Monday, November 15, 2010

Inclement Weather Policy Updated/New Procedure for Communicating Office Closings & Class Cancellations

Click here to read the Agency’s Inclement Weather policy, which has been recently updated. Changes to the policy include:
• All Staff: The Temporary Remote Workplace Program can be used in extraordinary circumstances with supervisor approval.

• For Staff Members Who Complete Timesheets: The additional option of unpaid time has been added. Typically unpaid time can only be taken if a staff member has used all other paid leaves. In an inclement weather circumstance, staff members have the option to take unpaid leave, even if they have other leaves available.


If you have any questions about the Inclement Weather Policy, contact Chris Pierson, Assistant Director of Human Resources, at cpierson@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14400 or Nola Bond, Director of Human Resources, at nbond@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14318.


Communicating Office Closures
The Agency is also changing the way it communicates about office closings for inclement weather and other emergency situations to make sure the information is communicated correctly, consistently and in a timely manner. Trying to get our message out through TV and radio stations was proving to no longer be effective, so we have decided to forgo contacting those outlets when offices close. The Agency will move forward with the following four venues to communicate about office closures:

SchoolReach
This is an online system that is able to send voice messages to staff when there is an office closure. When used, the service will call selected phone numbers in our employee contact list and will deliver a recorded message. The service will deliver the message to both live answer and answering machines. No answers (phones ringing over 40 seconds) and busies will be automatically retried twice in 15 minute intervals after the initial call.


We will contact only those staff members who are assigned to offices that close. For instance, if the Newton and Indianola offices are closed, we will make one call to the staff members assigned to both offices to let them know of the office closure. Staff in other offices won’t automatically receive a call. The calls that SchoolReach makes will be generated by the Agency’s Communication Department; they will not come directly from a person at SchoolReach.


Click here to go to a web form that shows the phone number(s) that we currently have in your Human Resources file. If the number(s) listed isn’t current, please update it and/or add another number. If you provide us with both a home and cell phone number, we will call you at both numbers in the event of an office closing. If the information that is currently listed for you is correct, please click the Submit button on the form to confirm.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING ABOUT SCHOOLREACH:

When SchoolReach places a call, if your phone has caller ID, the ID will display the Agency’s main number (515) 270-9030. When you get a call from the system, there will be a short pause at the beginning of the message. This usually is only a few seconds pause. Answer your phone as you normally would with “hello” and hold for the message to begin. Multiple “hellos” will delay the message. Please inform all family members who may answer your phone of this process.


If you rely on your answering machine to screen calls, the system will detect that your machine has answered and will play the recorded message to your machine. The phone will ring for up to 40 seconds. Make sure that your machine answers after four rings or you may miss the message.


At the end of the message you will be prompted to “press any key” to hear the message again. This can be helpful if a child answers the phone and hands it to a parent, who can then have the message repeated in its entirety.

What can be done to avoid any problems in message delivery:
• Do not say “hello” more than once. If the system detected your answer incorrectly, all noise will reset the three-second counter.
• If, after you answer, the message does not immediately play, cover the mouthpiece of the phone to cutout all background noise. The message should begin after three seconds.


Please make every effort to provide Human Resources with current and accurate phone information any time there is a change to ensure that you do not miss important information. Your phone data will be used exclusively by Heartland to communicate important information to you; it won’t be accessible to anyone else.

Website

We will continue to post closing information on the front page of the Agency’s website (www.aea11.k12.ia.us) at the top of the Latest News section.


Cancellation Hotline
We will continue to record closing information on a “cancellation hotline” that staff members can call into at (515) 270-0405 ext. 14041. When you call in you will hear a recorded message that says the date and which offices are closed if there are closings. If there are no closings the message will reflect that.


Social Media

We will begin to post closing information on the Agency’s Facebook & Twitter accounts (www.facebook.com/heartlandaea & twitter.com/HeartlandAEA).


Communicating Professional Development Class Cancellations

If a professional development class is canceled, the cancellation will be communicated via the agency website, cancellation hotline and social media. We will no longer use TV and radio to communicate these cancellations.


