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

Reminder: Have You Given Your Feedback on the Denison Organizational Culture Survey Yet?

On March 30 you received an email invitation to participate in the Denison Organizational Culture Survey. All Heartland AEA staff members have a chance to provide their feedback about our agency’s culture (the way we do things around here).  

Please remember to be as honest as possible when completing the survey and know that your responses are completely confidential and cannot be tracked. The survey will close on April 17.  

Thank you in advance for your time and feedback!

More Opportunities to Take the Agency Vaccine Survey

In order to give staff time to complete the vaccine survey, we will include a link to the survey in The Connection today through the end of the month. A reminder of the message that was included in an agency COVID-19 update on March 31: 

In order to help us make the most informed decisions for the agency regarding our COVID-19 safety and support efforts, Heartland AEA is surveying our staff about your COVID-19 vaccination status. This survey is anonymous. You will only complete this survey ONCE:  

• To indicate you have completed the entire COVID-19 vaccination process OR 
 
• To say you do not intend to receive the COVID-19 vaccine 
 

You do not have to fill out the survey at this time if you are unsure about getting the vaccine or have not been fully vaccinated. You will have additional opportunities to complete the survey in the coming days if you are not done with your entire vaccine series.  

Heartland AEA Vaccine Survey

Carroll Regional Office Gets New Home in the Carroll DMACC Building

Last week, our Carroll Regional Office moved to a new location within the Carroll DMACC building and has a new suite number as a result. Phone numbers remain the same. The office address is: 

906 N. Grant Road, Suite 106 

Carroll, IA 51401

Federally-Funded Employees: Second Semester A-87 Emails Coming on April 7

On April 7, the second semester A-87 certification will be emailed to federally-funded Heartland AEA staff. We are following the same process we’ve used for previous certifications. The email will come from heartlandworkflow with the subject A87 Certification Notice - Action Required. There will be a link in the email to follow to complete the certification. If the link does not work, try clearing your browser cache and then clicking on the link again.   

If you have any questions or need assistance, contact Brian Whalen, Business Manager, at ext. 14005. The Business Office appreciates your prompt completion of the certifications and your assistance in helping us maintain compliance with this reporting requirement.

April 2021 School Leader Update Available

The April 2021 School Leader Update newsletter is available from the Iowa Department of Education.    

In this issue: Connecting, engaging and leading; Two programs available for housing, utility assistance; Spring Student Reporting in Iowa (SRI); Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) End-of-Year Report 2020-2021; Title I A Basic - Selection of schools opens April 15; Measures of college readiness for Senior Year Plus Programs; School Nutrition News to Know; Webinar: Making Sense of School Nutrition Finances; Choose Iowa Food of the Month webinar and sub-grants; USDA extends meal flexibilities through summer 2021; MyTeachingStrategies™ GOLD Assessment System Checkpoints for 2021-22 and myIGDIs Opportunities and Resources.

Annual Benefits Enrollment is Open -- Sign-up Today Through April 30!

The Agency’s annual benefits enrollment is open to all full-time and 96-day employees from April 1 through April 30, 2021, at 4 p.m. for the 2021-22 benefit year, which begins July 1, 2021. Full-time employees may enroll in health and dental insurance and medical flex spending plans, while part-time staff (96-day) may enroll in the medical flex spending plan. (Note: This enrollment period is not for the Dependent Care Plan, which is done in November.)    

You are required to make enrollment selections for health and dental coverages during annual enrollment, even if you don't have any changes to your benefit coverages for next year. 



   

This is the time you can add and/or drop family members to your health and dental plans without a life event or change of status. Annual enrollment time is also the only time during the year you can change your deductible—you aren't able to do that during the year, even with a life event or change of status. 



   

How do I enroll? 

Enrollment can be completed through the Employee Online tab of your Employee Dashboard. If you have any issues enrolling, first try logging out of the Employee Dashboard and then logging back in.   

Benefits Enrollment User Guide  

Health Insurance


Health insurance premiums will remain unchanged for 2021-22. The monthly insurance premium rates for the $1,000 and $2,000 deductible Blue Choice health plans will be as follows:

   

$1,000 Deductible Blue Choice Plan
  

• Single - $617.57 (Paid in full by the Agency)
 
 
• Family - $1,543.94 (Agency pays 60% of the premium, so you owe $308.79 per pay period) 
 
• No Health Reimbursement Arrangement with the $1,000 deductible plan

 
 

$2,000 Deductible Blue Choice Plan
  

• Single - $551.10 (Paid in full by the Agency)
• Family - $1,377.75 (Agency pays 60% of the premium, so you owe $275.55 per pay period) 
 
• Annual Health Reimbursement Arrangement for taking $2,000 single plan coverage - $900.00 ($225.00/quarter)

 
• Annual Health Reimbursement Arrangement for taking $2,000 family plan coverage - $1,920.00 ($480.00/quarter)

 

Dental Insurance
 

No change in dental rates for 2021-22.  

