The Channel

The AEA 267 Board of Directors held a joint meeting with the boards from North Iowa Area Community College, Hawkeye Community College, and Iowa Valley Community College from on April 1, 2009 at Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls. An overview of AEA 267 programs and services, as well as celebrations and challenges, was presented. The community colleges shared highlights from their respective colleges.

The Board reconvened at 7:15 p.m. in the AEA 267 office in Iowa Falls for their regular meeting.

During the regular meeting, the board:

• Toured the Iowa Falls sector office facilities.

• Accepted with regret the resignation of Angela Fitch, School Psychologist (Independence Middle School); Jessica Uhlenhopp, Teacher of Mental Disabilities, Severe & Profound (River Hills); Deb Kenyon-Thom, Youth Shelter Teacher (Black Hawk Co Youth Shelter); Katie McClurg, Speech-Language Pathologist (Roosevelt Elem, Mason City); and Tiffany Orosco, Speech-Language Pathologist (Charles City). Retirement notices were also accepted including that of Margaret Dunlap, Special Education Consultant (Charles City) and Jean M. Ebert, Teacher of Early Childhood Special Education (SE Elementary, Waverly) both effective at the end of the 2008-09 school year.
• Motioned approval to hire Lorri Mehmen, Teacher of Mental Disabilities, Severe & Profound (River Hills).
• Approved the second reading of the following board policies:

701.1  Public and Media comment
701.2  Media Coverage of Board Meetings
702.2  Public Complaints
801.1  Information and Technology Services

• Renewed the lease agreement with North Iowa Community Action for the Charles City office.
• Approved a bid for a school bus to serve the AEA 267 instructional programs.
• Approved a renewal agreement with the Iowa School Cash Anticipation Program (ISCAP). Since 1985, the Iowa School Cash Anticipation Program (ISCAP) has allowed Iowa school corporations to pool their temporary cash flow borrowing needs in a safe, cost-effective program. Temporary cash flow deficits for Iowa school corporations happen for a variety of reasons, including uneven distribution of property tax collections. ISCAP allows schools to cooperatively issue warrant certificates to finance cash flow deficits until revenues from property taxes and state foundation aid are received. When ISCAP funds are not being used, they are invested in a guaranteed investment contract.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

The Iowa Department of Education released the Class of 2008 graduation rates. Statewide the graduation rate for 2008 is 88.7 percent. Iowa continues to have one of the highest graduate rates in the nation. The dropout rate is less than 3 percent. The 2008 graduation rate is 1.8 percent lower than the 2007 rate of 90.5 percent. The 2008 dropout rate is 0.55 percent higher than the 2007 dropout rate of 2.3 percent.

Some recent reports have provided the number of school dropouts alone and not offered information on the graduation and dropout rates. The adjustment in the two rates is due, in part, to enhancements in Iowa’s data system. The 2008 graduating class is the first group of students to have a statewide identification number for all four years. This has allowed Iowa school districts and the Iowa Department of Education to keep careful accounting of each ninth grader as they progressed through school. The system has provided advancements in determining when a student graduates, even if they moved to a different district in the state during their high school career.

This is part of Iowa’s effort to provide accurate information and to seek improvements to its general data system. The department was recently notified that it has received a federal Statewide Data Systems Program grant for $8.7 million over the next five years. In addition, the department will pursue the more than $250 million available through the stimulus package for educational data systems.

Iowa uses the National Center for Education Statistics’ “leaver rate” to calculate graduation rates. The department has used this rate since 2003. For more information, visit http://www.iowa.gov/educate

The Iowa Department of Education has launched a new Iowa Core Curriculum website at www.corecurriculum.iowa.gov

The purpose of the official Iowa Core Curriculum site is to help Iowa parents and all citizens learn more about the state-wide academic expectations for kindergarten through 12th-grade students.

The website offers a look at the skills and concepts all Iowa students must know under the Iowa Core Curriculum, signed into law by Governor Culver in 2008. This includes concepts and skills in literacy, math, science, social studies, and 21st century learning skills (civic literacy, financial literacy, technology literacy, health literacy, and employability skills). Parents will be able to do customized searches by academic area or by grades.

Superintendents, principals, and other education leaders in Iowa are currently receiving training on how to implement the Iowa Core Curriculum, which must be fully put into practice in high schools by 2012-2013 and in kindergarten through eighth grades by 2014-2015. Iowa’s area education agencies and the Iowa Department of Education have collaborated to provide this training. This cooperation will continue as districts begin to provide professional development directly to teachers on the Iowa Core Curriculum and supportive teaching strategies.

