The Iowa Department of Education has just released its plan for Iowa's Race to the Top application.
Click here for a flyer detailing the plan proposal and the meeting schedule for regional school administrators. The meetings will be an opportunity for school district leadership (superintendents, school board presidents and teacher association presidents) to review exactly what will be required of them if they sign on to Iowa’s Race to the Top application. This will help inform your decision about participating in Race to the Top.
As was mentioned yesterday in an e-mail from Sheila King to area superintendents, the regional meeting for Heartland area school administrators will be on January 6, 2010. Technical assistance meetings for superintendents will be from 4:30-5:45 p.m., and a joint meeting for superintendents, school board presidents and teacher association presidents will be from 6:00-8:00 p.m.
The meetings will take place at Iowa Public Television, 6450 Corporate Drive, Johnston, in the McElroy Room. Ames High School and the Carroll and Newton DMACC campuses will serve as satellite sites. District teams who cannot travel to the sites may take part over the ICN.
Information about Race to the Top is now posted on the Iowa Department of Education Web site at http://www.iowa.gov/educate/
- Race to the Top Fact Sheet
- Race to the Top Webinars: The overview webinar from December 7 and the specific criteria webinar from December 15
- Rosters for the Race to the Top Advisory Group and all of the work groups
- Timeline of events
- FAQ, which will be posted very soon
- Survey for people to submit questions is still available on the site
Parents, teachers, principals, school board members and the associations that represent them are coming together as work teams and advisory groups to provide input on Iowa's Race to the Top application. Each working group has now met and the Race to the Top Advisory Group and most of the work groups will meet again on either December 21 or 22 to continue to provide input and guide planning of the application content. The first draft of the comprehensive proposal is expected to be submitted to the work groups and advisory group the week of December 28 and revisions will take place throughout that week.
On behalf of our Board of Directors and 700 staff members, I'd like to extend our best wishes to you for a very joyful holiday season and a happy and healthy new year.
We have chosen to send an e-card this year, as we stay focused on containing our costs and providing important programs and services to our stakeholders. This is also a green alternative to traditional printing. Please click here to view our card. Happy Holidays!
Sheila King
Interim Chief Administrator
Click here for a word document or here for a pdf download of the agenda for the Heartland Administrators' Association (HAA) meeting which will be held on January 5 at the West Des Moines Learning Resource Center from 9:00-11:50 a.m.
As has been communicated several times this week, the second quarterly reporting for Part B ARRA funds is due next Monday, December 21. The Heartland ARRA Reporting Work Team is still planning to be stationed in the computer lab of the main Johnston office all day on Monday for any district staff wishing to come in for support in finishing the reporting. If you do not wish to travel to Johnston but still need assistance, you can reach members of the team via phone at (515) 270-0405 at extensions 12721 and 12722 or their emails listed below.
David King, Director of Finance – dking@aea11.k12.ia.us
Rebecca McCreary, Business Manager - rmccreary@aea11.k12.ia.us
David Tilly, Director of Innovation and Accountability - dtilly@aea11.k12.ia.us
Kristi Upah, Assistant Director of Innovation and Accountability - kupah@aea11.k12.ia.us
Diane Schnelker, Assessment Consultant - dschnelker@aea11.k12.ia.us
Jennifer Swanson, Assessment Consultant - jswanson@aea11.k12.ia.us
There is a wonderful opportunity for educators in your building/district to participate in ICN sessions focused on supporting military youth and teens. Due to the projected deployment that the Iowa National Guard could face in the next year, increased support for those in the military community has never been greater. Many families and communities throughout our state have been, or will be, directly impacted by the deployment of a Service Member. Those working in schools play a vital role in the success and resiliency of a child who's loved one may be deployed.
Below is a listing of sessions being made available through a partnership between Iowa Public Television and the Iowa National Guard Youth and Teen Program. All of the sessions are scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. and will not last more than one hour. These are great opportunities for those in the classroom to gain valuable information and resources for use in future planning.
To register or find more detailed descriptions of each session, click on the following links:
January 19, 2010 - Supporting Children in Military Familieshttp://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10234
January 26, 2010 - The Impact of Deployment on Youth and Teens http://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10171
February 16, 2010 - Supporting Military Youth Through Literature http://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10173March 9, 2010 - Classroom Activities with a Military Connectionhttp://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10175
April 20, 2010 - Supporting Military Parents During Deploymenthttp://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10177
May 18, 2010 - The 7 Cs of Resiliencyhttp://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=10179
All questions can be directed to Jeremy Van Wyk, State Youth and Teen Coordinator for the Iowa National Guard, at (515) 252-4040 or jeremy.vanwyk@us.army.mil.
