The Heartland AEA Board of Directors met for its regular board meeting on November 10.
Board Recognition
The meeting began with board recognition, during which time the Board formally recognized and thanked David King, Director of Finance and Business Services; Rebecca McCreary, Business Manager; Diane Schnelker, Assessment Consultant; Jennifer Swanson, Assessment Consultant; David Tilly, Director of Innovation and Accountability; and Kristi Upah, Assistant Director of Innovation and Accountability for their collaboration and support of staff and districts during the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) application and reporting process. ARRA reporting was a huge accountability issue for the Agency, and districts relied heavily on Heartland staff to assist them with reporting requirements and deadlines. These employees pulled together last-minute training sessions and provided outstanding 1:1 support. This type of collaboration is a hallmark of Heartland and many districts sent personal notes of thanks. Board president Ann Wilson thanked staff members for the hard work they have done and continue to do in support of the Agency and districts.
The Board then entered into closed session at 5:50 p.m. and returned to public session at 6:48 p.m. followed by another closed session from 6:49 p.m. to 7:36 p.m.
Discussion Items
When the Board continued with its public session, members had their second reading of Board Policy 511 – Internet Acceptable Use and Safety. Board members commented on how well the policy was outlined and went on to unanimously approve the policy.
Sheila King updated the Board on progress made with the Agency’s budget. Cabinet members and members of the Operations Support Council (OSC) and District Services Council (DSC) have been meeting regularly to discuss Governor Culver’s recent 10 percent budget cut and its impact on the budget. Both councils have been using the Agency’s vision, mission and core values as touchstones to stay focused on what really matters as they make decisions.
The Councils met on November 9 to identify $1 million worth of cuts from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds. They were successful and still able to maintain core services and staffing. Within the next week, additional meetings will be held to determine a clear approach on future travel, hiring and purchasing. More attention will be paid to these and other non-personnel areas as the Agency looks to conserve its resources.
David King then updated the Board on 1:1 meetings that will be held in December with every budget manager. The focus of these conversations will be on building their 2010-11 budgets. He then led the Board through a rough outline of the 10 percent cut, roughly $2.9 million for the Agency.
• $300,000 from categorical funds (professional development, Teacher Quality and Iowa Core Curriculum)
• $700,000 from Des Moines Public Schools
• $1.1M from ARRA funds
• $600,000 from OSC and DSC budgets
• $100,000-150,000 from travel, purchases and other non-personnel cuts
• $150,000 excess resources from previous year’s budget
Comments
Hazard and Young has officially started the search and recruitment process for the new Chief Administrator. An ad for the position is being run in Education Week and additional ads are being posted this week. Screening will begin mid-December.
The IKM and Manning school districts are moving forward with their merger plans. IKM is part of AEA 13 and Manning is part of Heartland. The chief administrators from both AEAs have agreed to use the same counsel, Jim Hanks, for efficiency and cost effectiveness. The petition to merge may be filed this month, and if so, a joint board meeting will be held in January. The Board will be kept apprised of the timeline.
No comments:
Post a Comment