For background information on the Iowa Core Curriculum, please visit the Iowa Department of Education’s website at www.iowa.gov/educate and click on “Iowa Core Curriculum” on the left-hand side of the page.

The Iowa Department of Education has launched Intersect, a new web site providing research on education issues based on Iowa-specific information. Intersect can be found at http://intersect.iowa.gov.

The research is conducted by Iowa Department of Education analysts to help educators make informed decisions. The primary research is not peer-reviewed, but is based on the work conducted by the department to study variables affecting education in Iowa.

Data is part of Iowa’s history in education. For more than a decade, the department has collected information about Iowa schools. It provides multiple reports to the public on topics such as student performance on statewide tests, enrollment numbers, graduation rates and more. With Intersect, the data are analyzed to become truly informative; revealing trends and unveiling critical elements to answers. Current research papers on the site include:

District Characteristics: What Factors Impact Student Achievement?
The Relation Between District Size And Student Achievement: Summary
Iowa’s Growth Model Incorporated Into Decisions About Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP)

There is now an easier, faster and more convenient way to submit simple print and production requests. Simply go to the agency website and choose the Print and Production icon. On the Print and Production web page, click on the Online Print Request link located under Resources. Complete the online form, upload your original PDF document and submit the form. Information and Technology Services staff will complete your order and send it to you via van mail.

Dates for the AEA 267 spring retirement celebrations have been set. Make plans to attend and show your support for retiring colleagues. (A list of retirees will be published in the May Intersections.)

May 18–Clear Lake

May 19– Marshalltown

May 20–Cedar Falls

All celebrations will be held from 3:30-5 p.m. in the conference center of each location.

On Thursday, April 9 at 2:30 p.m. the public is invited to a “grand event” showcasing a partnership between AEA 267, Iowa Valley Community College Nursing Program, local schools, and Carrington Place in Toledo. The event will present success stories of local students who received a jump start on their education through a special collaborative program. For more information, contact Lorna Kennedy, Consultant for Career and Technical Education at 641-844-2478.

A variety of AEA 267 team members have been diligently preparing for the Department of Education (DE) accreditation site visit, which begins March 10-11. The accreditation site visit team, consisting of both DE and local district staff members, will hear an opening presentation by Administrative Cabinet members and begin an extensive document review. Video of the presentation will be made available via the agency website following the presentation.

“Iowa’s AEAs …. Impacting Lives” is the theme of a campaign that kicked off March 2 to further the awareness and understanding about Iowa AEA services. The campaign will include feature ads on cable TV’s “Discovery,” “Food Network” and “Nickelodeon.” The 30-second ads will focus on the following three themes:

• “She Will” which highlights services in special education
• “Rocket Scientist” which focuses on preparing children to be ready to learn
• “When Teachers Succeed” which emphasizes professional development opportunities.

The campaign also includes a variety of other strategies, including articles in school newsletters, posting on blogs for Iowa parents, radio public service announcements and public service announcements on local access cable channels. Legislators were also welcomed at a coffee in the rotunda at the State Capitol building.

At the same time a new statewide logo is being introduced. A consistent visual identity is an important element of an organization’s communication plan. Print or online materials are often the first introduction individuals have to the Iowa AEA system. The updated logo features the letters AEA and the words, Iowa Area Education Agencies, and the AEA tagline, “Partners in Education,” in the AEA colors of maroon and gold.

Along with the new logo, a revision to the AEA Graphic Identification Guidelines has been completed and has been posted to the Iowa AEA website at www.iowaaea.org.

The campaign is supported by funds received from the Iowa Educators Consortium (IEC), an initiative of Iowa’s Area Education Agencies. The IEC provides a statewide voluntary purchasing program for K-12 schools.

All materials were prepared with support from the AEA Communications Committee. For more information, please contact Beth Strike, AEA 267 Communication Specialist.

Last month’s ice and snow reminded all of us that winter is not over yet! Staff members responsible for carrying out the weather procedures met in February and helped generate a list of frequently asked questions about procedures. Questions and answers can be found on the AEA 267 staff website (username: aeastaff and password: aea267ia).

