Friday, August 26, 2011

Heartland Administrators Association and Superintendent Learning Opportunity

Heartland Administrator Association 2011-12 Meetings
September 6 will be the first meeting of the year for the Heartland Administrators Association (HAA). The HAA is a collaborative effort between superintendents in central Iowa and Heartland AEA. It is open to all superintendents in the Heartland service area. No registration is necessary.


The meetings are held on the first Tuesday of each month beginning at 9:00 a.m. All meetings will be held at the Johnston Regional Education Center at 6500 Corporate Drive in Johnston. The dates for the meetings this year are the following:
September 6, 2011
October 4
, 2011
November 1, 2011
December 6, 2011
January 3, 2012
February 7, 2012
March 6, 2012
April 3, 2012
May 1, 2012

We hope to see you all on September 6 (the day after Labor Day). Check next week’s Administrator Connection for the agenda.


Professional Learning Theme for 2011-2012: Confronting the Conditions that Undermine Learning
This year we will again devote the first hour of each HAA meeting to professional learning. We are hoping that all superintendents will choose to participate. We found last year that the best learning came from our colleagues and conversations about how the research on leadership applied situations in our local schools.

Book Provided as a Resource for Learning
All participants will be provided with a copy of Skillful Leader II: Confronting Conditions that Undermine Learning by Alexander D. Platt, Caroline E. Tripp, Robert G Fraser, James R. Warnock, and Rachel E. Curtis The book will be used to frame our study of the conditions that need to be in place to accelerate student learning…and what to do about those conditions that undermine it. Some of the topics discussed will include:
  • Collaborative learning and leadership structures
  • Community engagement
  • Supportive learning environments
  • Use of data
  • Effective educators (Improving hiring, induction and evaluation to support learning, principal development, impacts of contracts and collective bargaining on improving learning conditions)
Supporting effective instructional and assessment practices to deliver a high quality curriculum The Skillful Leader II was selected as the main resource for our learning experience because it offers a comprehensive analysis of the conditions worth changing with practical strategies and suggestions for leaders at all levels. It also contains many scenarios and mini case studies that should lead to great conversations about these stories and how to apply the lessons in our situations. Here is what Richard Elmore, Professor of Educational Leadership Harvard School of Education, says about this book:
“The Skillful Leader II takes on the central issue of building strong communities of practice in schools that support and nurture high quality instruction. ….This is a wise and much needed, practical and supportive guide for school leaders, aspiring and practicing on how to make schools places where adults and student learn at high levels.”
In addition to the Skillful Leader II, the facilitators will introduce supplemental readings from the current work of some of the leading researchers and authors in the field of educational leadership. Multiple copies of each of these books will be available for checkout by participants at before and after each session.

Titles Available for Checkout in Heartland AEA’s Professional Library:

  • Leaders of Learning: How District, School, and Classroom Leaders Improve Student Achievement by Robert Marzano and Richard Dufour (New in June 2011)
  • The Moral Imperative Realized by Michael Fullan (Also new in 2011)
  • All Systems Go: The Change Imperative for Whole system Reform by Michael Fullan
  • Leaders Make it Happen: An Administrator’s Guide to Data Teams by Brian McNulty and Laura Besser
  • It’s Being Done: Academic Success in Unexpected Schools, by Karin Chenoweth
  • Enhancing RTI: How to Ensure success with Effective Classroom Instruction and Intervention by Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey
  • The Skillful Leader I: Confronting Mediocre Teaching by Alexander D. Platt, Caroline E. Tripp, Wayne R. Ogden and Robert G Fraser
Relicensure Credit Available
Relicensure credit will be available for those who are interested. In order to complete the 15 hours needed for credit, there will be some online learning requirements. This blended course of face-to-face meetings and online learning will give participants an opportunity experience learning in an online environment (If you haven’t participated in an online course before…don’t worry the technology will be very easy to access.) If you are not interested in credit, the online learning will be optional.