January is a busy month for ESL activities! Please let your ESL educators know about the following training opportunities. Interested persons can register through the Heartland AEA Professional Development catalog located on the left panel of our home page or at https://prodev.aea11.k12.ia.us/4DCGI/YYYYYYYYYYYYYYSRCH. Enter the activity number listed with the sessions into the correct field.
Introduction to Sheltered Instruction for Teachers of ELLs
The targeted audience is all educators who work with K-12 English language learners including content and grade level teachers who have NOT taken Sheltered Instruction previously. This 2-day course will provide participants with a research-based framework to guide differentiated lesson planning, delivery and assessment that meet the needs of ELLs and other diverse learners in the mainstream or sheltered classroom. Teaching strategies and demonstrations specifically designed to facilitate simultaneous learning of language and content will be presented and demonstrated. A stipend of $200 will be provided to participants who complete all course requirements. Details on how to receive the stipend and submit the assignment will be given at class.
NOTE: Priority will be given to partner institutions within the Heartland AEA area. Des Moines Public School participants must register with the permission of Vinh Nguyen. Dates: January 9 & 16, 2010 (100% attendance is required for credit.)Times: 8:00 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Location: Stoney Creek Inn, 5291 NW 84th St., Johnston
Instructors: Shelley Fairbairn and Stephaney Jones-VoActivity number: ES004299991001
Enhancing Inter-Rater Reliability in the Scoring of Writing
The second training opportunity is the I-ELDA training. Please send at least one person from your district to receive this training. The training will provide an overview of this year’s form, how to order it and other technical points. Most importantly, training will also focus on scoring the speaking and writing sections of the test. Participants must register by January 15, 2010.Dates: January 20, 2010
Times: 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. (Lunch will be on your own)Location: Stoney Creek Inn, 5291 NW 84th St., Johnston
Instructor: Stephaney Jones-Vo
Activity number: ES005799991001
Reminder: Please take note of when our offices will be closed and when van mail will not be delivered due to the holidays.
Offices ClosedDecember 24-25, 2009
December 31, 2009-January 1, 2010
Van Mail Schedule
Regular Van Delivery: December 21-22, 2009
No Van Delivery: December 23-31 2009 & January 1, 2010
Regular Van Delivery Resumes: January 4, 2010
The budget allocation for the Microsoft Cy Pres Settlement program for the eligible schools is posted on the front page of the Iowa DE Web site or here.
The following is a quick review of the program and some reminders:
- This is a 4 year program that ends in August 2013.
- The per pupil allocation is based on the 2007 certified student count.
- The money is split into general purpose and software vouchers. The eligible products list shows which type of voucher can be used.
- If a school’s claim is denied, the district is stuck with the expenditure. The DE has no power to appeal a denied claim.
- Once an ineligible product is listed, it is never eligible.
- If a school wants to purchase a product not on the list, they must contact Rust Consulting for approval. If approved, they will give the school a confirmation number. The Web site with all eligible products is updated about every two weeks.
Application
· Most schools requested a 360-day extension and have until May 11, 2010, to complete the application. Starting dates for each school can be staggered. Schools can start any time.
· The application is at www.edinfo.state.ia.us -- superintendents have a userID/password.
· Approval means application is approved. It does not mean that the listed products are approved (check the eligible products list at www.iowaschoolmicrosoftsettlement.com).
Guiding Principles
· The application must be linked to implementation of the ICC in one of the five focus areas. Be careful if choosing 21st century skills as one of the areas because those assessments are expensive. 21st century skills are still important/viable area, and the assessment would be in a subject/grade. For example, the school focuses on problem solving and purchases an interactive whiteboard to build 21st century skills. The school expects to see an increase in achievement reflected in 6th grade math.
· Exceptions are that buildings receiving more than $50,000 may choose additional focus areas in increments of $50,000.
· The online application has three basic questions with a limit of 2,000 characters including spaces for each.
Click here for the minutes from the December Heartland Administrators Association meeting. The next meeting will be January 5 at the West Des Moines Learning Center.
Highly-experienced national public speaker, discussion leader, trainer and author, Donna M. Beegle, Ed.D., will present a poverty workshop in Altoona on January 20, 2010, for AEA and school personnel interested in learning more about understanding those who live in poverty. Click here for more information and to register.