The annual AEA/DE Customer Feedback Survey will launch on March 9 and be open for responses until April 9. The survey link will be sent to all AEA 267 educators in both public and non-public school districts. Last year, over 1,900 educators served by the agency responded to the survey—the best response rate in the history of the survey’s administration. The data from the survey are used to help inform agency continuous improvement efforts. Please encourage those you serve to respond

The Black Hawk Gaming Commission has granted $100,000 to the AEA 267 River Hills Foundation to help fund a major playground improvement project. The commission funds programs, projects and activities for organizations and communities in the Cedar Valley.

“We are thrilled by this incredible gift,” said Rod Ball, AEA 267 Assistant Director of Special Education—Instruction. “This will go a long way toward meeting our goal of establishing a modern playground facility for our AEA 267 River Hills students.”

Students at AEA 267 Bremwood will host an art show on April 8 from 12:30-2:30 p.m. in the multi-purpose room. The public is invited to attend.

“This is one of the bigger events for our students and staff,” said Justin Stockdale, AEA 267 Bremwood principal. “Our kids were all smiles last year during the show when seeing the community members ‘oohing and ahhing’ over their work.”

The agency has purchased three automatic defibrillator units to be installed in each main service delivery center conference area (Cedar Falls Conference Center, Marshalltown office and Clear Lake office). The purchase was part of the agency’s recently completed Emergency Response Plan which includes ensuring that all offices are equipped with emergency first aid kids, flashlights and staff members trained in basic first aid, CPR and defibrillator use. The conference centers were selected for the defibrillator installation because of the high traffic they receive.

Deb McGowan, AEA 267 Program Specialist, died of a sudden illness on February 24. Deb was a 17-year veteran of the Area Education Agency system and was deeply respected and well liked by her co-workers. Deb treasured her family, especially her grandchildren, friends, singing, scrap booking, and following Iowa Hawkeye basketball and football. Support and sympathy are extended to her family, friends and co-workers.

Students at AEA 267 Devonshire provided a helping hand to naturalists at Hartman Reserve Nature Center during the recent maple syrup production process. Their efforts were featured in the March 3 edition of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier.

The AEA 267 Board of Directors met from 4:00 – 5:30 p.m. on March 4, 2009 in the AEA 267 Administrative Conference Room for a Board Retreat session on collective bargaining. Afterwards the Audit Committee met from 5:30 – 5:45 p.m.

The Board reconvened at 6:00 p.m. in the AEA 267 Conference Center in Cedar Falls for their regular meeting.

During the regular meeting, the board:

• Watched a presentation by Marc Groen, Special Education Support, on Naturally Speaking, an assistive technology device.
• Accepted with regret the retirements of Mary Heber, Teacher of Mental Disabilities/Severe & Profound (River Hills), effective 01-12-09; Liz Wenger, Speech-Language Pathologist (Sector 3, Iowa Falls), effective 12/31/09; and Mary Beshir, Speech-Language Pathologist (Clear Lake); Pam Bottorff, Teacher of Multi Disabilities/Resource (New Hartford Elem.); Phoebe Drape, Teacher of Mental Disabilities (Tripoli Middle/High School); Al Hodapp, School Psychologist (Clear Lake); all effective end of 2008-09 school year.
• Authorized Administration to seek bids for a school bus and van for next year.
• Approved recommendations from AEA 267 Information Technology Service Area Director Jerry Schnabel for computer purchases.
• Reviewed the 700 and 800 series of board policies: General Public Relations and Division Operations.
• Heard a variety of reports from directors and fellow board members.

It is no secret that the Governor’s across-the-board cuts, declining enrollment, federal funding issues, and now a likelihood of a partially funded allowable growth rate will all have an effect on our Agency. Staff reduction will be a necessary result of these changes as we prepare for 2009-2010. It is hoped that normal attrition (i.e., retirements and voluntary resignations) will cover most, if not all, of the necessary reductions.

If you are planning a retirement or voluntary resignation at the end of the 2008-09 school year, please let us know as soon as possible by contacting Shirley Horak. The more we know and the sooner we know, the easier it will be for the Agency to plan for 2009-2010 without disturbing the lives and plans of others. Thank you for helping if this applies to you.

Many unknowns still exist regarding 2009-2010. What will be the number of retirements and voluntary resignations? Will the Governor’s proposed budget be approved? What decisions will the legislature make regarding school and AEA funding? Will the federal stimulus package have an impact on our AEA? What will be the cost of health insurance for next year? All of the above will have an impact on 2009-2010.