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
If you were not able to attend the meeting on intensive summer reading programs hosted at our AEA with the Department of Education and the Iowa Reading Research Center we would like to provide you with an opportunity to review the information and provide input on a brief survey. The Department of Education and the Iowa Reading Research Center will be using this information as they work on producing the guidelines and criteria for summer reading programs.
Below you will find a link to a Zoom meeting that was recorded for Keystone and a link to the survey that asks for your input on key aspects of summer reading. Only one survey per district is needed.
They are asking for you or someone who has knowledge of summer programming in your district to please complete the survey by Wednesday, Nov. 26.
Thank you for your time and attention to this important information.
Zoom meeting with Barbara Ohlund of the Iowa Department of Education and Michelle Hosp of the Iowa Reading Research Center:
If you are eligible for the second round of Microsoft settlement funds, you have probably noticed that the eligible list posted online is fairly lengthy. A Keystone AEA employee boiled that list down to a set of K-3 literacy products, and put that information in a Google doc. The information may be helpful as you plan how to spend these funds and craft your application. Remember, the application window is open now until December 19.
All Heartland AEA districts with ELLs are invited to attend or send a representative(s) to the upcoming Dec. 4 ESL Advisory meeting at 6500 Corporate Drive from 4:00-5:00 p.m. in Room 129.
A National Geographic representative will present an overview of both secondary and elementary materials geared toward ELL needs from 4:40-5:00 p.m., and will kindly stay afterward in case there are additional questions and to allow examination of the materials.
This quarterly meeting, as always, is open to all districts (administrators, teachers, counselors or other staff who serve ELLs) and will feature a special opportunity available to districts that will be announced at this meeting.
Districts with ELLs who need supplementary materials, such as leveled books that support Core instruction, manipulatives or other scaffolded materials will receive a template for applying for up to a $3,500 mini-grant for the purchase of those materials, in the form of reimbursement to districts.
Yik Yak has been causing havoc across the state with students using this app inappropriately. It is an anonymous app where students can bully other students/teachers, post/peek bomb threats, school shootings, etc.
Consider watching this video which explains the app, how it’s used and how schools can block it via "Geofencing" Geofencing disables the app within a certain radius.
How to Request a Geofence at your school Email to information to theyak@yikyakapp.com: 1. School name & School’s address 2. Latitude & longitude of school’s location (make sure that the location is dead center of the school’s campus or the geofence will be ineffective – Yik Yak recommends using this site)
Due
to the Thanksgiving holiday, all Heartland AEA offices will be closed
on Nov. 27 and 28. Our van delivery schedule will be as follows:
Regular delivery Nov. 24-25
No delivery Nov. 26-28
Additionally, there will be no Administrator Connection update on Nov. 28.
Friday, November 14, 2014
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
There has been more information released on the second round of the Microsoft settlement. 1) The most important part of the update is that the amount of money available per student is $65.89. This is not the final figure, but can be used by buildings to make out their budget and their application as far as hardware and software items that can be reimbursed. As with the first settlement, this is a voucher program, and eligible schools purchase products that are eligible, and then send in vouchers and receipts to be reimbursed. The spreadsheet of eligible -- and ineligible -- products.
2) Some of this funding can be spent on software, and some on hardware. The two categories of funding are software vouchers, and general purpose vouchers which encompass both hardware and some software products. The amount per student that can be spent via software vouchers is $46.18, and the amount that can be spent via general purpose vouchers is $19.71. Remember that the focus of this funding is to improve literacy at the elementary level.
3) Remember also that funding is based on the number of students in a K-6 building. If your building is, say, a K-4 building, and it has 50 students in each grade, for a total of 250 students, your Microsoft settlement funding will be based on 350 students (7 grades of 50 students apiece).
4) The window for applying is available between now and December 19, so if you haven't started planning for how to spend these funds, it's time to get going!
More information, including a list of eligible schools and the number of students funded in each building, is available on the Iowa DE webpage.
As schools plan their budgets for 2015-16 and beyond, they should be aware of major changes in the federal E-rate program. The application windows for E-rate are already open, and will close in mid-spring, so if you are not familiar with these changes, you might want to review the “Top 10 List of E-rate Changes” below.
10) Many products and services that were discounted in the past will no longer receive funding, including mobile hot spots, data plans, web hosting, email and voicemail.
9) The discounts for other popular services, such as phone lines, will be phased out over the next 2-3 years.
8) More money is being made available for broadband within buildings. While details are still emerging, it appears many Iowa districts that have not qualified in the past for any networking equipment discounts will now do so.
7) Many schools that have been considered “rural” in the past are being reclassified as “urban.” If your county has a “population center” of 2,500 or more, you will likely be considered “urban.” It is important to note that urban schools generally get a smaller discount.
6) The discount scales -- tied to free and reduced rates -- have changed considerably, and they jump by increments of 10 or even 20%, as opposed to 1%. This means a relatively small number of students could make the difference between, say, a 50% discount and a 60% discount for your school.
5) Major changes are coming to the 470 and 471 forms that are used for E-rate applications.
4) Technology plans are no longer required for any aspect of applying for E-rate funding.
