepare them for tomorrow’s world.  To help accomplish this, different technologies were chosen for the Flex Room than found in our other available conference and meeting rooms. Anyone can use the Flex room for basic screen sharing but to take advantage of the full capabilities of the technology in the Flex Room formal training is required. You can sign up for these trainings through True North Logic, course number #15399.

Upcoming trainings:

• Feb 9 from 9 am-noon
• Feb 26 from 1-4 pm