The Channel

Plan now to join your colleagues for the all staff retirement celebration in May. Keep an eye out for more details, such as the list of retirees and the date/time of the celebration, that will be available in next month’s edition of The Channel.

W-2s for the calendar year 2023 were handed out to office staff or mailed to your home during the week of January 22. If you need another copy, please visit the Web Link portal under Employee Information > Payroll and Compensation and download the form. Questions should be directed via email to Shane Wolf or by calling 319-273-8203.

While we regret that we can’t provide staff with assurances of a quick solution or a guaranteed outcome, we know that our collective work continues to matter. Stay engaged in the process and with our advocates. Remember, our mantra around advocacy is to be “relentless and respectful.” Keep showing up and continue doing the work that we know makes a difference with our local schools. 

Please find several resources attached that we discussed earlier and that can be found on our staff website under Resources > Legislative Updates, Resources & FAQs.

• Updated talking points
• Updated list of forums
• Legislative Updates & FAQs page on staff website

Farewell to Executive Director of Educational Services, Jen Sigrist, who will be leaving Central Rivers AEA on June 30, 2024 to join the Norwalk Community School District as the new Associate Superintendent of Teaching and Learning, pending board approval next week.

“Working in my local community and in my children’s school is the only thing that could take me away from the amazing work and team here at Central Rivers AEA. I’m proud of the people I work with and the dedication I see from our staff each day. I feel blessed to have been part of this agency.”

Jen extends her heartfelt gratitude to the entire administrative team and the board for their unwavering support during this time of transition. Thank you for your commitment to innovation and student achievement, Jen! Central Rivers AEA wishes you the best on your future endeavors.

Congratulations to the February Central Rivers AEA staff who were nominated for a Difference Maker Award by our LEA partners (school administrators, superintendents, principals, teachers, etc.) For our February nominees, here is what our LEA partners that nominated you had to say:

Angel Copp, Special Education Consultant

“Angel has taken on new and additional assignments in our district as a SpEd Consultant and has made a huge impact in a short-time! She provided additional support to a new special education teacher and has provided valuable insight to our middle and high school special education. Angel always does a great job in going above and beyond. We are lucky to have her!” -Tripoli CSD administrator

Sara Reed, Special Education Consultant

“Last year was my first year as a L2/L3 teacher. Sara’s support was instrumental in my success for this new position. Because of her guidance and understanding, I felt very comfortable coming back for year two. Sara is always there when we need her. She listens to concerns and offers valuable advice that helps me and my students. I am so grateful for Sara’s friendship, guidance and content knowledge! She deserves this award!” -Marshalltown CSD teacher

Jody Albertson, Regional Administrator

“Jody always looks for continuous improvement in our district. She has been a tremendous leader in making sure that the Osage administration team has what they need to ensure our system is focused on teaching and learning to support our students and staff! Jody is a great listener who reflects on current reality and helps create action plans for success toward a goal. We are lucky to have her as a Regional Administrator!” -Osage CSD administrator

Kristin Schmidt, Special Education Consultant

“Kristin is a terrific team rep. who always has the best interest of the student at hand. She is straightforward and professional at all times. I have grown to appreciate her willingness to think outside the box in her work with meeting the learning needs of all students. She has a terrific rapport with the students, parents and school stakeholders.” -Forest City CSD administrator

Maggie Mehmen, Special Education Consultant

“Maggie has been incredible. Our Bulldog staff love her, and I couldn’t be more excited to work with her. She can never leave us. Maggie has hit the ground running – she has been involved, visible and helps our staff. We appreciate her more than we can express!” -Hampton-Dumont CSD support staff member

Appetizer celebration for “National Language Day” will take place during February 15 regional meetings

February 21 is National Language Day! Prepare to celebrate with “apps” from around the world – not for your phone – for your mouth! Sign up today to bring your favorite appetizer and celebrate National Language Day in a delicious way. Important details can be found below.

• Date: Thursday, February 15 during regional meetings
• Time: 11:30 am – 12:30 pm at all three Central Rivers AEA office locations
• Sign-up sheets: Cedar Falls office, Clear Lake office, Marshalltown office

Reach out to Rebekah Robbs with questions.