See You Soon!
There is no need to register prior to attending. Just join us at 9:00 a.m. on September 6.

Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Update from Iowa DE

The following message is from the Department of Education regarding the status of Evaluator Approval training which was previously in the Administrator Connection. We wanted to give you a chance to see it again as a reminder.

For the last two years the Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Program state advisory committee has been working on the structure and focus of Level III renewal of the evaluator’s license. This work has been based on the experience and input from practicing administrators who have been involved with the training for Level I and Level II renewal and their experience in applying the previous training at the local school level. At this point, what is available to any person needing renewal at Level III is described as follows:

  • Four credit hours are needed for renewal of the administrator license at Level III.
  • Everyone will need to take the Assessing Academic Rigor course which is currently available in all of the AEAs. This option will count for two of the four credits needed.
In addition:
  • In state Administrators may take another course for credit with researched based content which aligns with the work of their district or their own individual professional development. This course must be an AEA licensure renewal credit or a semester credit from a regionally accredited institution.
  • They make take the Fierce Conversations course which is a two-credit course offered through each of the AEAs.
Furthermore:
  • Out-of-state: Individuals coming from out-of-state will be required to take the I-Evaluate on-line class for full administrative licensure. Please contact Fred Kinne at (515) 281-3587 or fred.kinne@iowa.gov for further information.
Given new leadership at the Iowa Department of Education, the Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Program Advisory Committee and others will be working to review the direction and focus of the current plans beyond what is currently established as described above. This review will be conducted over the next six months to a year. Those who need to renew at Level III before July 2012 are advised to participate in the arrangement as described above. Any administrator who does not need to renew at Level III for another year or more may decide if they want to wait and determine if any changes in the training for evaluator approval Level III would be more appropriate for their work.

Click here for a FAQ sheet and here for a flowchart for decision making to help address more specific questions. Please submit any additional questions to: matt.ludwig@iowa.gov or connie.maxson@iowa.gov and those will be addressed in future updates and FAQ documents that will be shared with all administrators across the state.

New PBIS Wiki Site Allows Networking Across Regions

You are cordially invited and encouraged to sign on to our new PBIS Wiki Website! As users, you will be granted writer status and you will be able to post good news and good works that are outcomes from using PBIS principles in your classrooms and schools. Occasionally, the front page will have a question and we invite your responses. This new interactive site is designed to be a forum for networking and collaboration with each other. In addition, we will include frequently requested resources from Early Childhood (EC PBIS) and from School-Wide (SW PBIS) Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports.

To access this site, go to http://pbisaea11.pbworks.com and request access on the right-hand side of the page. Either Heartland’s webmaster or Carol Price will accept your request.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Carol Price, Professional Learning & Leadership Consultant, at cprice@aea11.k12.ia.us.

Free Training Sessions for New School Nurses

Morning Session
This workshop will teach your new school nurse how to screen vision according to the University of Iowa guidelines. This hands-on experience screening real children is invaluable. CEU credit available for a fee.
Click here for more information.

Afternoon Session

This gives an overview of laws, rules, regulations and policies that govern the practice of school nursing. We also discuss medication administration, delegation, Section 504 and general screening guidelines.
Please have your new school nurse complete the registration found here. September 1 is the final day for registration to insure to receive a free resource packet.

Van Meter CSD to Host Technology Conference

Van Meter Community Schools will be hosting an all day conference to share some of the technology tools they have used to improve student learning. The conference will be held on Wednesday, September 21 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Van Meter Secondary Building. Director Jason Glass will give an opening address. Visit the conference site at https://sites.google.com/a/vmbulldogs.com/learning-with-technology-9-21-11/home/registration for more information and to register.

The Administrator Connection: A ‘Hub’ for Ideas and Feedback

Please consider using the Administrator Connection as a means of exchanging ideas, offering feedback and sharing information. You may post a comment by clicking on an article title, scrolling to the bottom of the page and leaving a comment in the field. A more direct route to leaving a comment is to click “Comments” under the article (shown below) and the Comment field will appear. Note: Posts are moderated by the Heartland Communications Department.