• Single rate is $36.44 monthly. (Paid in full by the Agency)
 
 
• Family rate is $114.46 per month. (Agency pays single rate of $36.44 for Classified Union and Certified Union employees towards the premium, so you owe $39.01 per pay period)
 
 
 

Medical Flex Spending Plan 


 

Each employee may choose to deduct from their paycheck an annual maximum of $2,750 ($114.58/pay period) regardless of how many family members you have or whether your spouse is able to contribute at their place of employment. As in the past, you may submit claims for eligible expenses for you, your spouse and your eligible children. Reminder: If you enroll in the medical flex spending plan, and you can’t get all of your money spent in your account, you will be able to roll over up to $550 from the 2021-22 plan into the 2022-23 plan.



   

VOYA Life Insurance Enrollment

 

During our annual benefits enrollment, employees who didn’t opt for additional life insurance coverage through VOYA can also enroll. Complete the enrollment form and submit it to Juliette Houseman, Benefits Specialist. Current employees who are enrolling for the first time will be required to fill out an Evidence of Insurability form. Current employees who are already enrolled but who want to increase their coverage may also do so at this time. Current employees may increase their coverage, but if they choose to increase it over $10,000, they will be required to fill out an Evidence of Insurability form. Enrollment/changes will be during April but will be effective on July 1, 2021.

If you have any questions about your enrollment options, contact Juliette Houseman, Benefits Specialist.

Important Information Regarding EAP Counseling Referrals

In times like these, we know that taking care of people’s mental health is more important than ever. As your well-being provider, LifeWorks Employee Assistance Program continuously strives to offer an optimal user experience by analyzing customer feedback and preferences. They know that users wish to have more control and choice when seeking counseling from a LifeWorks provider. That’s why they are excited to share that they will be returning to a traditional model of case referrals in April 2021.   

This means that when an employee requests EAP counseling service, they will be offered a list of up to 3 provider names to reach out in order to initiate service. Here are the highlights of the traditional model: 

1. We will send the names of 3 LifeWorks providers to the participant.
 
2. The participant initiates the call to the provider of their choice to schedule an appointment.
 
3. The participant provides authorization ("Token Number") to the provider.
 

Benefits of the traditional model: 

1. Participants speak with a local, qualified professional in a confidential setting.
 
2. No more waiting for a phone call to book an appointment.
 
3. More choice in caring support from providers.
 
4. Allows participants to continue connecting virtually with a provider during the global pandemic.
 

If you have any questions, contact Juliette Houseman, Benefits Specialist.

Get the Dental Down-Low with This New Delta Dental Site Just For You!

As a Heartland AEA staff member, you now have a go-to Delta Dental website created just for YOU to get the down-low on all the information specific to our Heartland AEA dental insurance coverage! The site includes:   

• Dental Plan Summary
 
• Dental Plan Certificate
 
• Forms
 
• Member Connection
 
• Enhanced Benefits Program
 
• Orthodontia
 Information  

Visit and bookmark the site today!

FYI: AEAs Again Subsidizing the Cost for Schools to Upgrade Their FAST Subscriptions for 2021-22

Iowa’s AEAs will again be subsidizing the costs for schools to upgrade their Iowa Department of Education-provided FAST subscriptions that include the expanded assessment suite in math and behavior for K-6 and literacy, math and behavior for grades 7 & 8. Participation is available both to schools that purchased the expanded assessment suite in previous years and those that want to use it for the first time in 2021-22. 

The registration window is April 1-May 7, 2021. More details are available in this document.

Reminder: Certified Staff: Consider Welcoming and Supporting New Staff by Being a 2021-22 Mentor

As a mentor, you share your time and welcome and support new staff by building their capacity as they join our Heartland AEA team. Mentoring is a personally and professionally fulfilling experience that also helps our agency retain great employees. Our Heartland AEA Mentoring Guide is available here for your review. Note that this program is for mentors and mentees who are Certified Union staff members.  
  

• Mentors of first-year staff provide 20 hours of one-on-one coaching and support for their mentee, are provided with mentorship training and in return will receive a $1,300 (gross) payment and the personal satisfaction of knowing that they’ve made a difference in the career of the mentee.   
 
• Mentors of second-year staff provide 15 hours of one-on-one coaching and support for their mentee, are provided with mentorship training and in return will receive a $1,000 (gross) payment and the personal satisfaction of knowing that they’ve made a difference in the career of the mentee. 


