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

 

Collaborative Pilot Announced for Districts Interested in Developing a Comprehensive School Mental Health System

Heartland AEA is excited to announce the opportunity for districts/schools to engage in a collaborative pilot to develop and implement Comprehensive School Mental Health Systems (CSMHS). The goal of this pilot is to focus on long-term, systems change for integrating school and community-based mental health supports within a multi-tiered service delivery framework based on a shared children, youth, family, school and community vision (Florida AWARE Guidance). Read more about the collaboration pilot opportunity. Complete the survey if interested by Feb 28.

Reminder: March 1 Heartland Administrators’ Association Meeting

The next Heartland Administrators' Association meeting will be held on March 1 from 9:00 - 11:30 a.m. The agenda features guest speakers Ricky Robertson and Victoria Romero who will present on building student resilience.

Ricky Robertson has had the privilege to work with PK-12 students who have persevered in the face of adverse experiences and trauma. Drawing from experience as a teacher and Behavior Intervention Specialist, Robertson coaches educators in developing a relationship-based approach to teaching and learning that inspires transformation through compassion, humor, deep listening and "real talk.”

Victoria Romero is the lead author of Building Resilience in Students Impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences: A Whole Staff Approach and Race Resilience: Achieving Equity Through Self and Systems Transformation. Romero has taught elementary students in suburban and urban school districts; significantly improved the academic standing of schools as a principal; and coached administrators, directors, and school leadership teams for sustainable school improvement.

Collective Equity Framework Overview to be Held on March 1

In January, an initial presentation on Collective Equity was given to Heartland AEA superintendents and several showed interest in possibly implementing this framework. Sonja Hollins-Alexander and Nicole Law, who presented at the January Superintendent’s meeting, will be giving a more comprehensive overview of the Collective Equity Framework via zoom during the afternoon of March 1. At the end of that session, Heartland AEA will be sharing a possible vision for working with districts and school leadership teams during the 2022-23 school year. We will also be getting feedback from those interested schools and districts on planning for future learning with Sonja and Nicole.

Date: March 1, 2022
Time: 1-2:30 p.m.
Zoom: https://heartlandaea.zoom.us/j/91310053858

Intended audience: Central Office Leaders and Building Leaders

You're Invited: Future Ready Network Meeting Focusing on Work-based Learning

The Heartland AEA Future Ready Network meeting will be held via Zoom on March 3, 2022, from 9-11 a.m. Our topic this month is Work-based Learning (WBL), and we are excited to share that we have several guest speakers with lots of experience in this area.

The first hour will be focused on starting some WBL opportunities as well as sharing the WBL Guide that was recently released from the Iowa Department of Education. The second hour is focused on expanding those experiences as well as hearing voices from the field.

As always, these sessions will be recorded and housed on our Heartland AEA Future Ready Google Site along with resources and additional information.

The Zoom Link for all of our network meetings is the same.

Save the Dates!

• The April meeting will be focused on Special Populations: Special Education
• The May meeting we be a yearly wrap up, wrap around and look ahead.

If you have any questions, contact Sue Schirmer at sschirmer@heartlandaea.org.

FYI on Updated Guidance on Paraeducators as Substitute Teachers

The Board of Educational Examiners has established an emergency rule to allow paraeducators employed in an Iowa public school district or non-public school who hold a paraeducator certificate with a substitute authorization as an area of concentration to be allowed to substitute outside their assigned special education classroom IF permission is granted. This permission is not intended for long-term subbing.

Administrators may submit a request here: Paraeducator Substitute Request Form

Additional Substitute Information

• License types approved for full substitute teaching (up to 90 days in one assignment):
• Initial, standard, master educator, permanent professional, or exchange licenses
• Professional administrator license
• Professional service license
• Full career and technical authorization
• Full native language teaching authorization
• Substitute license

Substitute authorizations have a day limitation for serving in one assignment (10 days in a row in a 30-day period); however, a district may request a waiver of the day limitation. See page 3 of this document: Helpful Hints for Schools Administrators/HR Directors

The degree requirement to obtain a substitute authorization is an associate’s degree or 60 semester hours through a college or university accredited through an institutional accrediting agency approved by the U.S. Department of Education. The substitute authorization course is still required, unless an applicant is enrolled in a teacher preparation program and can provide transcripts showing how the course requirements have been met.

Substitute authorization holders must be at least 21 years of age.

A student teacher who holds a substitute authorization may serve as a substitute for their cooperating teacher only, on a very limited basis (no long-term subbing), and can be paid as a substitute teacher for that day.

Iowa State University Presents the Go Further Girls STEM Conference on March 24

Registration is now open for the Go Further Girls STEM Conference hosted by The Program for Women in Science and Engineering at Iowa State University. At this conference, girls in grades 8-10 learn about STEM college and career opportunities, engage in hands-on activities, and meet female-identifying role models. Register today to bring your students to the spring conferences, held at ISU, on March 24 (8th grade) and March 31 (9th/10th grade). After registration, the educator/group coordinator will receive information on how to select sessions, add student names, indicate dietary needs, etc. Contact Sarah DuBois at sedubois@iastate.edu with questions.

ITAG Spring 2022 Virtual Workshop to be Held on April 20

Interested in equitable and inclusive gifted identification and programming? Collaborate with your colleagues and Dina Brulles, ElizaBeth Warner, and Iowa Department of Education Gifted and Talented Consultant Rosanne Malek. Learn strategies and techniques to address student needs. Plan to join us for the ITAG Spring 2022 Virtual Workshop on April 23 from 8:45 a.m. - 3 p.m. Find more information and registration at https://www.iowatag.org/spring-2022-virtual-workshop/.