If you have any questions about inclement weather communications, please contact Courtney Croatt, Communications Specialist, at ccroatt@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14474.

Current Post-Employment Benefit Extended For One More Year

At last week’s Board of Directors meeting, the Board approved the extension of the current post-employment benefit for one more year. Click here to read the post-employment benefit policy.

This means that eligible employees who reach their 58th birthday by June 30, 2012, and have a minimum of 15 consecutive full-time years of employment with the Agency, will be able to submit their application for the post-employment benefit by December 1, 2011 to be effective June 30, 2012.

For qualified participants, the Agency agrees to pay the same coverage for monthly insurance rates (health and dental) as was in effect during the employee’s last year of employment. The Agency’s contribution toward the coverage for the employee terminates when the employee becomes eligible for other insurance coverage, including Medicare.


The Post-Employment Benefit Committee will be providing more data to the Board to help it clarify the policies, philosophy and parameters of the post-employment benefit. During the next six months, the Board plans to make decisions regarding the long-term direction of the benefit after July 2012.


If you have questions about the current post-employment benefit and your eligibility, contact Kathy Martin, Benefits Specialist, at kmartin@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14385.

It’s American Education Week—Thanks For All You Do to Positively Impact Students!

For 35 years, the AEAs have been providing quality services to help Iowa’s students achieve. American Education Week is a great time to recognize 35 programs/services through which AEA employees make a difference. No matter what your role, you are appreciated!

1. Child Find

2. Physical Therapy

3. Literacy Consulting

4. Iowa AEA Online

5. Audiology & Hearing

6. Early Childhood
7. Social Work

8. Iowa Core

9. Media Library

10. Speech-Language Therapy

11. Science Consulting

12. Autism Resources

13. Learning Supports

14. Print & Production

15. Internet Aggregation

16. School Psychology

17. Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports

18. Occupational Therapy

19. Differentiated Instruction
20. Social Studies Consulting
21. Technology Consulting

22. Professional Development

23. Mentoring & Induction

24. Student Events

25. Transition Services

26. Brain Injury Resources

27. Parent & Educator Connection

28. Crisis Response Services

29. English Language Learner Support

30. Iowa Educators Consortium

31. Math Consulting

32. Special Education Consulting
33. Vision Services
34. Gifted and Talented Consulting

35. Assistive Technology

November 2010 Board of Directors Meeting Recap

The November 2010 Heartland AEA Board of Directors meeting was held on November 9, 2010.

Public Forum

No one was present to address the Board.

Board Recognition

Ms. Arletta Dawson, Heartland Director of Technology, recognized Heartland staff members Joshua Burke, Tuan Dao, Truong Dao, Dustin Gean, Rod Howell, Jim Lagnese, Steve Prall and Maureen Whited for their work in the planning and design of the Agency’s new server bunker. The server bunker is a 65,000-pound state-of-the-art facility with fire suppression and a back-up generator for the Agency’s servers and data storage. It offers a much safer and secure site to store the Agency’s data and puts the Agency in a place to assist districts and the Department of Education with their data needs. Conversations have also begun with Grant Wood AEA about options for backing up each other’s data. Dr. Earl Bridgewater presented certificates to Ms. Dawson, Mr. Burke and Mr. Dao and commended all the employees involved for their contributions.


Discussion Items

Post Employment Policy

No further discussions were held on the Post Employment Policy.

Board Learning

Dr. Steve Rose facilitated the Board’s learning from the book How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins. Board members discussed highlights from chapters 2 and 3. Dr. Rose agreed to facilitate chapters 4 and 5 for the December meeting and Ms. Margaret Borgen will facilitate chapters 6 and 7 in January.


Board Self-Evaluation

Board members reviewed options for completing their self-evaluation. While many of the options were very detailed in their questions, they were not in line with the Board’s work. Dr. Vincent presented an option that included a short survey for board members to complete. Based on the results, the information would be used for this year’s evaluation and to help develop next year’s process. Dr. Vincent will add the four goals to the survey and email it to board members. The survey will need to be completed by November 20 and results will be shared at the December meeting. Board members discussed if the survey should be completed anonymously. No preference was determined.