Get quick and current updates on education issues and policies. Make sure to follow Iowa's AEAs on Twitter at http://twitter.com/iowa_aea.
Iowa's AEAs, in concert with Larry Sigel of Iowa School Financial Information Services, have developed a communications toolkit to help school administrators respond and guide community conversations about what implications the governor's budget cut has for local districts across the state and for education as a whole.To access the Iowa Schools Budget Communications Toolkit, visit the Iowa AEA Web site at www.iowaaea.org.
Heartland AEA and Southeast Polk are partnering to offer a two-day session to help participants learn how difficult budget decisions can be improved by putting the focus upon clear, weighted criteria which are used to rationally prioritize difficult budget choices. Participants will learn how to use the Tregoe Analytical tools to make these decisions. Read below for more information and please reply by emailing adavids@aea11.k12.ia.us to indicate if your district has an interest in participating and how many people you anticipate will attend. Also, let us know if you have a preference of the following dates, January 11 & 12, January 26 & 27 or February 8 & 9. The cost will be based on the number of people participating. (The more participating, the lower the cost. The fee may range from $50 to $100 per person.)Facing Budget Reductions with Confidence: Getting It Right the First TimeBy developing objective criteria before the debate about “what to cut?”, it helps remove the emotion that often accompanies budget reduction discussions. Using an analytic approach which will be understood by all will not only improve results but also minimize misunderstandings and conflict. This two-day session will:- Address the importance of a leadership team using a common framework of analytic processes for making difficult decisions and solving complex problems.
- Utilize a case study which will involve the participants in making some budget decisions.
- Provide a sample “resolution” to the case study which uses the Tregoe Education Forum’s Decision-Analysis process.
- Learn how to use Decision-Analysis to develop clear, weighted criteria for budget reduction, evaluate a list of potential budget actions, identify high-impact risks associated with proposed reductions, develop preventative actions to address risks and develop an implementation and communication plan for rolling out budget actions.
IDEA 2004 requires states to provide timely access to required books and textbooks in accessible formats. The Iowa DE is encouraging districts to sign up qualified students with Bookshare, http://www.bookshare.org. Bookshare is free and serves students with print disabilities such as blindness, low vision, a physical disability or reading disability that is based on an organic dysfunction. Qualified students will have access to tens of thousands of books including textbooks from the NIMAC, educational reading, reference materials, fiction, newspapers and magazines. In addition, Bookshare offers free software applications that read digital books.
Additional information on next steps, instructions on how to join Bookshare, descriptions of student qualifications (NIMAS) and training opportunities are on the Heartland Web site at http://aea11bookshare.pbworks.com/.
A mobile interface to the EBSCO databases is now available. Enter this URL on your Smartphone or iTouch and then bookmark it--http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&profile=mobsmart. Use the school username/password to access the online databases.
The EBSCO mobile interface re-sizes the screen to give full access to features.- Resource library in the teachers (or students) pocket.
- Full searching capability--search by date, document type, publication title and/or other limiters.
- Full-text articles, documents and images can be e-mailed or viewed.
- PDFs (some of primary source documents) are available.
- Image Collection (especially news and current events) is available.
Note: Javascript must be enabled on the Smartphone or iTouch. BlackBerry users can refer to this link for information on enabling Javascript: http://www.ehow.com/how_4965723_enable-javascript-blackberry.html.
For a list of the 24 EBSCO databases and/or an 8.5x11 poster, ask your teacher librarian or contact Susan Schrader, Heartland AEA Resource and Publications Supervisor, at sschrader@aea11.k12.ia.us.
Heartland has officially posted the Agency's chief administrator vacancy with the Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates search firm and applicants are now encouraged to apply for the position. A description of the position and a link to apply for it are posted on the front page of Heartland’s Web site and will remain there until the end of December.
Screening of applications will begin in late December and/or early January, with the Board of Directors interviewing those candidates deemed most qualified in late January. The candidate chosen will be encouraged to begin employment as soon as possible and no later than July 1, 2010.
The Board of Directors is seeking an educational leader to be Heartland's next chief administrator who possesses these attributes and skills:
- Can articulate and rally support for the organization's mission, vision and values.
- Knows how to maintain positive relationships with the Board, staff and member districts.
- Can lead a large complex agency.
- Understands special education and the special needs of students.
- Understands the service role of intermediate agencies.
- Is an excellent communicator and an effective team leader.
- Is committed to high standards for leadership behavior, operations and student learning.
- Is open, honest, caring and collaborative.