Title III Calendar of Events for Districts

There is quite a bit of activity and information for the Title III Consortium. Please read through the calendar of events for important information.

ESL Advisory/Networking Meetings
September 13, 2011

December 6, 2011
February 7, 2012
May 8, 2012


Teachers, administrators, para-educators, counselors and any other interested school personnel are invited to join us for the Title III ESL Advisory/Networking meetings. These meetings are designed to share information about upcoming opportunities, grants and access to materials. We will discuss the three available Family Literacy Mini-grants for $3,300 each at our first meeting on September 13. We also need feedback about the possibility of offering additional grants for instructional materials. All districts are encouraged to send a representative(s) to these informative meetings.
All meetings will be held from 4:00-5:00 p.m. in Room 18 at the Johnston Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive).

Coming Soon, Dr. Kate Kinsella

September 30, 2011

West Des Moines Learning Center


Nationally recognized ELL expert Dr. Kate Kinsella will be spending a day with 100 lucky educators. Registration information will be coming soon.


Pearson Virtual SIOP Training for Teachers

http://www.siopinstitute.net/


Title III will reimburse the registration fee and provide the text, Making Content Comprehensible for English Language Learners, for participation in the Pearson Virtual SIOP Training for Teachers. Two sessions are available: Oct 17/Nov 7 or Nov. 30/Dec 2. A $200 stipend will also be awarded to participants who complete the requirements of the institute and receive the certificate of completion.
Teachers are encouraged to form study groups around this training and submit an electronic course proposal for license renewal or Drake credit. If you are interested in more information please contact Pat Latham, (515) 993-4596, ext 11228.

Iowa Culture and Language Conference
November 8-9, 2011; Pre-conference, November 7
Coralville Marriot Hotel and Conference Center, Coralville, Iowa


Title III will fund participation in this statewide pre-conference and conference. Title III will reimburse for registration and substitute reimbursement and will provide a travel stipend based on the number of teachers attending the conference (5 or less-$150, 6-10-$300 per district). Districts are encouraged to send a team. Districts will be reimbursed following submission of the claim form, which will be available after the conference from Pat Latham. Full attendance is required for reimbursement.
For registration and to see full conference details, go to http://tinyurl.com/3mrck85

Collaboration and Co-Teaching

November 11-12, 2011

Dr. Maria Dove and Andrea Honigsfeld, authors of Collaboration and Co-Teaching Strategies: Strategies for English Language Learners will join the conversation. Registration information will be coming soon.

Conference Will Address School Violence

The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office along with the Des Moines Police Department is co-hosting a conference that will address school violence. Participants may choose to attend the conference on November 2 at Drake University or November 3 at the Dubuque Holiday Inn. Registration is $50 which includes materials, snacks and lunch. Click here for more information and a registration form.

The dissemination of information from external organizations by Heartland AEA does not infer sponsorship or endorsement of the information. It is being passed on to our stakeholders for its educational value.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Heartland AEA Resources for Supporting Gifted and Talented Education

Heartland AEA will again be offering the Gifted and Talented Academy during the 2011-2012 school year. Please see below for dates, locations and purposes for each course. Keep in mind that the prerequisite for Academies 2, 3 and 4 is team attendance at the previous year's sessions (recognizing that membership of the team may change from one year to the next as staffing changes occur). Register through the Heartland Professional Development Catalog and the enter appropriate activity number in the specified field. Please contact Mary Schmidt, Gifted Education Consultant, at mschmidt@aea11.k12.ia.us or (800) 255-0405 ext. 14375 with questions you may have.

