The Channel

The results of the 2014 AEA/DE Customer Feedback Survey (CFS) are in. This year, over 1,300 educators participated in the survey which provides us with snapshot in time regarding how educators feel about AEA 267 services. Overall, satisfaction rates remained very high, down only slightly in a handful of categories, and up slightly in a handful of others when compared to last year. Because ‘Not Applicable’ is an option for those who take the survey, and because N/A’s do not count toward any category, perhaps an even better measure of results is to look at the percent that ‘disagree’ or ‘strongly disagree.’ In the majority of the 12 areas of the survey that percentage is less than 10%, and the highest level of ‘strongly disagree/disagree’ is 15.2%, with the next highest at 11.2%.

Overall this is a ringing endorsement of 267 services, and it is your hard work and accomplishments that have keep ratings consistently high through some challenging years of drastic resource cuts!  Take a look at the results in this matrix which shows the results over the past six years.

Enrollment for annual benefits is now open and will close May 31, 2014. All current staff should have received an informational email with instructions on how to enroll through iVisions. You must verify your benefit information in the system even if you are not planning on making any changes.

Just a friendly reminder about dates for the August kick-off meetings. Please be sure these dates are on your calendar and you are planning to attend your sector’s meeting. We are planning a great day of learning and connecting with your colleagues!

• Monday, August 11 (AEA 267 Clear Lake Office)
• Tuesday, August 12 (NE Sector, site to be determined)
• Wednesday, August 13 (AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center
• Thursday, August 14 (AEA 267 Marshalltown Office)

As noted in the “May Board Recap” story this month, the AEA 267 Board of Directors approved the sale of the Forest City Office to the Forest City Economic Development Corporation effective June 1. In recent years only a handful of staff were actively using the office space which had become increasingly expensive to maintain. We are happy to see the building stay a vital part of the Forest City community!

The Learning Center program, which was housed in the Clear Lake Office, will be discontinued effective the end of the 2013-14 school year. As more school districts strive to serve students in the least restrictive environment possible, enrollment in the program has declined, leading to closure.

(Thanks to Bryan Knecht for sharing this informative article.)

Heartbleed is a code flaw in OpenSSL’s hearbeat function that lets hackers trick a server into handing over its private encryption keys. With those keys in hand, hackers can decrypt information that’s passing between servers and user’s computers without any detection. They can also potentially use those keys to set up their own man in the middle server that appears as if it’s a legit version of the site you’re trying to reach, and that would let them collect as much information as they want.

Imagine, for example, a hacker getting ahold of the encryption keys for your bank. They could then intercept and decrypt your secure transactions, get your credit card and bank account numbers, account login and password, and more.

Do you use Facebook, Instagram, or Tumbler? Should you change your passwords for those sites? Hint: The answer is yes.

Mashable put together a chart that showing whether or not many popular sites are susceptible to the heartbleed bug, if they’ve been updated, and if it’s time for you to change your password.

Just a friendly reminder that summer hours will begin on June 9 and run through August 8. Official office hours will be 7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. during that period.

Two government agencies have pooled their purchasing power to provide low-cost distance communication tools. Each of Iowa’s Area Education Agencies and the Department of Education has purchased Zoom licenses for their employees. Zoom is a cloud-based, video conferencing service that can be accessed from computers, mobile devices and room conferencing systems. With this tool, a host can invite up to 25 or 100 participants to connect via video conferencing. It also includes screen sharing, annotation, chatting and recording functions.

The Iowa Educators Consortium (IEC), an initiative of Iowa’s AEAs, coordinated the bidding process which led to drastically discounted pricing for the next five years. The IEC is also working to make licenses available for schools, colleges and universities.

“Zoom will save thousands of dollars which are put back into providing services for kids,” said Brent Siegrist, AEA Executive Director. “This distance communication platform will be used by all of our peers across the state making communication seamless. The cost savings also translate into fewer miles traveled and lessen travel time for our staff.”

For more information, contact Dr. Jerry Schnabel.

Requests for AEA 267 video production services are on the increase as video continues to expand in popularity both as an instructional tool as well as to promote agency services.

New sections of both the public and staff websites have been added to provide additional support and resources including ideas for “do it yourself” (DIY) video projects. Check out these great resources the next time you are thinking about how a smaller video project could enhance your work!

Questions? Contact Tiffany Schmitt.

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, May 7 at 5:45 p.m. in the Garner-Hayfield High School Media Center for a public hearing regarding the sale of the Forest City Office property. No objections to the sale were noted. The board then met at 6 p.m. for a public hearing regarding the proposed merger of Garner-Hayfield and Ventura school districts.

