Our Mission
To provide services and leadership, in partnership with families, schools and communities, that improve the learning outcomes and well-being of all children and youth.

Our Goals
• Increase learning growth for students
• Decrease the gap in achievement
• Increase annual graduation rates
• Increase gateways to post-secondary success

New Layout, New Look Highlight 2014-15 Staff Handbook

The 2014-15 version of the Staff Handbook is now available. This version of the Staff Handbook went into effect July 1, 2014, and all other versions should be discarded. 

The handbook has been organized in a new way, and the content is now grouped into 15 distinct categories. This year’s Staff Handbook has also been made into an emagazine (emag), rather than a standard PDF document. This allows you to turn the pages just like you would with a print magazine. The toolbar at the bottom of the document allows you to turn pages, go back to the table of contents, create bookmarks, download as a PDF, search and print. If you have any trouble navigating the emag, open it in another web browser or use the “Zoom Out” feature under the “View” menu on your browser. 

Familiarize yourself with the handbook and be on the lookout for a notification in August asking you to electronically sign the Handbook Read Receipt. 

If you have any questions, contact Laura Gillon, Executive Director of Human Resources, at lgillon@heartlandaea.org or ext. 14416.

July 2014 School Leader Update Now Available

The July 2014 School Leader Update newsletter is now available from the Iowa Department of Education. This issue brings you news about an expansion of courses available to schools and families at no charge through Iowa Learning Online, the deadline for bullying and harassment data and some good advice on following the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

July 2014 Board of Directors Meeting Agenda

The agenda for the July 8, 2014 Heartland AEA Board of Directors meeting is now available. The meeting will begin at 3:00 p.m., as there will be no work session or dinner.

Our Mission
To provide services and leadership, in partnership with families, schools and communities, that improve the learning outcomes and well-being of all children and youth.

Our Goals
• Increase learning growth for students
• Decrease the gap in achievement
• Increase annual graduation rates
• Increase gateways to post-secondary success

Volmer Joins Leadership Ranks as Regional Director July 1

Stacy Volmer will officially join the Agency’s leadership ranks on July 1 as she takes the reigns from Mari Stirler as a regional director in Region 8. Stacy will provide leadership and support to the Bondurant-Farrar, North Polk and Southeast Polk school districts. 

Stacy is no stranger to the Agency, having begun her career here in 1996 as a part-time research assistant. She was hired as a full-time school psychologist in 1999 and was part of the design and development of the Agency’s Challenging Behavior Team and of the Challenging Behavior and Autism team, chiefly through her role as a program assistant, which she began in 2007. She has most recently provided agency-wide support for challenging behavior and autism and served as a school psychologist in Region 5. 

Stacy graduated from Iowa State University in 2001 with a Ph.D. in psychology and became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst-Doctoral (BCBA-D) in 2012. She also recently completed coursework in educational leadership at the University of Iowa. 

“Over the past 15 years, I’ve had the great privilege of meeting so many amazing AEA staff and leaders and collaborating with them to provide support to nearly every Heartland school district,” Stacy said. “I’m really looking forward to learning more about and collaborating with the great AEA staff and district partners in Region 8. Promoting high quality, evidence-based services to improve the long-term outcomes of all students, including those with the most significant disabilities, is my passion and I can’t wait to see what we can accomplish together in Region 8.”

Exira and Elk Horn-Kimballton to Officially Merge July 1, 2014

Two districts will formally become one effective July 1, 2014. Exira CSD, located in Region 1, will merge with Elk Horn-Kimballton CSD to create one district, Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton (Exira-EHK for short). This consolidation comes after a three-year whole-grade sharing agreement. The new district will be under the direction of superintendent Dean Schnoes. We are excited to continue our work with our existing and new partners! We are currently in the process of creating a new Heartland AEA regional map to accommodate this change, which will be available in the near future.

Reminder: July 1 Changes Coming to Business & Professional Development Travel Procedures

The Business Office is making several changes related to business travel and professional development that will go into effect on July 1, 2014. Changes include the following: 

• The Out-of-Area Travel & Professional Development Form is being renamed to the Overnight Travel & Professional Development Form. As a result of this change, staff traveling out of our agency’s area, to meetings not requiring overnight lodging and not related to professional development, can now claim the mileage on their monthly online expense claim.

• Staff will use the account code ‘OUTAREA’ when claiming the mileage on their online expenses. If the ‘OUTAREA’ code is not set up in your expense report, contact Mary Heaberlin, Accounting Technician, at mheaberlin@heartlandaea.org or ext. 14818. Travel involving overnight lodging and expenses related to professional development will still be reimbursed using the Overnight Travel & Professional Development form. 

• Hotel reimbursement will still be limited to $55 plus taxes for in-state lodging and $175 plus taxes for out-of-state lodging. However, an exception will be made for conferences that advertise a related hotel rate. The advertised hotel rate will become the new maximum amount of reimbursement even if it exceeds the $175 limit. If the conference hotel is full, the conference hotel rate will be the maximum reimbursed at other area hotels. Staff will be responsible for turning in documentation supporting the conference hotel rate. Staff members are encouraged to double up on occupancy when possible in order to maximize the use of the Agency’s professional development budget. 

• The Agency’s preferred method of payment for registration fees will continue to be via purchase orders. Pre-payment of registration fees may be allowed with Business Office approval. The exceptions for pre-payment include, but are not limited to, high cost fees, fees that must be pre-paid and vendors that do not accept purchase orders. Regardless of whether a registration fee is pre-paid, all registration fees require a purchase order. Staff members are still allowed to personally pay registration fees and be reimbursed after the conference is attended using the Overnight Travel & Professional Development form. 

Please refer to the memo attached to the Overnight Travel & Professional Development Form for detailed information and instructions, or if you have questions, contact Brian Whalen, Business Manager, at bwhalen@heartlandaea.org or at ext. 14005.