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: Please Provide Your Feedback on the All-Staff Meeting!

It was so good to see everyone at our All-Staff Meeting on Sept. 24! After a virtual meeting last year, we hope you enjoyed coming together to connect, celebrate and learn with one another!  

We hope you enjoyed hearing from Mitch Matthews about dreaming big and giving yourself permission to do so! If you weren't able or forgot to pick up your dream sheet, we'll be getting those out to you in the coming days. 

Meeting Materials 

• Morning Presentation 
• Program 
• Photos

Survey 
 

Please take a few minutes to offer your feedback and comments about this year's All-Staff Meeting via our survey. Your responses will help us plan for future meetings. Please respond by Oct. 8. Thank you! 
 

Pick 3 Prize Winners 

358 staff members participated in the Pick 3 Self-Care activities. Way to go! Five winners were drawn for those who turned in their cards. Prizes will be van mailed to your regional offices. 

• Terin Limoges 
• Diane Volkman 
• Cindy Sturtz 
• Kelsey Hageman 
• Julia Bebensee

Have You Donated to the Our United Way Campaign Yet?

Central Iowa LIVES UNITED year-round, but United Way is extra special during the fall when organizations like ours across the community-run campaigns to raise money for the cause. 


We are counting on you to once again pledge your support to United Way, so they can in turn support communities through Essential Needs, Early Childhood Success, Education Success, Economic Opportunity and Health & Well-Being – the 5 Elements of a Thriving Community! 

Heartland AEA and United Way are so grateful to you for the generosity you’ve shown in the past toward this fight. You are truly an impact-maker for so many central Iowans in need! As a donor or volunteer, or as someone who wants to learn more about United Way’s work, you are joining the effort to ensure that everyone in Central Iowa gets a chance at a quality life. 


 

Campaign Details 

• An email from United Way of Central Iowa was sent to all staff on Sept. 28 2021, with a link to donate to United Way online. 
• Pledges of at least $50 can be designated toward a county United Way or organization of your choosing. 
• Although the pledge site may indicate that cash or check pledges are options, we are only accepting online pledges for this campaign. 
• Those who pledge will again be entered into a drawing! 

If you have any questions, contact Courtney Croatt, Communications Specialist or Whitney Wolf, Human Resources Generalist. 

Why We Support United Way -- To Assist People Like Missy!

Missy Montero missed a lot of school. She was raising her younger sister from the age of 11, because her parents worked long hours to provide for the family. She began caring for her young niece, too. Plus, she has juvenile arthritis and severe migraines, which cause debilitating pain. All these struggles meant Missy wasn’t on track to graduate high school, despite good grades. Flex Academy, funded by United Way of Central Iowa, allowed the senior to work at her own pace—attending school when she can, working from home and interacting personally with her teachers to keep up when she missed days.

Missy’s Story

It’s Fire Prevention Week -- Learn the Sounds of Fire Safety

This year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign, “Learn the Sounds of Fire Safety!” works to educate everyone about the different sounds the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms make. Knowing what to do when an alarm sounds will keep you and your family safe. When an alarm makes noises – a beeping sound or a chirping sound – you must take action. 

What if someone in your home is deaf or hard of hearing? 

There are smoke alarms and alert devices that alert people who are deaf or hard of hearing. These devices include strobe lights that flash to alert people when the smoke alarm sounds. Pillow or bed shakers designed to work with your smoke alarm also can be purchased and installed. For more information on this important topic, visit Fire Safety for the deaf or hard of hearing section. 

Safety Tip Sheet 

Family Action Plan 

More information can be found on the Fire Prevention Week website.

Reminder: Do You Serve Students With Autism? You Can Provide Feedback on Services and Supports Through Survey

The Iowa Regional Autism Assistance Program Expert Panel and the Iowa Autism Council are inviting parents, family members, individuals and providers to provide feedback on the state’s support and services for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). 

AEA staff are encouraged to provide feedback through this survey and to forward the survey to parents and families who may be interested in providing this feedback as well. The data will be used to help improve services and supports for individuals with ASD and their families. The survey will close on Oct. 8, 2021.