Gifted and Talented Academy Year 1

Activity Number: GT006792111201

Dates: September 29 and November 29, 2011; February 7, April 3 and June 14-15, 2012
Location: Ames AEA office (511 S. 17th St)

Teams of K-12 teachers of gifted and instructional leaders from individual districts will audit, develop, and/or improve their written Comprehensive Gifted and Talented Program Plan and Programming. Participants can earn three graduate (EDMA) or license renewal credits upon completion of this course.


Gifted and Talented Academy Year 2
Activity Number: GT006992111201

Dates: October 11 and December 15, 2011; February 16 and April 12, 2012

Location: Johnston Regional Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive)


Teams will extend their learning, thinking and application of comprehensive gifted and talented programming with a focus on curriculum and instruction. Participants can earn two graduate (EDMA) or license renewal credits upon completion of this course.

Gifted and Talented Academy Year 3

Activity Number: GT007592111201

Dates: October 6 and December 8, 2011; February 23 and April 19, 2012

Location: Johnston Regional Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive)

Teams will develop their own program evaluation questions, identifying the stakeholders and data sources most likely to provide insight into the answers, and determining the most effective ways to organize, analyze, communicate, and use those data. Participants can earn two graduate (EDMA) or license renewal credits upon completion of this course.


Gifted and Talented Academy Year 4

Activity Number: (Will be sent to districts that sent teachers to GT Academy Year 3)

Dates: October 28, 2011 and March 9, 2012
Location: Johnston Regional Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive)


Teams will fine-tune techniques and evaluation processes that were learned in previous academies. Participants can earn one graduate (EDMA) or license renewal credit upon completion of this course.

Guidelines for Technology Support of Heartland AEA Employees Who Work in District Buildings

The below information was communicated to all district technology coordinators earlier this summer.

There has been considerable confusion in the past about how to provide tech support to Heartland AEA employees while they are working in school districts. Over this past year, Heartland AEA has been working with technology directors to develop some guidelines that will help to clear up this confusion:
  • Heartland employees will be provided with access to the building wireless network as it is available. If wireless is not available, access should be provided via hard-wired connection. Heartland employees are expected to provide their own Ethernet cable in those situations. All passwords provided by school districts will be treated confidentially. Heartland employees are expected to use bandwidth responsibly and will check ahead of time to see if the district blocks sites they wish to use.
  • Heartland employees can setup or request assistance to access building printers if the district provides him/her with building printer maps and/or IP addresses. If there is concern about excessive printing by Heartland employees, school districts should contact their Regional Director or Lance Wilhelm, Director of Technology.
  • If Heartland employees occasionally need phone access, districts should make reasonable accommodations to provide that access.
  • Districts will provide basic information such as network passwords or printer IP numbers, as appropriate, but troubleshooting problems for Heartland employees should be done by Heartland AEA tech support. Heartland AEA uses iChat extensively for resolving tech support issues, and we would greatly appreciate it if that feature is not blocked at the district level.
  • Heartland AEA will provide districts with lists of Heartland employees who will be working in their buildings. If requested, Heartland AEA will provide technology directors key information (such as MAC addresses) about the AEA computers that will be used in their school buildings.
We are hopeful these guidelines will help provide reasonable access for Heartland AEA staff, as well as minimize the work of technology directors who already have a great deal of responsibility in terms of supporting their district employees.

We will evaluate these guidelines in the spring of 2012 to see what changes (if any) need to be made for the coming school year. If you have comments/concerns/suggestions, please contact Lance Wilhelm at lwilhelm@aea11.k12.ia.us.

Allow Two Weeks for Heartland AEA Print & Production Orders

We appreciate that many schools are using our Print & Production services. As you can imagine, our staff are quite busy at fulfilling your printing/copying needs for the beginning of the school year. Please remind educators to allow two weeks for the completion and delivery of orders that go through our Print Center and/or Graphic services.

Iowa Future: Tools to Spark Education Reform Conversations

Iowa must begin to look ahead to provide what’s best for today’s students, not back at how things used to be. That’s why we need innovation in Iowa education: to help all students realize success and possess the knowledge and skills so they will be ready for their tomorrow, not our yesterday.