Board Leadership Structure

Dr. Earl Bridgewater discussed the current Board leadership structure that consists of the president, vice president and past president. At last month’s meeting, Board members discussed adding a fourth member to the structure or holding additional board meetings so more members could be involved. Dr. Bridgewater shared the input he received and noted that the leadership team met specifically to review upcoming agendas and was not a decision-making body. Ms. Wilson commented that during her tenure as board president there were unforeseen circumstances and legal issues that had to be discussed. These were extraordinary circumstances that board members were later made aware of in closed session. Board members discussed having public meetings in which all members were invited and could attend if they were able.


Action Items

Post Employment Policy

A MOTION was made by Ms. Ann Wilson and seconded by Ms. Margaret Borgen to continue the present post employment policy for one more year so board members could continue to study all options. Motion passed. The current policy will expire June 30, 2012. Ms. Nola Bond will continue working with the Post Employment Committee to gather further data, and the topic will be added to future board agendas.

Proposed Board Operational Procedures

A MOTION was made by Dr. Steve Rose and seconded by Mr. Nels Turnquist to establish a formal Board Agenda and Problem Solving Committee for 2010-11. The Committee would consist of three permanent members and all board members could attend at their discretion and would have voting rights. A roll call vote was taken and the motion failed 7-2.
A MOTION was made by Ms. Marcy Sparks and seconded by Dr. Steve Rose to add a fourth member to the Board Agenda Planning Committee for the next six months. The meeting agendas will be posted and would be open to all board members and the public with full board participatory rights. Motion passed 8-1.

Board Comments

• Board members would like to tour the server bunker and remodeling at the Johnston Regional Education Center 6500 sometime after the new year, as deemed possible by construction and weather.

• Mr. Cal Halliburton, Mr. Bruce Christensen and Ms. Margaret Borgen will begin work on developing a process to evaluate the chief administrator.

• Dr. Earl Bridgewater appreciated hearing compliments from the Department of Education about Heartland’s special education services.

• As a reminder, the Iowa Association of School Boards Conference will be held on Thursday, November 18 at Hy-Vee Hall. Dr. Bridgewater noted that board members have a responsibility in helping support IASB and assisting them in reestablishing their credibility.

• Dr. Earl Bridgewater and Dr. Paula Vincent will be attending the Urban Education Network meeting next week.


Chief Administrator Comments

• Dr. Vincent is appreciative of the help from board members with developing a process for her evaluation. She will add it as a board work session topic in December.

• Further information will be available at the December or January board meeting regarding the Agency’s compensation study that is currently in progress.

• Board members received the final draft of recommendations from the AEA Task Force for the AEA Study. If board members have any questions or concerns, they should submit them to David King by Monday, November 15. There is no guarantee that ideas will be considered or added to the final report.

United Way Online Auction Begins Today!

The Heartland United Way Online Auction site is now up and running! Go to http://209.56.207.21/ to begin shopping!

To place your bid

Log-in to the site using your PeopleBox username and password. Click on the item name to view the description and a larger photo. To place your bid, simply fill in the “Your New Bid” field and click on “Place Bid.” You will receive an e-mail notification if you are outbid, which will include a link back to the auction site if you wish to re-bid. New this year is the ability to bid on items from anywhere, not just at a Heartland office. The auction is available anywhere, anytime—until bidding closes at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, November 19!

Winners will be notified by e-mail the week of November 22 to send in their payments. When all the payments are received, we will announce the winners of each item in the December 3 HeartBeat.

Don’t forget the Pledge Cards!

You can also show your support to United Way by submitting a pledge card. Download the card here. When opening the form, choose “Save” instead of “Preview,” so your information gets saved to the form. E-mail the completed card to comms@aea11.k12.ia.us or send it through the interoffice/van mail to Claire Spellman in the Johnston Administration Center.
Remember that everyone who hands in a pledge card donation of any amount will receive a casual day sticker. Employees who donate a minimum of $2 per pay period or a $48 one-time donation will be entered to win one of five United Way Days – a day you may take time from work to give back to the community. Pledge cards are due November 19.

