Our Mission
To
improve the learning outcomes and well-being of all children and youth
by providing services and leadership in partnership with families,
schools and communities.
Our Goals
• Increase learning growth for students
• Decrease the gap in achievement
• Increase annual graduation rates
• Increase gateways to post-secondary success
Background Information
During
the past three years, Heartland AEA has filled up to 192 vacancies in
the Certified Union and Management staff categories. It has been to the
Agency’s advantage to enter the recruitment cycle as early as possible.
To
support a process for timely staff replacement of hard to fill
positions and to assist in budget planning, the Heartland AEA Board of
Directors has approved piloting a one-time strategy (Early Notification
Incentive) to determine if it may result in increased accuracy for the
purpose of recruitment and budget planning. The details are listed
below, and the results will be re-evaluated to inform future actions.
Early Notification Incentive Process & Requirements
- Certified
Union and Management staff that do not plan to return to Heartland AEA
for the 2017-2018 school year submit early notification letters of
resignation that are effective at the end of the 2016-17 work year.
- Early notification letters must be received in the Human Resources Department by 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 9, 2016.
- Heartland AEA’s board takes action on early notification letters no later than the regular meeting on Dec. 13, 2016.
- Departing staff must fulfill their individual employment contract obligations for the 2016-17 work year.
Early Notification Incentive
- A $1,500 early notification incentive will be paid on June 30, 2017 to employees fulfilling the requirements.
If you have any questions about the early notification incentive, contact Tony Chiaramonte, Human Resources Manager, at ext. 14534.
The November 2016 issue of the Each and Every Child newsletter from the Iowa Department of Education is now available. In this issue, read about a district that has, perhaps, the most comprehensive transition from high-school-to-beyond program in the state.
Shelly Vroegh, whose desire to help all students reach their potential stems from her own childhood, is the 2017 Iowa Teacher of the Year. Vroegh, 43, a fifth-grade teacher and instructional coach, is a 20-year veteran teacher. She has taught in the Norwalk Community School District since 1997.
“Great teachers really do change lives,” Gov. Terry Branstad said. “Shelly Vroegh’s talent, dedication and enthusiasm make her a great teacher, and I’m thrilled that she has taken on a teacher leadership role to improve instruction and raise student achievement.”
Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds applauded Vroegh’s contributions to her school and community, including serving as a district lead mentor, elementary math curriculum leader and instructional coach. She also coordinated an elementary summer reading program. “Shelly Vroegh stands out for her leadership, her passion and her commitment to engaging all students so they can reach their potential,” Lt. Gov. Reynolds said.
Read more about Vroegh and see the names of other finalists on the Iowa Department of Education’s website.
Our online enrollment for the 2017 dependent care flex benefit plan will be open to eligible employees on Nov. 1, 2016. If you are a full-time employee or a Certified Union employee working a 96-day contract, you are eligible to participate.
All full-time employees will need to either enroll during this period or waive participation through the enrollment process. For eligible part-time employees, due to system configurations, it is assumed that you automatically waive the benefit; however, if you wish to participate and are a CU employee with a 96-day contract, contact Juliette Houseman to enroll via paper.
The dependent care benefit allows you to pre-tax child, spouse or elder care expenses that you incur in order to allow you (and your spouse, if married) to work. If married, both spouses must be working to claim dependent care expenses. A dependent is defined as:
- A dependent of the employee who is under 13 years of age
- A dependent or spouse who is physically or mentally disabled
The maximum amount your family may flex per calendar year is $5,000. All claims must be incurred by Dec. 31 and submitted for reimbursement within 60 days of the end of the plan year (March 1).
The deadline for enrolling in or waiving the dependent care plan is Nov. 30 at 4:00 p.m.
As a reminder, all dependent care expenses for the 2016 plan year must be incurred by Dec. 31, 2016 and must be submitted to Kabel Business Services for reimbursement by March 1, 2017.
To Enroll
First, go to your Employee Dashboard and go to the Employee Online Tab. On the left hand side of the screen, click on the ENTER Your Dependent Care Deduction.
Next…
-
Click Dependent Care Coverage Type.
- If you want to waive Dependent Care and not have this benefit for the upcoming year, enter 0 under the New Change Request column.
- If you elect to enroll in the plan, your maximum deduction per pay period can be $208.33, which equates to $4,999.92 ($5,000) total for the year.
- Click Save to complete your Flex Dependent Care. (In clicking Save you agree to the Terms and Conditions.)
NOTE: IF YOU ENTER AN AMOUNT GREATER THAN 0 IN EMPLOYEE COST PER PERIOD, THEN THAT AMOUNT WILL BE DEDUCTED FROM YOUR PAYCHECK PER PAY PERIOD.