The Iowa Future website is an effort to explain the need for educational innovation and provide videos, discussion guides, presentation templates, testimonials, links to other great resources and more. Take some time to check out the site at http://www.iowafuture.org/ to see what information
and resources are available.

The "Did You Know?” video has been a popular discussion starter and meeting opener over the last few years. It was shown to administrators at the SAI conference earlier this month and has been on popular demand. Often used in context of technology innovation, education and 21st century learners, the video is just one of the many resources available on the Iowa Future website. Watch the video at http://www.iowafuture.org/2011/08/04/iowa-did-you-know/ and consider using the accompanying discussion guide to begin an in-depth conversation with your educator groups.

Iowa Education Summit Videos Now Online

Recordings of main sessions, quest speakers, round tables and break out sessions are now available on Eduvision, http://aea111.eduvision.tv.

Iowa DE Invitation to TELPA Study and Adobe Connect Session

Iowa DE Invitation to Tennessee English Language Placement Exam (TELPA) Study The Iowa Department of Education would like to invite Iowa school districts to take part in a study of the TELPA as a zero- growth point for Title I reporting of language acquisition for English Language Learners (ELL). Currently, Iowa school districts have used other assessments to place students in ESL programs that do not align to the Title I required assessment of language acquisition, Iowa-English Language Development Assessment (I-ELDA). With the availability of the TELPA for the 2011-2012 school year, schools are in a unique position to have a screening assessment aligned to the summative assessment. This allows for the possibility of using the screener as a baseline data point from which to measure student growth. Before making a policy decision, the Iowa Department of Education would like to study the use of this new assessment tool. Although Title II funds cannot be used to pay for an assessment, Title III funds can be used to pay for the TELPA for any district that wishes to participate in the testing for the testing period only. Heartland AEA will reimburse participating districts for the cost of the TELPA for this study year. Please contact Pat Latham (platham@aea11.k12.ia.us) or Stephaney Jones-Vo (sjones-vo@aea11.k12.ia.us) for the reimbursement form.

Click the following phrases for important documents.
Letter sent by Kevin Fangman to superintendents
Consent to participate form
Bubble Sheets Order Form
Directions to order the TELPA from Measurement Incorporate (MI)


The use of the TELPA is an opportunity to improve the way districts and the State support ELLs and their teachers. The added information about students’ acquisition of English and how we measure it can only help us. We understand that teachers and district leaders are busy and feel the pressures of many programs and initiatives. Your participation is truly appreciated. Of course, any district that does not wish to participate can continue using the LAS or IPT “screeners.‟ Unfortunately, Title III funds cannot be used for their purchase.
If you have any questions about participating, please contact John Scott at John.Scott@iowa.gov or by calling (515) 281-3805.

Invitation to Adobe Connect Session "ESL Assessment: TELPA Training"
Please join the Iowa Department of Education in an Adobe Connect Meeting. Please forward this invitation to other Iowa educators needing this training or a deeper understanding of the TELPA Zero Growth Study. The meetings will be held on August 24, 2011 from 2:00-4:00 p.m. and on September 1, 2011 from 2:00-4:30 p.m. . These are repeat meetings, so you do not need to attend both.
The DE will host the video online using the following Adobe Connect Pro connection. To avoid any audio problems, the audio will be provided through a conference call connection. Click here for instructions.

Please RSVP to the invitation by contacting Mary Smith at
mary.smith@iowa.gov. Please indicate which date you plan to attend.

Student Invitation to the United States Senate Youth Program

The state of Iowa has accepted an invitation to participate in the U.S. Senate Youth Program (USSYP), sponsored by the William Randolph Heart Foundation. The program is designed to give young Americans a working knowledge of American political life. Each year two Iowa students have the opportunity to spend a week in Washington, D.C. The William Randolph Heart Foundation pays all expenses. In addition, the two Iowa high school representatives each receive a $5,000 scholarship.