Autism Services Survey

New: Early Notification Incentive Now Offered to All Staff

Last year, Heartland AEA filled 60+ vacancies in all employee groups. It has been to the Agency’s advantage to enter the recruitment cycle as early as possible. 




 

For 2021-22, the Heartland AEA Board of Directors has approved an Early Notification Incentive for staff who notify Heartland AEA of their intent to resign or retire after the fulfillment of their current contract or employment term (for Classified staff) by Dec. 10, 2021. Details are listed below.



 

Early Notification Incentive Process & Requirements 

• This year all staff, including Certified, Classified and Management staff, may take advantage of the early notification incentive. 
• Certified Union and Management staff who do not plan to return to Heartland AEA for the 2022-23 school year must submit early notification letters of resignation that are effective at the end of the 2021-22 work year. 
• Certified Union and Management staff must fulfill their contractual obligations to be eligible. 
• Classified staff must serve the full number of days as identified in their employment notifications or through June 30, 2022, if no days are specified, in order to be eligible. All early notification letters must be received in the Human Resources Department by 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 10, 2021. 
• Heartland AEA’s Board of Directors acts on early notification letters no later than its regular meeting on Dec. 14, 2021. 
 

Early Notification Incentive 

A $1,500 early notification incentive will be paid on June 30, 2022, to employees fulfilling these requirements. 

If you have any questions about the early notification incentive, contact Nia Chiaramonte, Director of Human Resources.

Wellness Update: Challenges Are Underway and Do You Know Who Our Wellness Wizard Is?

2020 was a year of adjustments and transitions across the world and here at the Agency. One adjustment you may or may not have fully recognized was the Wellness Coordinator transition from Juliette Houseman to Britini Jones. Juliette has been your go-to guru for wellness, but now there is a new face in the wellness spotlight to lead the way. 

Check out this video of Steve (or is that Juliette?) handing over the baton to Joe (or maybe that’s Britini?)! 

The 2021-22 Wellness Program kicked off on Aug. 1, and our first agency-wide challenge is underway. Sips Ahoy runs from now until Oct. 17, and participants are asked to log their water intake daily for a total of at least 32 ounces a day. If you missed your chance to register for this challenge, don’t worry because we will have three more to come this year! Keep your eyes out for information in The Connection as well as emails from our partners at Navigate Wellbeing Solutions. 

If you have not yet registered in the Wellness Portal, we encourage you to do so. We want you to not only participate in the Wellness Program for your own personal gains but to also earn the incentives for completing the activities and exploring the resources. 

If you have any questions or need assistance, reach out to Britini Jones, Human Resources Associate. Happy Wellness!

Get Your Google On! Agency Technology Lunch & Learns Begin This Week! Learn More About October Google Drive & Docs Sessions

All Heartland AEA staff are encouraged to attend the Agency's 2021-22 Technology Lunch & Learn Series. These sessions will provide tips, tricks and hints about using varied Google Workplace tools and resources for increased productivity. 

New this year, months will be "packaged" with one topic focus for deeper learning and increased skill development. You will register for each course section, which will encompass 3-4 weeks of learning around one topic. The intended outcome will be that your skills and proficiencies will be deepened through this more focused approach. In addition, task checklists will keep you moving forward. 

Sessions will be held via Zoom Thursdays from 12:00-12:30 p.m. The format includes 15 minutes of new learning and 15 minutes of guided task practice. Once you have registered for the sections, you will be emailed the Zoom link to participate. The sessions will be conducted in Room 115 at the Johnston REC if anyone is interested in attending live in the room with the facilitator(s). 

Schedule & Topics 

The course registration links may reflect different titles, but all dates are correct and the session topics included here are what content will be delivered. 

Google Drive & Docs (October) - Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28, 2021 

Google Calendar (November) - Nov. 4, 11, 18, 2021 

Google Groups/Contacts/Email Lists/Labels (December) - Dec. 2, 9, 16, 2021 

Google Groups/Contacts/ Email Lists/Labels (January) - Jan. 6, 13, 20, 27, 2022 

Google Keep (February) - Feb. 3, 10, 17, 24, 2022 

Google Sheets (March) - Mar. 3, 10, 24, 31, 2022 

Google Slides (April) - Apr. 7, 14, 21, 28, 2022 

Google Chrome (May) - May 5, 12, 19, 26, 2022 

More Information About October’s Sessions 

Are you wondering which training opportunities are the best fit for you? If so, check out the task lists below to see what learning will be offered during our October sessions. Remember, all trainings will be conducted via Zoom on Thursdays from 12:00-12:30 p.m., and will include “Task Time” where participants actually practice the skills discussed. All trainings will be recorded for those who are not able to attend the live virtual session. 

