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

Share Your Experiences on Children’s Mental Health Services in Iowa at a Listening Post on Oct. 8

Educators, families and residents within the Heartland AEA service area are invited to share personal experiences on children’s mental health services at a listening post to be held on Oct. 8, from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. at Heartland AEA at 6500 Corporate Drive in Johnston.

Listening posts are being hosted at locations across Iowa on behalf of the Children’s System State Board established by Gov. Kim Reynolds in April. The board will review the information gathered from these listening posts as part of its charge to review existing resources and develop a strategic plan with specific recommendations to implement a better approach to help children with mental health issues. The report is due to the governor on Nov. 15.

Two additional opportunities have been created for individuals who are unable to attend the Oct. 8 event:

Join an Online Listening Post
An online listening post has been scheduled for Oct. 4 from 12:00-1:00 p.m. To join from your computer, click on this link: https://zoom.us/j/290354386. To join via phone, dial (646) 876-9923 and enter meeting code: 290-354-386.

Complete an Online Survey
A survey is available for those unable to attend a listening post. That survey can be accessed at this link: https://goo.gl/V25AeU. The deadline to complete the survey is Oct. 12.

Questions can be directed to Jeff Herzberg, Children’s System Board Member and Chief Administrator at Prairie Lakes AEA at jherzberg@plaea.org or (515) 570-2601.

Save the Date: AEA Legislative Advocacy Event

Iowa’s AEAs will host the Legislative Advocacy Event on Feb. 4-5, 2019 at Prairie Meadows. Registration and more details available at: https://www.smore.com/h04a9. This year’s event begins with an update from members of the education lobby and preparation for the morning conversations with legislators. We will meet at the capitol the next morning to talk with legislators. We all know this will be a challenging session for state funding. Please make it a priority to join us in Des Moines. Making your voice heard has never been more important.

Registration Has Opened for Shannon Suldo’s Workshops on Providing Positive Psychology Practices to Improve Students’ Happiness, Nov. 6

Participants will learn specific strategies at the Tier 1 level for promoting all children’s happiness through school wide and class wide strategies that target improvements in the factors correlated with children’s subjective well-being, including positive teacher-student relationships evident in schools with a healthy climate, as well as students’ personal levels of gratitude, optimism and use of character strengths. Programs for promoting the well-being of students with low happiness will be referenced. Participants will also become familiar with tools to assess positive psychology constructs, including how to incorporate such measures in universal screenings and progress monitoring.

Shannon Suldo, Ph.D., is a professor in the School Psychology Program at the University of South Florida. She is a Licensed Psychologist in the state of Florida and continues to provide school-based mental health services to youth in the Tampa area. Dr. Suldo has extensive research and clinical experiences in school-based mental health services. She also studies the stress, coping strategies and mental health of high school students in accelerated courses.

Registration
Nov. 6, 2018
DMACC, Student Center, Bldg. 5, 2006 S. Ankeny Blvd., Ankeny

Superintendent Session8:30-9:00 a.m. HAA Partner Updates
9:00 a.m.-Noon Shannon Suldo
Register at this link: https://goo.gl/tHa5MA


Break
Noon-1:00 p.m.Lunch on your own


All Educator Session
1:00-4:00 p.m.
Registration fee $25 per person
Register at this link: https://goo.gl/Nvp8w6

Jan Chappuis to Present Standards-based Learning on Nov. 29

Jan Chappuis Presents "Standards-Based Learning"

Nov. 29, 2018
8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
FFA Enrichment Center, 1055 SW Prairie Trail Parkway, Ankeny
Register at this link by Oct. 15

Teachers, curriculum directors and instructional coaches will have the opportunity to learn from Jan Chappuis, one of the nation’s leaders in Standards-based Learning. Jan’s expertise could help in all areas of instruction from formative assessment instruction to standards based practices. In this session, Jan will:

• Focus on all aspects of curriculum: the intended, the enacted, and the assessed
• Address the work of identifying and unpacking standards of learning to create learning targets.
• Help teachers know how to identify those learning targets into categories such as knowledge, reasoning, skills or products
• Lead learning on what a balanced assessment system looks like, and what it takes to create that system within the instructional cycle
• Address the need to plan for accommodations and modifications for exceptional learners such as special education students, ELL and gifted/advanced learners

Share This Networking and Support Opportunity with Your Parents and Caregivers of Students with Special Needs

Parents and caregivers of students with special needs: join us for “Conversation & Coffee,” our monthly morning coffee group! Learn about community resources and upcoming events and network with parents who have similar experiences and challenges.

Mark your calendar for these 2018-19 meeting dates!

• Oct. 18, 2018
• Nov. 15, 2018
• Dec. 20, 2018
• Jan. 17, 2019
• Feb. 21, 2019
• March 14, 2019 (due to Spring Break)
• April 18, 2019
• May 16, 2019

Conversation & Coffee meets the third Thursday of each month from 9:30 - 11 a.m. at the 100th Street Corner Café in Urbandale.

RSVP appreciated but not necessary: Kari Paulsen, Family & Educator Coordinator, Heartland AEA, at kpaulsen@heartlandaea.org or (515) 270-9030 ext. 14493.

Don’t Miss Out on the Family & Educator Partnership Resource Fair in October

Family & Educator Partnership Resource Fair
Oct. 20, 2018
Science Center of Iowa
9:00 a.m. - Noon

This free event offers students with special needs and their families an opportunity to meet service providers from around central Iowa.

Family members can attend presentations on Challenging Behavior (all ages), Transition (families of students 14 and older) and Family Engagement (all ages).

The Family & Educator Partnership Resource Fair is an event for families to enjoy together. To enable parents’ full participation in breakout sessions, stipends are available for parents to bring along a childcare provider or assistant for their child.

Families attending the Resource Fair receive free admission to the Science Center and free parking in the parking ramp. The Science Center opens to the general public at 10 a.m., and families are welcome to explore at their leisure. Park in the parking ramp across from the Science Center, and we will validate your parking ticket.

8:30 - 9 a.m.
Registration (if not attending a breakout session, check in at 9:45 a.m.)

9 - 10 a.m.
Breakout Sessions

10 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Service Provider Tables Open

Business Owners, Entrepreneurs Encouraged to Apply to ‘10,000 Small Businesses Program’

Please forward to small businesses in your communities and urge them to apply for the first cohort that starts in January.

Iowa small business owners and entrepreneurs can grow their businesses with the help of the Goldman Sachs “10,000 Small Businesses Program.” Beginning in January 2019, the program will be hosted in the State of Iowa and is free to Iowa businesses. The program includes curriculum developed by Babson College, recently named No. 1 for Entrepreneurship by U.S. News & World Report for the 22nd year in a row.

Accepted applicants receive hands-on education for business growth, access to highly-trained, small business professionals and an expanded peer network of small business owners from across the country.

Eligible businesses have been in business for at least two years, have at least $100,000 in revenues and employ at least two employees (including the business owner). Qualified prospects can apply and gather additional information at www.10KSBapply.com/Iowa. Applications are due by Oct. 15, 2018.

Participants may also learn more through online information sessions offered Oct. 3 and Oct. 9. To register, visit www.tinyurl.com/10kSBIowa.

October 2018 BoEE Update

The Oct.2018 BoEE Update is available. Topics include state BEDS reporting, computer science, STEM award deadline and more!

$500 Energy Educational Grants Available From Halvorson Trane - Apply by Oct. 26

Halvorson Trane, one of Iowa’s longest-established HVAC companies, is offering three, $500 grants to K-12 Iowa schools to fund energy education projects on school grounds (projects can be inside or out). See the Halvorson Trane website for more information about the grants and view last year’s winners. Apply by Oct. 26, 2018.

October 2018 School Leader Update

The Oct. 2018 School Leader Update from the Iowa Department of Education is now available.