Selection of the two Iowa high school representatives is based on the outstanding ability and demonstrated leadership qualities of elected junior and senior high school student officers for the 2011-12 school year.


Each high school may nominate up to three students (in previous years, schools were only allowed to nominate one student). Student application materials and the brochure are available on the Iowa Department of Education website http://educateiowa.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=939&Itemid=1225


Completed applications should be submitted to Kim Thuente at Heartland AEA, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston, IA 50131 by 4:00 p.m. October 3, 2011. Nominees will take a qualifying examination on October 19 at 1:30 p.m. in Room 18 at the Johnston AEA Regional Education Center regarding the U.S. Constitution and government. The award recipients will be announced in December. Contact Kim Thuente (kthuente@aea11.k12.ia.us) or Cheryl Mullenbach (Cheryl.Mullenbach@iowa.gov) for more information.

Iowa Council of Teachers of English Fall Conference

The Iowa Council of Teachers of English (ICTE) will host their Fall Conference on October 13-14, 2011 at the Stoney Creek Inn in Johnston, Iowa. Keynote speakers will include Renee Hobbs and Michael W. Smith. For information on their fall conference, visit the ICTE website. To improve ICTE’s communication with English/language arts teachers, teachers in these subject areas are invited to join their mailing list found by clicking here.

The dissemination of information from external organizations by Heartland AEA does not infer sponsorship or endorsement of the information. It is being passed on to our stakeholders for its educational value.

Save the Date for 2012 Iowa Reading Association Conference

Administrators and educators are invited to come and experience the Iowa Reading Association’s first summer conference, “Summer Vacation: Destination Literacy!” on June 26-27, 2012 at the Scheman Building on the Iowa State University campus in Ames, Iowa. Enjoy learning from nationally prominent speakers, meeting published authors, gathering strategies from experienced instructors, earning graduate/renewal credit and shopping exciting exhibitors without the hassles of attending a conference during the school year.

Administrators and educators can also become members of the Iowa Reading Association. The association provides its members with publications that keep educators current in the field of reading and literacy, professional growth opportunities, direct links to current legislative issues, professional networking with other educators, grant and scholarship opportunities, a website and a newsletter. Members also receive a discount on both one and two day registration fees to the 2012 conference that will nearly pay for the cost of membership. More information about the Iowa Reading Association and it’s 2012 Conference can be found at on the association’s website at www.iowareading.org or by contacting Tony Pieper at tpieper@bcluw.org.


The dissemination of information from external organizations by Heartland AEA does not infer sponsorship or endorsement of the information. It is being passed on to our stakeholders for its educational value.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Welcome Back

Dear area school administrators:

Welcome back to a new school year. A special welcome is extended to the new administrators starting their positions this fall; I hope that you find your partnership with Heartland AEA to be both supportive and effective.

During the summer, Heartland AEA staff has worked hard to assess and improve our services for the coming year. We have realigned our organizational structure in an effort to provide more intense services closer to our districts. We hope you will partner with us to create, grow and learn together as we improve our ability to provide quality services to teachers and students that result in improved student learning and achievement.

I encourage you to take interest in this Heartland AEA Administrator Connection blog. The Administrator Connection is updated every Friday (excluding holidays and summer vacation) to inform area superintendents, principals, curriculum directors and other school leaders of important announcements, agency news, professional development opportunities and other key information items.


We at Heartland AEA are as committed as ever to fostering strong, positive partnerships with the administrators, teachers and students in the schools we serve. Let us know how we can best help you extend your reach to serve your districts and increase student achievement. In the meantime, if you have questions or comments about Heartland AEA services, please contact your regional director or me.


Best regards,


Paula Vincent

Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Update from Iowa DE

The following message is from the Department of Education regarding the status of Evaluator Approval training.