If you have any questions, contact Juliette Houseman, Benefits Specialist, at or ext. 14315.
Biometric Screenings
Remember, you can call Hy-Vee to schedule an appointment with a dietician or make an appointment with your family physician to have a biometric screening done. Upcoming dates for biometrics being done in agency offices are:
• Nov. 9 -- Johnston
• Nov. 16 -- Indianola
• Nov. 30 -- Adel
You can still sign up for times using the link on the Healthy Express site under Biometrics and then Hy-Vee Biometric Dates.
Did You Know Nov. 2 is Stress Awareness Day?
Stress can be a real killer, both in the workplace and in our day-to-day lives. Stress serves a solid purpose in human biology, but our modern lives have brought about a surplus of causes that haunt us from day-to-day. When we are faced with a challenge or a threat to our well-being, the body experiences stress. Whether you’re dealing with a job that puts you under tremendous pressure, or face struggles in your life or relationship that leave you in a state of constant worry, stress can be a real killer. Stress Awareness Day was set aside as time to be aware of the stress in our lives and how it affects us. Read more at the Stress Awareness Day website.
Look for more information and registration for the Stressless Challenge coming in a few weeks!
How do I access LifeWorks?
It’s easy! LifeWorks is available at no cost and offers comprehensive support.
Website: heartlandaea.lifeworks.com
Username: heartlandaea
Password: lifeworks
LifeWorks has some great Toolkits for employees to use online! The Tooklits are located on a link on the lower portion on the LifeWorks homepage under Quick Links. Select Toolkits, and you’ll find many resources including an Applying to College Toolkit, Divorce Toolkit, Medicare Toolkit, Parenting as a Team Toolkit and many more!
Are
you considering retirement in the next two to three years? If so, you
may be interested in attending a “Planning for Retirement” session in
November. Mark your calendar for:
Nov. 14
3:00-5:00 p.m.
Conference Room 152
Johnston Regional Education Center
Iowa
Public Employees' Retirement System (
IPERS) and Social Security will
be providing in-person guidance on what you need to know to make the
best choices for your retirement years. No registration is necessary,
but if you would like IPERS to prepare personalized benefit estimates
for you, contact Juliette Houseman, Benefits Specialist, by Nov. 2
so your statement can be prepared. The session will be available via
Zoom (https://heartlandaea.zoom.us/j/616896697) and will be recorded for later access. Spouses are welcome to attend.
If you have any questions, contact Juliette.
In honor of Halloween, the Crisis Planning Team wanted to share a humorous take on an important topic.
From the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
There are all kinds of emergencies out there that we can prepare for. Take a zombie apocalypse for example. That’s right, I said z-o-m-b-i-e a-p-o-c-a-l-y-p-s-e. You may laugh now, but when it happens you’ll be happy you read this, and hey, maybe you’ll even learn a thing or two about how to prepare for a real emergency.
A Brief History of Zombies
We’ve all seen at least one movie about flesh-eating zombies taking over, but where do zombies come from and why do they love eating brains so much? The word zombie comes from Haitian and New Orleans voodoo origins. Although its meaning has changed slightly over the years, it refers to a human corpse mysteriously reanimated to serve the undead. Through ancient voodoo and folk-lore traditions, shows like the Walking Dead were born.
In movies, shows, and literature, zombies are often depicted as being created by an infectious virus, which is passed on via bites and contact with bodily fluids. Harvard psychiatrist Steven Schlozman wrote a (fictional) medical paper on the zombies presented in Night of the Living Dead and refers to the condition as Ataxic Neurodegenerative Satiety Deficiency Syndrome caused by an infectious agent. The Zombie Survival Guide identifies the cause of zombies as a virus called solanum. Other zombie origins shown in films include radiation from a destroyed NASA Venus probe (as in Night of the Living Dead), as well as mutations of existing conditions such as prions, mad-cow disease, measles and rabies.
The rise of zombies in pop culture has given credence to the idea that a zombie apocalypse could happen. In such a scenario zombies would take over entire countries, roaming city streets eating anything living that got in their way. The proliferation of this idea has led many people to wonder, “How do I prepare for a zombie apocalypse?”
Well, we’re here to answer that question for you, and hopefully share a few tips about preparing for real emergencies too!
Better Safe than Sorry
So what do you need to do before zombies…or hurricanes or pandemics for example, actually happen? First of all, you should have an emergency kit in your house. This includes things like water, food, and other supplies to get you through the first couple of days before you can locate a zombie-free refugee camp (or in the event of a natural disaster, it will buy you some time until you are able to make your way to an evacuation shelter or utility lines are restored). Below are a few items you should include in your kit, for a full list visit the CDC Emergency page.