February 15 Plans

Due to the uncertain AEA legislative landscape, a decision was made to postpone learning around the next Key Mindset, originally scheduled for February 15 prior to regional meetings. If you do not usually attend regional meetings, please connect with your supervisor on plans for that time. Regional Administrators will organize the agenda for that day for regional staff and communicate logistics and content soon.

Shared Staff Resources

This slide deck has a few simple resources that you might find very helpful during this uncertain time.

• Slides 1-4: INspired Leadership approach & ideas
• Slides 5-8: T.E.A. Strategy worksheet
• Slides 9-11: In my control/Out of my control
• Slide 12: Finding certainty
• ESSDACK video: Tips to deal with stress (this 12-minute video was recorded during COVID-19 but applies to our stressors today).

Support for You!

Do you want to decrease the impact of stress on your life or increase your life satisfaction? If so, consider how your personal coach can support you in achieving those things! Connect via Zoom (at your convenience) with Central Rivers AEA Leadership Coach, Dr. Leslie Moore, for the opportunity to reflect on what you want more of in your life and how your thoughts and emotions are impacting your actions. All sessions are confidential and scheduled by you when you send Leslie a Google Calendar invitation. Reach out to Dr. Moore with questions.

The 2024 All-Staff Kickoff meeting will be held on Friday, August 16. Please add this date to your calendar. The meeting will be held in the Cedar Falls Conference Center and attendance is mandatory for all Central Rivers AEA employees.

Updated 2024 W-4 form

Due to the enactment of Senate File 565 being passed by the Iowa Legislature in 2023, the Iowa withholding tables and the IA W-4 were revised, effective January 1, 2024. The Iowa Department of Revenue (IDR) is encouraging all employees to fill out the new IA W-4. Some important things to note:

• You are allowed to complete the new form electronically, but you will need to print, sign and scan/send to payroll@centralriversaea.org.
• Please complete the form as soon as possible and return it to payroll no later than January 10.
• The main difference to note between the new forms is that the old form was numbers and the new form requires dollar amounts.
• If you had an additional dollar amount removed from your previous W-4 and you want that amount to carry over, you must fill out and submit a new W-4 to have that dollar amount removed from your pay stub. *This amount does not carry over from the old form. This is on “line 7” on the new W-4 form.
• Compare your January check to your December check to see if the change is reasonable. (i.e. – if you’re used to $400 coming out but only $200 came out, tax tables may have changed slightly for 2024, so you will want to compare to know where to make your adjustments.)
• You can change this form at any point during 2024.
• Line 1, 3, and 5’s instructions on the second page help walk you through what dollar amounts* you will use to figure out your allowances.

*A reminder that we cannot provide tax advice, so any questions should be directed to your tax preparer or an outside tax expert.

Who can I contact in the business office with questions?

While we begin our new partnership with Mississippi Bend AEA and their CFO, Jennifer Coombes,  a reminder that our HR/Business office teams are here to help you! For generic business office inquiries, reach out to Pam Morrissey. If Pam is out of the office, then Jennifer can be contacted by email. Visit the Business Office/HR page on our staff website or check out the details below.

Business Office related questions should be directed to the following:

• Payroll – Shane Wolf
• A/P – Angie Sorenson
• Benefits – Kevin Klobassa

Robin Billerbeck – HR Specialist

• WebLink Resources
• Leaves (FMLA – Long term)
• Work Year Calendar

Kevin Klobassa – Benefits Specialist

• Insurance
• Health Savings Accounts
• Retirement (403b/IPERS)
• Work Injuries & Workers Compensation

Shirley Horak – HR Coordinator

• Human Resource Issues
• Board Policy
• School Messenger

Karl Kurt – Assistant Chief Administrator/ Director of HR

• Covid-19 Resources
• Emergency Procedures
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Employee Grievance

Pam Morrissey – Accounting Manager

• Grants and Budgets
• Agency Credit Cards

Angie Sorenson – Accounts Payable Specialist

• Expense Reimbursements
• Payment of Invoices
• Adding Vendors

Shane Wolf – Payroll Specialist

• Payroll
• Timeclock
• W-4 or Tax Withholding Changes
• Direct Deposit Changes

Over the past several months the AEA system has continued to engage with the Governor and legislators in conversations about the AEA system in advance of the start of the legislative session. 