Immediately following the Reorganization Hearing, the board met for their regular board meeting. During the regular meeting, the board:

• Considered input from the public hearing and possible action on the sale of property in Forest City.
• Approved the Iowa School Cash Anticipation Program (ISCAP) resolution.
• Approved computer purchases for the 2014-15 school year.
• Approved membership with the Iowa Association of School Boards (IASB) for the 2014-15 school year.
• Approved the mutual agreement with Clear Lake Community School District to close the Clear Lake Learning Center program.
• Heard a first reading of the following board policies
  • 700 Series (General Public Relations)
  • 800 Series (Information and Technology Services)
• Ratified the Master Contract for 2014-15 with the AEA 267 Education Association.
• Set salaries for Non-Union Support Staff (NUSS) and Administrative staff for the 2014-15 school year.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

Your Administrative Cabinet members (Dr. Roark Horn, Dr. Mary Stevens, Dr. Jerry Schnabel, Julie Davies, Dr. Jon McKenzie, David Nicholson, Kathy Enslin, and Beth Strike) presented an overview presentation during the opening of our accreditation site visit. As you may recall, every five years, the agency participates in this official review of agency programs and services, which is facilitated by the Iowa Department of Education. The site visit serves as an opportunity to ensure that AEA standards for service are being met and that progress is being made toward established goals. As a reminder, interview teams will be on site to meet with selected AEA staff members along with those we serve on April 22-24. We look forward to this opportunity to showcase all of your hard work as well as discover opportunities for continued growth as an organization. For more information, contact Dr. Jon McKenzie or visit the accreditation 2014 website. This is a powerful section of our website with a great deal of information about the results of our collective efforts. Check it out!

Special thanks to Dr. Jerry Schnabel for contributing this valuable article.

From time-to-time I get a question about the security of a staff member’s email, Google, iVisions, etc. account. At the agency, we do a number of things to minimize risk. For example, we require that all users change their passwords every 120 days and have password requirements that make them hard to crack. We also protect from password cracking attempts by shutting down accounts after a certain number of unsuccessful password attempts.

The iVisions site is secured through the use of encryption software that is the industry standard. This is how we encrypt all data on the site (including passwords).  All AEA 267 Web sites with https:// in front of their address use this type of security.

While the agency takes multiple measures to ensure the safety of your data, you also have an important role in keeping your password safe. Using a post-it note on a computer with a password prominently displayed may help you remember it, but anyone passing by can see it too. If you do write it down, store it out of sight, in a secure place away from your computer.

If you want to change your password at any time, you may go to https://password.aea267.k12.ia.us/pm/ and select “Change Password”. If you forget your password, you can go to the same site and select “Reset”. The IT staff does not have access to your password, so this is the best way to reset a forgotten password.

While time clock systems that accurately track employee hours worked have been around for years, both the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Affordable Care Act now make these systems imperative. The Affordable Care Act requires employers to report all hours being worked by all employees to be sure that all employees who work more than 30 hours are offered health insurance. In addition, the implementation of a time clock system will ensure that all non-exempt employees are being compensated for all the hours they work. This provides both the agency and hourly staff members with peace of mind.

At the April board meeting, the AEA 267 Board of Directors approved the purchase of a time clock system provider. The Business and Human Resources offices are working closely together to ensure a smooth implementation of the new system by July 1, including time for training.

We recognize that staff members who may be impacted by the change have many, many questions. Supervisors and administrators who will oversee the system have many questions themselves! Unfortunately, due to the ongoing changes in the guidance that accompanies the Affordable Care Act, we may not have concrete answers for a few weeks yet. Supervisors and administrators met on April 3 for an initial discussion about how to implement the system and to generate questions and scenarios that need further discussion. Rest assured that as soon as details are worked out, additional information, along with training, will be provided. In the meantime, feel free to share your questions with your supervisor who is assisting with putting together a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) that we can all use when clarification is needed closer to July 1.

Questions? Contact either David Nicholson or Kathy Enslin.

Over 1,300 educators have now taken the annual AEA/DE Customer Feedback Survey, which provides those we serve with an opportunity to share feedback about our services. (The survey launched on Monday, March 3.) Please continue to encourage teachers and school administrators you work with to respond to the survey, which will close on Friday, April 11. (As a reminder, AEA staff members are not eligible to take the survey.)

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met Wednesday, April 2, 2014 at 6 p.m. in the AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center. During the meeting, the board:

• Heard a program review from Dr. Jon McKenzie regarding the Accreditation Process.
• Authorized and approved the purchase of a timecard system for the agency.
• Reviewed the RFPs and approved an Auditor for 2013-14 through 2016-17.
• Ratified the Collective Bargaining contract for 2014-15 with the CWA.
• Approved the 28E purchasing agreement with the IAEP for 2014-15 for River Hills School.
• Approved the Cooperative Student Teaching/Practicum Program agreement with UNI for 2014-15.
• Heard a second reading of the following board policies:
  • 500 Series (Students)
  • 600 Series (Business Procedures)
• Approved the resolution for sale of property to begin the process of selling the Forest City office building.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.