The Channel

Sam Miller, AEA 267 Chief Administrator

Many of you are probably wondering what happened with the proposed $5 million cut to the Iowa AEA system. As you know, I sent a frantic email to all staff late last month asking for help in reaching out and advocating on our behalf. A huge thank you to each of you who took this opportunity to encourage educators and families to speak out. The good news is that your efforts made a difference. Over the weekend we learned that instead of cutting the system $5 million, we will instead be cut $3.75 million. Both the other Chief Administrators and our lobbyists firmly believe that the relationships and connections we have with those we serve made restoring some of the proposed cut possible.  

Now for the bad news. Cutting the AEA system $3.75 million equates to about $525,000 for AEA 267. When combined with several years of stagnant revenue growth, the timing of this shortfall couldn’t be worse as we are steadily dipping into our reserves to meet the financial demands of our current staffing levels, programs and services. In the coming months, the AEA 267 leadership team will begin the arduous process of developing an action plan to bring expenditures in line with available funds. I’ll continue to communicate with you throughout the process and I encourage you to come forth with your ideas to continue to create efficiencies. We are all in this together!

AEA 267’s Board of Directors volunteer countless hours of their time each year to ensure that every Iowa student, family and educator served by our agency receives excellent service. Please join us in honoring our board members and consider sending a thank you note, email or making a phone call to one of the incredible members of our board. They deserve our appreciation!

Get to know the board…

Roberta Kraft-Abrahamson, Director District 1 – Vice President

Roberta is a retired AEA 267 employee, having served as a special education coordinator and social worker. She has been a member of our board since 2002. Roberta and her husband, Steven, reside in Forest City where she has been actively involved in a number of community boards.

Dr. Debra S. Rich, Director District 2-President

Deb is the assistant director of the Jacobson Center Curriculum and Instruction program at the University of Northern Iowa. She has been on AEA 267’s board since 2009, serving as president for the past two years. As part of her career in education, Deb also served as a reading consultant with AEA 267. Deb and her husband, Gil, live on a farm near Sumner.   

Dr. George North, Director District 3

George is a retired dentist who has served on our board of directors since 1999. He has been a leader for the Boy Scouts, served on the Allison school board, and continues to be active in professional development around the country. George was very instrumental in the development of Wilder Park east of Allison.  George and his wife, Lois, live in Allison.

Dr. Darshini Jayawardena, Director District 4

Darshini is the director of the Lifelong Learning program at North Iowa Area Community College and has been a board member since 2011. She recently completed her doctorate through Capella University in Minnesota. Darshini and her family live in Mason City where her husband is a physician with Mercy Medical Center North Iowa.

David Giese, Director District 5

David is a retired educator and has served on the AEA 267 board since 2010. He is an artist whose photography has been exhibited in the area. He is also an avid reader. David and his wife, Mary, live in Marshalltown.

Maureen Hanson, Director District 6

Maureen is currently employed with the John Deere Product Engineering Center in Cedar Falls and was elected to the board in 2015. She enjoys running and has completed a number of marathons. She and her husband, Leonard, reside in Hudson.

Richard Vande Kieft, Director District 7

Richard is retired from John Deere and has been a member of the board since 2008. He served for 31 years on the Cedar Falls school board and resides with his wife, Judy, in Cedar Falls.

Bryan Burton, Director District 8

Bryan works for the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier and joined our board in 2013. He and his wife, Mary, have three children and live in Waterloo, where Bryan is active on a number of community boards.

Dennis Craun Jr., Director District 9

Dennis served in the United States Marine Corp for six years and was elected to AEA 267’s board in 2015. He is also a barbershop quartet singer with the Proud Image Chorus in Waterloo. He and his wife, Pam, live in Waterloo with their two teenage children.

Benefits enrollment is now open in the portal until May 22. All benefits-eligible employees must complete this process even if you are making no changes, declining insurance, resigning, or retiring.

Congratulations to Kerri Wilson, Kay Schmalen and Mark Proescholdt, our latest Hall of Fame Award Honorees! Watch for individual profiles in the June/July edition of Intersections and on our Facebook page. Thanks to everyone who nominated and participated in the program this year. Please join us in congratulating these three outstanding team members!

As we look ahead to next year, this is a good time to issue a reminder regarding how mileage is calculated. These new regulations were approved at the May 4 board meeting. Please refer to the new amended regulation for further information:

The starting point for establishing commute miles is either the employee’s assigned AEA office or district assignment, whichever is closest to the employee’s home. Starting points are established at the beginning of each school year and remain in place unless the employee moves or no longer supports the starting point district. Itinerant employees (Early ACCESS, COTA, etc.) use the closest assigned LEA school to compute mileage–not a student home or other meeting location. No exceptions.

If you have questions regarding mileage starting point, please contact your supervisor.

Kerri Wilson

Lori Thomas

Congratulations to Lori Thomas who has been named to fill the position being vacated by Kerri Wilson who will retire in June. Lori currently serves as the Administrative Assistant to the Clear Lake Site Superintendent/Director of Communications and has done an exemplary job in the role. She is well-liked by fellow team members and has excellent skills in technology and customer service.

In addition to accepting Kerri’s current position serving the Chief Administrator and Chief Financial Officer, Lori will also support the Director of Creative Services.