For the last two years the Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Program state advisory committee has been working on the structure and focus of Level III renewal of the evaluator’s license. This work has been based on the experience and input from practicing administrators who have been involved with the training for Level I and Level II renewal and their experience in applying the previous training at the local school level. At this point, what is available to any person needing renewal at Level III is described as follows:
  • Four credit hours are needed for renewal of the administrator license at Level III.
  • Everyone will need to take the Assessing Academic Rigor course which is currently available in all of the AEAs. This option will count for two of the four credits needed.
In addition:
  • In state Administrators may take another course for credit with researched based content which aligns with the work of their district or their own individual professional development. This course must be an AEA licensure renewal credit or a semester credit from a regionally accredited institution.
  • They make take the Fierce Conversations course which is a two-credit course offered through each of the AEAs.
Furthermore:
  • Out-of-state: Individuals coming from out-of-state will be required to take the I-Evaluate on-line class for full administrative licensure. Please contact Fred Kinne at (515) 281-3587 or fred.kinne@iowa.gov for further information.
Given new leadership at the Iowa Department of Education, the Iowa Evaluator Approval Training Program Advisory Committee and others will be working to review the direction and focus of the current plans beyond what is currently established as described above. This review will be conducted over the next six months to a year. Those who need to renew at Level III before July 2012 are advised to participate in the arrangement as described above. Any administrator who does not need to renew at Level III for another year or more may decide if they want to wait and determine if any changes in the training for evaluator approval Level III would be more appropriate for their work.

Click here for a FAQ sheet and here for a flowchart for decision making to help address more specific questions. Please submit any additional questions to: matt.ludwig@iowa.gov or connie.maxson@iowa.gov and those will be addressed in future updates and FAQ documents that will be shared with all administrators across the state.

HEART Training for New Administrators

Has a change of leadership left your school without a HEART administrator? We will be offering a session on HEART for new administrators on August 24 from 8:30-11:30 a.m. in the computer lab at the Johnston Regional Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive). The class is intended for the newly tapped school HEART administrators who will need to understand how to run HEART, get set up as users and retrieve data in the system.

To register for this class, please click on this link:
https://prodev.aeapdonline.org/4DCGI/AS003792111201INV&*

If you have questions about HEART, contact Connor Hood at
chood@aea11.k12.ia.us or (515) 270-0405 ext. 14506.

Autism Conference to Promote Independence for Students

Heartland AEA is pleased to announce it's first parent/educator autism conference entitled, “Building Partnerships to Promote Independence for Students with Autism.” The conference will focus on how strong partnerships between parents and educators can improve the independence of children and youth with autism and foster more positive transitions and better outcomes from early childhood through young adulthood.

Parents and educators of students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ages 3-21 years) within the Heartland AEA area are encouraged to register for this free conference that will be held on September 9, 2011 in the new FFA Enrichment Center on the Ankeny DMACC campus. Registration opened earlier this week and seats are filling up fast. Register at https://prodev.aeapdonline.org/4DCGI/DR331699111201SIT

A limited number of substitute teacher reimbursement vouchers are available and must be requested in advance. To request substitute teacher reimbursement, please contact Mavis Hoogers at mhoogers@aea11.k12.ia.us or (515) 270-9030 ext. 14343.


Click here for the conference flyer which can be sent to interested educators and parents.

Alternate Assessment Teacher Listserv for 2011-2012

The alternate assessment process will continue with a few substantial changes this year. To ensure that teachers completing the alternate assessment for the 2011-2012 school year have up-to-date information regarding timelines and activities, please make sure that any teachers who did not complete an alternate assessment last year are subscribed to the Heartland IAA listserv. Teachers who DID complete one last year are on the state database and will receive messages from the state automatically. Teachers who did not complete an assessment last year will NOT receive state messages right away. To subscribe to the listserv, teachers can send a blank email to this address: alternateassessment-subscribe@aea11.k12.ia.us.