3) Schools that have signed a multi-year contract for tech services will have to provide less documentation after the initial year of review from the E-rate service.
2) Document retention of E-rate forms has been increased to 10 years.
1) The E-rate program is strongly considering adding $2 billion to the total funding available over the next two years, which would be focused on providing broadband access within schools (firewalls, routers, switches, wireless access points, etc.).
If you would like to learn more about these changes, and some strategies that will help your school maximize your E-rate discounts, contact Pam Jacobs, Iowa Dept. of Ed, or Lance Wilhelm, Director of Technology.
Iowa has one of the highest rates of skin cancer incidence in the U.S. today. Skin cancer is largely a lifestyle disease, and reaching students in middle school and high school is critical to affecting decisions that lead to the disease.
Sun Smart U is a free curriculum developed by the Skin Cancer Foundation to increase 6th to 12th grade students’ awareness of skin cancer and the importance of sun protection. Please share the site with teachers and students.
This fall a variety of resources have been shared for implementation of Chapter 62. Many of these resources have been pulled into a Google Drive folder for easy access. It may be helpful to bookmark the link as additional resources will be added throughout the year. Some of the resources in the folder include:
DE Parent notification template and family partnership tools
DE guidance documents for Early Literacy Implementation
Q & A for Chapter 62, September 2014
Archived Zoom session facilitated by Heartland AEA on 11/3/2014
The National Education Association’s (NEA) 93rd annual American Education Week (AEW) presents all Americans with an opportunity to celebrate public education and honor individuals who are making a difference in ensuring every child receives a quality education.
The theme of the 2014 American Education Week, “Raise Your Hand for Student Success,” reflects the Association’s calling upon America to provide students with quality public schools so that they can grow, prosper, and achieve in the 21st century.
For more information about American Education Week, visit www.nea.org/aew.
Friday, November 7, 2014
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
The November 2014 issue of the School Leader Update is available from the Iowa Department of Education. In it, Director Buck writes about IowaCore.gov, an easy-to-understand-and-use website for educators, parents and stakeholders who want to delve into the Iowa Core. Also, read about a new accreditation model that will affect all districts in the state and attorney Nicole Proesch gives you some information that is pertinent to the month of November.
Remember that the window to apply for the new round of Microsoft money opens on November 10, and closes on December 19.
The Dept. of Education’s webpage contains info about the program itself, about the eligible schools, and also some recently-added resources, including an archived version of John O'Connell's webinar, and the application template.
This second site contains a link to the eligible products list. If there is a product that you are interested in, but it isn't listed as eligible or ineligible, you'll want to inquire ASAP about its eligibility so you can have an answer before the application deadline closes.
The 31st Annual Write Women Back Into History Contest is an opportunity for 6th-9th grade students to submit an original essay on an inspirational woman they feel deserves to be written into history. The theme of this year’s contest is ‘Weaving the Stories of Women’s Lives’. Submissions will be accepted through January 23. Winning students will receive awards and be invited to the capitol for a day to be presented to the State Senate and House of Representatives, as well as the Governor and Lt. Governor.
Recently, the 2014 STEM Education Award for Inspired Teaching sponsored by Kemin Industries was launched to honor educators and their dedication to STEM education in Iowa.
This award will honor one teacher from each of the six STEM regions will be awarded $1,500 award with an additional $1,500 to be used in their classroom.
Anyone can submit a nomination online at stemaward.fluidreview.com from now until December 12, 2014. After a teacher is nominated, they will be asked to fill out an application. They will have until January 9, 2015 to send in their completed application. These forms will then be sent to a panel of judges who will select the six winners who will be announced at the Statewide STEM Conference in March 2015.
As part of your subscription to Britannica (through Iowa AEA Online), students can access primary sources in Annals of American History Online. There are two ways to access: Visit http://www.america.eb.com/ OR Visit http://school.eb.com and click on Additional Databases in the top banner.
Annals of American History Online gives a unique view of American history through primary source documents. Discover the backbone of American history, society and culture with a year-by-year documentary of American thought, action and daily life.
Read the original words of more than 1,500 authors who made and analyzed American history through speeches, writings and interviews. Containing over 2,000 primary source documents from 1493 to the present day, plus hundreds of images and multimedia clips, this database is ideal for student research and thought-provoking classroom discussions. Includes a built-in citation generator. For grades 6-12.
The database is purchased by the AEA and requires a username and password assigned to your school. If you do not know your school's username and password, ask your school librarian or contact the Heartland AEA Library at (800) 255-0405 ext. 15799.
Grant Wood AEA is hosted a standards-based grading conference on March 30, 2015. This conference is designed to help educators learn how to effectively develop/design and implement a standards-based grading (SBG) system that aligns with current instruction and assessment practices and supports the Iowa Core and Iowa’s Competency-Based Education model. The keynote speaker will be ASCD author Dr. Cathy Vatterott. In addition, classroom practitioners from across the state will share resources and practices that have led to successful implementation. Nearly 250 educators attended a similar conference in Iowa in 2013 and the feedback received was extremely positive. Registration is $20 and includes lunch. Details are available here.