Registration 

HL - 2021-22 Technology Instruction Lunch and Learn: New & Updated Format - 202504 

If you have any questions, contact Amy Wichman. We look forward to seeing you this year!

New Google Chat Experience Coming Soon!

Google has announced its messaging service known as Hangouts will be transitioning to a new format called Chat. This new format will offer the same messaging features you use now but will offer many new enhancements paired with a new collaboration tool called Rooms. Heartland AEA will be enabling this new Chat service in Google TODAY. 

What will this mean for me? 

Beginning TODAY, you will have access to an enhanced group of new productivity tools: 

Enhanced Google Chat 

This rebranding from Hangouts to Chat will continue to provide the same instant messaging features that you use in Gmail currently but will now offer a new set of tools to make your conversations more productive such as new file upload methods, instant calendar creation from chat and direct video calls. 

New Google Rooms 

The Rooms feature introduces an all-new way to collaborate with your team members. By bringing tools such as split-screen document editing, assigning project tasks, teammate mentions and a unified space for project docs, users will have the ability to collaborate in an all-new productive way. The new Rooms service will be integrated into your Gmail inbox page, mobile apps and chat.google.com. 

Mobile App Changes 

If you use the iOS or Android Hangouts App, you may want to check your phone to see if the Hangouts app is installed. If so, you will need to delete your Hangouts app and replace it with the Gmail App from the App Store or Google Play Store after today to take advantage of the new features of Google Chat. 

iOS Download Link 

Android Download Link 

Support Links

Desktop App Download 

Full Chat Walkthrough Article 

Getting Started With Rooms 

If you have any questions, email itsupport@heartlandaea.org.

Reminder: Have You Updated Your Computer & iPad Operating Systems?

You may have recently heard in the news about a security issue with Apple’s macOS and iOS operating systems. While the Heartland AEA Internal Technology Department has a monthly macOS (operating system) update policy to apply important macOS updates to agency computers, we wanted to alert you to the importance of installing the latest security updates on your Mac and iOS devices. The updates often include a restart of the device and an installation phase that can take up to 30 minutes to complete. 

This monthly macOS update policy becomes active on the 3rd Friday of each month at 8:00 a.m. It automatically installs any macOS updates starting at 9:00 a.m. on the 4th Friday of each month. The policy is automatically disabled on the last day of the month at 11:59 p.m. If any of the updates installed require a restart, you will be notified with a message. A video of the process can be seen here. 

Computer 

Check For and Install OS Updates 

Note: Please be sure to connect your power cord and do a Time Machine backup before installing any updates. 

You can check for and install macOS updates any time by going to the Apple Menu, choosing System Preferences and clicking on Software Update. If there are updates needed, they will be listed there, and you can install them from there. A video of the process can be seen here. Due to the severity of the security issue, we ask that you manually run the update as soon as possible. You will probably see the following updates listed, and you need to install both. 

It’s important not to interrupt the update process by pressing and holding the power button. Once the process begins, you need to let it complete on its own. Sometimes these updates require special firmware updates that will cause the computer to turn off for a minute or more. You should not press the power button when this happens. All updates require the computer to access the Internet, so don’t disable Airport or disconnect from ethernet during the installation. 

iPad 

To update your iPad to the latest version 14.8 of iOS, locate and tap Settings > General > Software Update. It will automatically check to see if there are any updates. You may be presented with iPad OS 14.8 as an option to install. Tap the Download and Install button. Enter in your passcode to confirm. The update will be downloaded and installed on your device. You may need to connect to power if your battery doesn’t have sufficient power. 

If you have any questions or need assistance updating your Mac or iOS devices, contact the Internal Technology Department at itsupport@heartlandaea.org with the subject of "OS Update Request." We would be happy to schedule a Zoom or in-person appointment if you need assistance.