Additional Information About Recent AEA News Articles

News headlines in several Iowa newspapers including the Des Moines Register and Council Bluffs Non-Pareil over the past few days have brought attention to the reduction of state resources for children entitled to special education. The accompanying stories contain several statements from family members, school and AEA staff and other professional and private organizations that cite examples of the impact decreased state funds are having on the ability of schools and the AEAs to meet the needs of students with special needs.

In a recent editorial piece, the staff of the Non-Pareil perhaps summarized the situation best…“The human cost of these reductions in services cannot be (over)stated, particularly for these populations of students. That’s why we urge our lawmakers, when they reconvene in January, to ensure that they adequately invest in Iowa youth through funding special education and the affiliated programs through the AEA at sufficient levels.”

The information in these articles is generally accurate in portraying the number of positions and dollars reduced from the AEAs as a whole system over the past five years.  As a Heartland AEA employee, you may be asked about these articles or you may choose to share them with your local legislator. To assist you, some key talking points and data specific to Heartland AEA are provided below.

• Heartland AEA is funded through a mix of state, federal and local resources.
• AEAs have no taxing authority.
• Reductions in the state funding formula for AEAs directly reduce funds AEAs receive for providing special education support services.
• The state finance formula was underfunded for Heartland AEA (special education funds) by $6 million for the current school year. This cut is in addition to the reductions received each year for the past five years.
  

During the five-year time frame of reductions, Heartland AEA has responded to the cuts to prioritize services closest to children.

Please let us know if you have specific questions or need additional information and thank you for keeping focused on our most important work.

Paula