  
 

It’s easy to sign up to be considered for a match with a first or second-year staff member! Please complete the online Mentoring Application by April 16, 2021. If you are a mentor this year and are interested in mentoring again, you need to complete the Mentoring Application to be considered as a mentor again in 2021-22.    

After receiving applications, more information will be provided to selected mentors for next year’s Mentoring Program. 

If you have any questions, contact Martha Condon, Director of Professional Learning.

Reminder: Join Us for Round 2 of Listening Circles: Achieving a Functional Work-Life Balance

Our Heartland AEA SEBMH group has designed and scheduled a second round of Listening Circles. In this round, we will consider how to create and maintain a functional work-life balance. We will be drawing upon the ideas in this article from Edutopia. We encourage you to read the article prior to participating; however, it is not required. 

As a reminder, the goal of Listening Circles is to create a brave space for staff to be heard, free of judgment, and with no fear of consequences for speaking their truth. It is believed that this practice will be helpful for building and maintaining a healthy community in which ALL staff feels connected and respected. 

Here is what some of our colleagues have said about participating in the first round of Listening Circles: 

• "The listening circle is a place where you can feel connected to others in our Heartland AEA family and share in a reflective, thoughtful, caring way. It was a meaningful experience." 
• "I thought I might be walking into group therapy and wasn't too eager to do that! But Listening Circles aren't like that. They are led by our incredibly bright and caring staff in a structured way so we can hear from our colleagues, learn from each other, gain understanding and build connections. It's time well spent!" 
• "This was a very non-threatening process. We always had the option to pass and that was totally okay." 

We encourage you to participate in an upcoming Listening Circle with your fellow Heartland AEA colleagues! 

How to Participate 

Listening Circles have been scheduled over the next three weeks at various times throughout the day to accommodate as many schedules as possible. Registration for each circle will be capped at eight participants to allow for meaningful sharing from all participants. If you are interested in participating as a group, feel free to have your group members sign up for the same time or contact your regional lead to see about setting up a separate time for your group to engage in a circle. 

Facilitators 

The first and second facilitators for each of the sessions (as they stand today) are listed below. 

 

April 5 (M) 2:00-3:30             Stacey Warren & Mary Jo Brown 

April 8 (Th) 2:00-3:30            Rebecca Carver & Amy Pickering 

April 9 (F) 1:00-2:30              Erin Rush & Emily Donovan 

April 12 (M) 1:00-2:30           Andrea Matheson & Aimee Schuppe 

April 14 (W) 1:00-2:30          Kari Miller & Rebecca Carver 

April 14 (W) 2:30-4:00          Kathy Lepage & Rebecca Carver 

April 15 (Th) 2:30-4:00         Mary Jo Brown & Becky Tigges 

April 16 (F) 8:30-10:00         Erin Rush & Kari Miller 

April 16 (F) 10:30-12:00       Stacey Warren & Becky Tigges 

Register Today!

Mental Health First Aid at Work Presenting April 15 Session: Employee Support Under Stressful Conditions

The unprecedented response to the COVID-19 pandemic has created new pressures in the workplace. Uncertainties about job security, pay cuts, health and caregiving have left many employees feeling isolated and overwhelmed. New challenges will arise as businesses reopen and work environments change in surprising and challenging ways. Many organizations will implement new guidelines on physical distancing and gatherings, while many more will extend remote work options to employees. Creating an emotionally healthy workplace has taken on increased urgency.   

Please join us for a seminar focused on the principles of Mental Health First Aid at Work. The session will include information on best practices in the workplace and guidance on how to support each other and ourselves during this crisis. MHFA at Work will host a discussion on current areas of most pressing concern, with a focus on the impact of trauma, the importance of team engagement, self-care and mindfulness.   

April 15, 2021 

12-1:30 pm EASTERN TIME 

Register for Zoom Session

Reminder: New Tip Sheet: Best Practices for Writing a Prior Written Notice

Parents are afforded procedural protections under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), one of which is the right to a "Prior Written Notice." 

Heartland AEA has recently created a resource document to support special education practitioners with tips and recommendations for writing quality Prior Written Notices. We hope both AEA and LEA practitioners find this resource helpful in documenting IEP team discussions and decisions through the writing of the PWN.    

Best Practices for Writing a Prior Written Notice

Are You Opening Your Zoom App Everyday? If Not, You’re Missing Out!

Remember...   

You need to have the Zoom app open and be logged in with your Heartland AEA email address in order to receive calls and texts for your Zoom Phone number. The Zoom app can be open and minimized or in the background; it does not need to be "in front" on your computer or iPad. If the Zoom app is not open, or you are signed out, calls will be sent directly to voicemail, and text messages will not appear until you have signed in again.