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
School leaders, it's been 10 years since McREL Balanced Leadership training has been widely available in Iowa. Grab your team and get registered for the Iowa School Leadership Academy! Seats are limited and the first 200 receive a discount!
The Iowa School Leadership Academy will give school leadership teams in-depth strategies and guidance from McREL’s research- and evidence-based knowledge sets of Balanced Leadership, What Matters Most, and Curiosity Works.
School districts are encouraged to consider bringing a team(s) of 3-6 leaders who can learn and work collaboratively around the presented course content and be willing to engage in this work within their respective districts. The cost is $400 per person. The first 200 members of SAI who register will receive a $50 discount on registration. This course meets the requirements for Evaluator Approval II. Please be sure to sign up for this certification during the registration process.
View the academy flyer for session dates and locations, learning content and links to registration.
Heartland AEA is looking for a Chief Student Services Officer to fulfill the responsibilities of the Heartland AEA Director of Special Education. The CSSO will be responsible for providing oversight for the Agency’s support of area school districts to meet state and federal special education statutes, rules and regulations. The CSSO will also:
- Advocate for an appropriate and effective education for all children and youth
- Foster supportive and productive relationships among all work groups at Heartland AEA and with the families, schools and communities that Heartland AEA serves
- Serve as Heartland AEA’s liaison to the Iowa Department of Education for special education and related services
- Serve as the Agency’s representative for the statewide Special Education Directors Network
Applications will be accepted until Jan. 30 through the Heartland AEA website.
Heartland AEA-area educators, you’re in luck! You can now place all your orders for printing, lamination and graphic design through our new Creative Services Online system at csonline.heartlandaea.org.
The new system has a number of great features that will help you save time when requesting materials for your classroom. You can:
- Upload files straight to print
- Search our new catalog of products, some of which can be customized for your students or classroom
- Pay online using a purchase order, credit card or Pcard
- Easily re-order items from your order history
- And so much more!
Log on to Creative Services Online using the same username and password you use for AEA Learning Online training, such as Mandatory Reporter and Bloodborne Pathogens.
Remember we can print and design just about anything for your classroom or school. Banners, vinyl wall graphics, posters, stickers, folders, business cards, envelopes -- the possibilities are endless!
As always, Creative Services through Heartland AEA is only for classroom/educational use—we do not provide personal printing or design.
Iowa’s AEAs will host the Legislative Advocacy Event on Feb. 4-5, 2019 at Prairie Meadows. This event will take the place of the regularly scheduled Heartland Administrators’ Association (HAA) February meeting. Registration and more details are available in this Smore newsletter.
Do you know someone who has made outstanding contributions to education and Iowa’s Area Education Agencies? Please take a minute to nominate this person for recognition!
Iowa’s AEAs bestow three awards annually to outstanding candidates for their contributions to education and the work of Iowa’s AEAs. To submit a nomination, complete this application by Feb. 15, 2019. Anyone is welcome to submit a nomination.
Awards will be presented during the annual Iowa’s AEAs Boards of Directors’ Conference and the ceremony will be held at 6:30 p.m. on March 28, 2019 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Johnston. For more information, contact Connie Johnson, Iowa’s AEA Communications Director, at (712) 335-6044 or cjohnson@plaea.org.
Teachers, curriculum directors, instructional coaches and other educators are invited to learn more about Standards-based Learning (SBL) Targets, Scales and Rubrics from Tammy Heflebower, Ed.D.
In this session, Dr. Heflebower will focus primarily on the creation of proficiency scales and their place in the broader, upfront work of deconstructing standards and the understanding and development of aligned assessments. She will speak of how proficiency scales fit into the instructional cycle and into the learning partnership between teacher and students. The work of creating proficiency scales is a seismic shift from our past practices of using a 100-point grading scale which converts points given to percentages.
For more information, contact Susie Bentley, Heartland AEA Regional Director, at sbentley@heartlandaea.org or (515) 270-9030 Ext. 18114.
Strand of SBL Framework: Learning Targets, Scales & Rubrics
Feb. 28, 2019
8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
FFA Enrichment Center 1055 SW Prairie Trail Pkwy, Ankeny, IA
Register at this link by Feb. 1, 2019
In an effort to continue to enhance our ability to support students who present behavioral challenges in our schools, the Saydel Community School District and Heartland Area Education Agency are partnering to bring J. Stuart Ablon, Ph.D. to the area. Two of the greatest social-emotional challenges educators have voiced wanting to learn more about is how to work with children who are impacted by mental health and/or by aspects of trauma.
Dr. Ablon is the Director of Think:Kids in the psychiatry department at Massachusetts General Hospital. He is also an associate professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Ablon has developed an evidence-based process focused on working with students who exhibit challenging behaviors called, Collaborative Problem Solving.
Collaborative Problem Solving® (CPS) is an evidence-based approach to understanding and helping children and adolescents with behavioral challenges. This introductory learning opportunity will provide a foundation for professionals to understand and help children and adolescents with behavioral challenges. The CPS model promotes the understanding that challenging kids lack the skill, not the will, to behave well - specifically skills related to problem solving, flexibility and frustration tolerance. The philosophy behind the model is: kids do well if they can.
Collaborative Problem Solving® focuses on helping adults teach the skills these children lack while resolving the chronic problems that tend to precipitate challenging behavior. Through lecture, videos, case examples and role play, this one-day training will introduce how to foster positive relationships with children and encourage growth in areas of self-regulation, communication and problem solving.
Dr. Ablon has been partnering with the Marshalltown Community Schools. Participants will have the opportunity learn about their professional learning and implementation process.
Collaborative Problem Solving
Feb. 11, 2019
8:30 a.m. - 2:15 p.m.
Saydel High School Auditorium, 5601 N.E. 7th Street, Des Moines
Registration
No cost for educators to attend. Seats are limited to the first 150 participants who register.
To register, click on this link: http://bit.ly/2Fv5u3b
Agenda
8:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Large Group Learning with Dr. Ablon
11:30 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Lunch (on your own)
1:00 - 2:15 p.m.
Panel Discussion with Dr. Ablon and Marshalltown CSD