- Water (1 gallon per person per day)
- Food (stock up on non-perishable items that you eat regularly)
- Medications (this includes prescription and non-prescription meds)
- Tools and Supplies (utility knife, duct tape, battery powered radio, etc.)
- Sanitation and Hygiene (household bleach, soap, towels, etc.)
- Clothing and Bedding (a change of clothes for each family member and blankets)
- Important documents (copies of your driver’s license, passport, and birth certificate to name a few)
- First Aid supplies (although you’re a goner if a zombie bites you, you can use these supplies to treat basic cuts and lacerations that you might get during a tornado or hurricane)
Once you’ve made your emergency kit, you should sit down with your family and come up with an emergency plan. This includes where you would go and who you would call if zombies started appearing outside your door step. You can also implement this plan if there is a flood, earthquake, or other emergency.
1. Identify the types of emergencies that are possible in your area. Besides a zombie apocalypse, this may include floods, tornadoes, or earthquakes. If you are unsure, contact your local Red Cross chapter for more information.
2. Pick a meeting place for your family to regroup in case zombies invade your home, or your town evacuates because of a hurricane. Pick one place right outside your home for sudden emergencies and one place outside of your neighborhood in case you are unable to return home right away.
3. Identify your emergency contacts. Make a list of local contacts like the police, fire department, and your local zombie response team. Also identify an out-of-state contact that you can call during an emergency to let the rest of your family know you are ok.
4. Plan your evacuation route. When zombies are hungry they won’t stop until they get food (i.e., brains), which means you need to get out of town fast! Plan where you would go and multiple routes you would take ahead of time so that the flesh eaters don’t have a chance! This is also helpful when natural disasters strike and you have to take shelter fast.
To learn more about what CDC does to prepare for and respond to emergencies of all kinds, visit the CDC website. To learn more about how you can prepare for and stay safe during an emergency visit the CDC website.
This year 359 staff members signed up for Teacher Quality courses and study groups, so consequently, staff members will be paid $640 for participating in a 15-hour course or study group. Study group facilitators will be paid $690, and course instructors will be paid their per diem.
The amounts are the same as 2015-16.
Payment Process
Addendums are generated after the course or study group is completed and all requirements have been met. Participants and instructors will receive notification on their Employee Dashboards that an addendum assignment has been initiated. Staff members must accept the addendum assignment. Payment will be processed only after staff members accept the addendum assignment. Payments are usually made 30 days after a course is complete and will be on the next two paychecks depending on the timing of the payroll calendar and when the instructor tells the Professional Development Office that the requirements have been met. If you have any questions about the payment process or the status of your reimbursement, contact Kevin Fangman, Executive Director of District Services.
Iowa’s Area Education Agencies are charged with weighting IEPs, so we want you to be aware that the ECSE and K-12 Weighted Enrollment Factor Matrices have been revised. Rubrics called Weighted Enrollment Factor Matrices (WEF Matrices) are used to apply a Weighted Enrollment Factor (WEF) to the IEP for each child who receives district special education services. The revised matrices are posted on the Iowa IDEA website.
Q: What prompted changes in the matrices?
A: The Bureau of Finance, Facilities, Operation and Transportation Services at the Iowa Department of Education requested that the cost of educational modifications necessary to meet the special education needs of the child no longer be used to determine the weighted enrollment factor for a student.
In the past, for certain factors (e.g., assistive technology, accessible educational materials, equipment for safe transportation and unique circumstances), the WEF Matrices have taken into account the cost of a service or support. The Bureau and AEA Directors of Special Education have collaborated to effect this change.
Q: When will we begin utilizing the revised matrices at Heartland AEA?
A: Heartland AEA will begin applying the new matrices to IEPs dated Oct. 31, 2016 and after.
If you have any questions, contact your Regional Director.
In an ongoing effort to keep our agency software up-to-date, an updated version of Symantec Anti-Virus software will be available this week to install on agency computers.
Beginning Nov. 2, 2016 the update for Symantec Anti-Virus will be available via Self-Service on all agency computers needing the update. Staff may install this update at their convenience during a two week window. If the update has not been performed by staff at the end of the two weeks (ending Nov. 16, 2016) the update will be applied to your computer automatically. It is important that you perform this update to ensure that the update is not automatically applied at an inopportune time.
To install this update, you will need to open the Self-Service app on your agency computer.
You will find the update located in the Utilities folder:
Once you install the update, you will be reminded to restart your computer via a pop-up that looks similar to the image below:
Note: Your computer will restart 1 minute after clicking the OK button on the pop-up prompt!
If you have any questions, contact Mike Permann, Technology Support Facilitator, at ext. 14767 or Marquis Jones, Technology Support Specialist, at ext. 14618.