Help us say congratulations to  Lori and farewell to Kerri, who has been a friendly face in the agency for nearly 40 years!

Cari Teske, Kay Schmalen and Shaelynn Farnsworth share a light moment during the 2015 all-staff meeting.

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. Registration for the day will start at 8:30 a.m. with the actual program beginning at 9 a.m. Lunch will be on your own. For staff members who are part of a regional team (an email was sent to those individuals last week by their new Regional Administrator), the day will end at 3 p.m. For staff members who are not part of a regional team (e.g. print and production, maintenance, business office, etc.) it is likely that the day will end following lunch when you can return back to your work site; however, you may be hearing from your supervisor in the coming weeks if s/he is planning to hold a departmental meeting in the afternoon. A sign-up for transportation will be provided in the coming weeks.

Get ready for an energizing day featuring nationally known presenter Monte Selby as well as years of service award, remarks from our Chief Administrator, and time to network with co-workers. We are planning a great day for you!

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met on Wednesday, May 4th in the AEA 267 Cedar Falls Conference Center at 6 p.m.

The agenda for the May 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.

Did your schedule keep you from catching one of Chief Administrator Sam Miller’s presentations last month? No problem! Watch this short and informative video that summarizes what he shared.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHSVrSrf2aU

Please plan to attend one or more of the upcoming retirement open houses honoring AEA 267’s 2016 retirees. The celebrations will be held on Tuesday, May 10 in the Cedar Falls Conference Center; Wednesday, May 11 in the Clear Lake Office; and Thursday, May 12 in the Marshalltown Office from 3:30-5 p.m. at all locations. These celebrations present a wonderful opportunity to congratulate our honorees and recognize them for their dedication and years of service.Those being honored this year include:

Cedar Falls

• Luann Andera, Audiometrist
• Ernie Baumbach, Teacher of Behavioral Disorders-Bremwood
• Jo Broadston, Special Education Consultant
• Shirley Clark, Teacher of Behavioral Disorders-Bremwood
• Caryn Cowger, Special Education Consultant
• Richard Dickerson, Work Experience/Transition Specialist
• Kathy Enslin, Asst Chief Administrator/Dir of Human Resources
• Tina Ford, Teacher of Behavioral Disorders-Bremwood
• Cindy Frederick, Teacher of Mental Disabilities-River Hills
• Diana Gambaiani, Custodian-River Hills
• Julie Gowans, Special Education Consultant
• Shirley Kruger, Teacher of Physical Education-River Hills
• Jack Lockett, Media Van Driver
• Nadine Mackey, Educational Assistant-Bremwood
• Craig Marsh, Lead Custodian/Maintenance-River Hills
• Jerry Nielsen, Heating/Cooling Specialist
• Beverly Owen, Teacher of Behavioral Disorders-Bremwood
• Dave Petry, Media Van Driver
• Diane Shannon, Audiometrist
• Jack Smith, Teacher of Behavioral Disorders-Bremwood
• Linda Squires, Occupational Therapist
• Kerri Wilson, Administrative Assistant – CEO & CFO/Board Secretary

Clear Lake

• Becky Ackerman, Special Education Secretary
• Vicky Graf, Youth Shelter Teacher-Francis Lauer Shelter
• Brenda Miller, Special Education Consultant
• Sandra Pralle, Early ACCESS Service Coordinator
• Dave Schaefer, Technology Services Consultant

Marshalltown Office

• Linda Arnold, Administrative Sec – Sp Ed Systems Manager
• Pat Jennings, Speech Language Pathologist
• Lorna Kennedy, Consultant for Career & Technical Education

April Hall of Fame winners (pictured with Sam Miller) JR Trembly and Donna Perry. Missing was Jen DuVall.

Congratulations to Donna Perry, Jennifer DuVall, and JR Trembly, our latest Hall of Fame Award Honorees!

Donna Perry, Receptionist/Secretary serving in our Clear Lake office has been with the agency since 1990. Serving in almost every department over the years, Donna enjoys the variety of responsibilities her current position brings to each day, which range from taking referrals to assisting with the paraeducator program.

Those who work with Donna describe her as someone who always has a smile on her face and makes everyone feel welcome at AEA 267. Donna told us the best advice she can give is to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and keep your sense of humor.

Jennifer DuVall, Speech-Language Pathologist Assistant began her career with the agency as a secretary in the Grinnell office. Jennifer earned her degree from San Jose State University and worked in Guam, Missouri and Fort Dodge prior to joining AEA 267.

Jennifer assists the SLPs with teletherapy, clerical duties, and implementing and reviewing IEPs. She finds her work very rewarding and enjoys working as part of a team. Jennifer focuses on trying to make a difference each day, whether big or small.

JR Trembly, Special Education Technology Specialist received his degree from Des Moines Area Community College and prior to joining AEA 267, worked as a tech support analyst. His days consist of troubleshooting problems with the web IEP/IMS systems as a web administrator for the East and South sectors.

JR believes in remaining positive no matter how overwhelming his responsibilities can be and to take everything in stride, putting service to students at the forefront of his days.

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.

Spring is just around the corner and the target date for open enrollment of benefits has been set for May 2. All benefits-eligible employees must complete this process even if you are declining insurance, resigning or retiring. The deadline is May 22.