Thanksgiving Week Van Delivery Schedule

Take note that that Agency is closed November 25 & 26 and there will be no van delivery November 24-26.

Reminder: Check the Construction Blog for Johnston REC Project Updates

Johnston REC remodeling project updates can be found at http://construction.aea11.k12.ia.us/.

Johnston REC Computer Lab Not Being Relocated to Conference Room 8

On October 18, an article in the Construction blog indicated that Conference Room 8 in the Johnston REC would be the temporary home of the Computer Lab during the building’s remodeling. Due to limited space and a limited number of sessions requiring computers, the Computer Lab will not be set up in Room 8. The Computer Lab will not be back to its former location until March.

If staff members need computers for a training or meeting prior to March, the following options are available:

• Laptops can be reserved through the equipment check-out and can be brought to the meeting location by the meeting organizer.
• The mobile laptop cart may be reserved by contacting Greg Wilcox, Technology Support Specialist, at ext. 14618.
• If desktop iMacs are needed, contact Greg Wilcox at ext. 14618, to arrange to have the computers set up in any meeting room that is available in the Johnston REC.


If you have any questions, please contact Arletta Dawson, Director of Technology, at adawson@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14324.

Reminder: Teacher Quality Class/Activity Registration Now Open

Reminder: The Teacher Quality (TQ) activities that Certified Staff can participate in are now open for registration. TQ registration will be open through December 7, 2010. Staff members need to be registered before December 8 to participate for TQ money.

Below is the list of activities open all discipline groups. You should have received an e-mail from your program assistant providing information about courses designed for your group. Click here for a list of all TQ activities.


Activities Designed for All Groups:

• IN010592111101 TQ: Digital Literacy and 21st Century Learning Tools

• IN010592111102 TQ: Digital Literacy and 21st Century Learning Tools

• IN017892111201 TQ: Cognitive Coaching Days 1-2

• IN022392111201 TQ: Cognitive Coaching Days 3-4

• IN037992111101 TQ: Supporting Under-Resourced Students and Families

• IN038892111101 TQ: Examining Cultural Competence Through Current Media


Registration Directions

Go to www.aea11.k12.ia.us.

Under the Quick Links area, click on Course Catalog.

On the catalog search page, enter the activity number of the session you want to attend.

On the Activity Detail page, click Add to Cart.

Please verify or correct your personal information and click Submit.

To register for additional sessions, on Your Shopping Cart page, click Return to Search and enter the Activity Number of the next session.

On the Activity Detail page, click Add to Cart.

When you have all sessions listed on Your Shopping Cart page, click on Register Me!

Literature Review to Your Desktop

The Heartland library offers a Table of Contents service from the latest journals in its collection—you’re among the first to know the latest in your field. Another service is available that will alert you via e-mail (or RSS feed) to journal articles on a specific topic. This service will provide continuous professional development. The only downside is that the journals are embargoed anywhere from 2-18 months.

Scenarios:

Monthly notices of articles on a specific medical condition.

Bi-weekly notices of articles by a specific author/researcher.

Weekly notices of newspaper articles on a current topic.


Follow the steps below or watch the demonstration video at https://aea111.eduvision.tv/Default.aspx?q=CT1wecDsedDm5GtbhJyuwA%253d%253d


Go to http://search.ebscohost.com.

Enter the online database username/password (this step might be optional depending on IP access).

Click Sign In and create your own personal account.

Click Choose Databases and click the boxes next to the appropriate databases and click OK. You’ll probably want to check Academic Search Elite and Professional Development (and maybe Newspaper Source).

Enter your search topic—note the various search options of full-text, peer reviewed, reading level, journal name, etc.

Click Search.

Peruse your results in case the search strategy needs to be changed.

Click Alert/Save/Share in the blue bar.

Choose E-mail Alert. Add your e-mail information and select your settings.

Click Save Alert.