The legislative session will gavel in on Monday, January 8, and the Governor will hold her Condition of the State speech at 6 pm on Tuesday, January 9. Based on our conversations with the Governor, state legislators and key Capitol staff, we anticipate that Governor Reynolds will be requesting additional review of and potential legislative changes to our statewide organization during her speech Tuesday evening.

As you can imagine, public interest and media coverage of our system will be amplified over the next several months. Our goal during this time of increased scrutiny and publicity will be to maintain honest and transparent conversations with all of you, and to address questions and concerns with data and confirmed information in a timely manner.  

Please know that we continue to work with legislators to help them understand the complexities of Iowa’s AEA and the great value that is provided by our staff and system. We have been pleased to hear positive support about our system’s work from many state leaders, and we continue to actively collaborate with those who may benefit from learning more about the strengths of our system. We have heard from many of them about the emails and letters they have received from our staff, our district partners, and our parents and guardians who work with many of you, and we appreciate the groundswell of support we’ve seen from everyone who engaged in this outreach. This work will continue through the legislative session.

Keep providing the support and services that we know are valued among our stakeholders: we’ll be in touch with more information as soon as possible.

Congratulations to the January Central Rivers AEA staff who were nominated for a Difference Maker Award by our LEA partners (school administrators, superintendents, principals, teachers, etc.) For our January nominees, here is what our LEA partners that nominated you had to say:

Kara Shannon, Consultant for School Improvement

“Kara, Janelle, Joe, Jessie and Kim were awesome coaches and presenters at the “Data Day” at the Marshalltown AEA office! They are full of knowledge and support – second to none! Their constant support helps our district out a great deal and we are beyond thankful to have these AEA staff members serving the needs of our East Marshall District!” -East Marshall CSD administrator

Janelle Pirkl, Consultant for School Improvement

“Janelle, Kara, Joe, Jessie and Kim were awesome coaches and presenters at the “Data Day” at the Marshalltown AEA office! They are full of knowledge and support – second to none! Their constant support helps our district out a great deal and we are beyond thankful to have these AEA staff members serving the needs of our East Marshall District!” -East Marshall CSD administrator

Joe Kremer, Consultant for School Improvement

“Joe, Kara, Janelle, Jessie and Kim were awesome coaches and presenters at the “Data Day” at the Marshalltown AEA office! They are full of knowledge and support – second to none! Their constant support helps our district out a great deal and we are beyond thankful to have these AEA staff members serving the needs of our East Marshall District!” -East Marshall CSD administrator

Kim Hurley, Consultant for School Improvement

“Kim, Kara, Janelle, Joe and Jessie were awesome coaches and presenters at the “Data Day” at the Marshalltown AEA office! They are full of knowledge and support – second to none! Their constant support helps our district out a great deal and we are beyond thankful to have these AEA staff members serving the needs of our East Marshall District!” -East Marshall CSD administrator

Jessie Blohm, Consultant for Early Childhood

“Jessie, Kara, Janelle, Joe and Kim were awesome coaches and presenters at the “Data Day” at the Marshalltown AEA office! They are full of knowledge and support – second to none! Their constant support helps our district out a great deal and we are beyond thankful to have these AEA staff members serving the needs of our East Marshall District!” -East Marshall CSD administrator

Sarah Holden, School Social Worker

“Sarah has provided extensive support to new teachers in various ways. She has offered her assistance in observation, lesson planning, IEP support and one-on-one sessions with teachers. Sarah dedicated countless hours to support us during a time when we were short-staffed. We are so thankful for her!” -Grinnell Middle School administrator

Emily Hagebock, School Psychologist

“Emily is very dedicated to the well-being of the students and is always there for all staff that need her. She listens to students and staff without judgment and is always so caring. We are lucky to have her!” -South Hardin High School paraeducator

Plan now to join Chief Administrator, Joel Pedersen, for coffee with the chief on Friday, February 9! This is a great opportunity to hear virtual updates on agency events, current trends in K-12 education and have any questions or concerns you have answered. All of the meetings will be held via Zoom and on Fridays, starting at 8 am. So, grab a cup of coffee or your favorite morning beverage and join us! The next meeting will be held on April 12.

Zoom details:

• https://centralriversaea.zoom.us/j/87609674396
• Meeting ID: 876 0967 4396
• One tap mobile +16469313860,,87609674396# US

Need support? Contact the Central Rivers AEA Tech Help Desk at helpdesk@centralriversaea.org or 319-273-8231.