All teachers are encouraged to check the alternate assessment page on the Iowa DE’s website at http://educateiowa.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=461&Itemid=1576

Please direct any questions to Pam Childers at
pchilders@aea11.k12.ia.us or (515) 270-0405 ext. 14457.

Free All-Day Training Session for New School Nurses

Morning Session
This workshop will teach your new school nurse how to screen vision according to the University of Iowa guidelines. This hands-on experience screening real children is invaluable. CEU credit available for a fee.
Click here for more information.

Afternoon Session

This gives an overview of laws, rules, regulations and policies that govern the practice of school nursing. We also discuss medication administration, delegation, Section 504 and general screening guidelines.
Please have your new school nurse complete the registration found here. September 1 is the final day for registration to insure to receive a free resource packet.

Microsoft Settlement Updates ICN on September 7

ICN sessions have been set up that will contain information regarding vouchers and claims, external evaluation participation information and procedure for amending your application. A representative from the claims administrator will be part of the session to help answer questions. Registration for the sessions opened this Tuesday and is located at http://www.iptv.org/iowa_database/event-detail.cfm?ID=11186. Each session is limited to 65 participants and is set up for different regions. Heartland AEA’s area is scheduled for September 7, 2011 at 3:30-4:30 p.m. Registration closes Friday, September 2, 2011.

One important change regarding addendums to your application is that all succeeding school year changes can be made during the months of August, September and October of that year. Changes to the hardware, software and teaching strategies can be made each year of the program. It is important for districts and buildings to know what they are going to do for each upcoming school year and make the necessary changes as needed. The reason for this is to reduce administrative cost and to make the process as smooth as possible.

Lastly, please contact John O’Connell at john.oconnell@mchsi.com if you have changed any of your administration or your contact information for this program. You can check the contact information by going on the application site at www.edinfo.state.ia.us, login and select the district name to see if the contact information needs to be changed or if there has been an administrative change at any of the eligible schools in your district.

Students Can Take Advantage of Discounted Microsoft Software Titles

Please share the following message to your parents in your school/district. A letter is available for download here.

Thanks to your school, Microsoft, the Iowa Educators Consortium (IEC) and Iowa Area Education Agencies (AEAs), we are pleased to announce that all Iowa K-12 students are eligible to purchase select Microsoft software titles at substantial discounts (up to 85% off retail prices). The IEC and Iowa AEAs have made this possible by participating in the Microsoft Student Select K-12 program.
*Stated savings compare retail prices of Microsoft products to Microsoft Products through the IEC Student Select Program. Actual reseller prices may vary.

In addition to the Microsoft products, significant discounts are available on other popular software titles such as:
  • Adobe Products (including-InDesign CS5 & Adobe PhotoShop)
  • Dragon Naturally Speaking - You talk, it types. Fast, Easy, Accurate
  • Inspiration & Kidspiration
  • CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X5
  • FileMaker Pro
These products are available for the purpose of being installed on a personal laptop or a home computer. Visit http://www.journeyed.com/select to apply for discounts and more complete information. To place an order, you will be asked to register and provide proof that your child is a student in an Iowa school.

If you have questions or need assistance, please contact Judy Cleveland, Heartland AEA Technology Specialist, at
jcleveland@aea11.k12.ia.us or (515) 270-0405 ext. 14538.

Test-drive the New HEART 2.0 Before its Launch

We are very close to declaring the next version of HEART “done.” We hope to put this new version into production within the next few weeks if possible. There are just a few loose ends and bugs to attend to. If you want to take a test drive, you can log into the development server and try it out. Use your regular login information and the following address: https://heart2.aea11.k12.ia.us. The data in the system are up-to-date as of July 1.

You may also use the North Overshoe login to try this server:

District: North Overshoe

UserCode: Try HEART
Password: tryme


If you encounter any problems or bugs, we’d like to know about them. Please send contact Connor Hood at chood@aea11.k12.ia.us with specific information about what you saw, where, and what you expected to happen instead. (One known bug affects the login page. If it doesn’t draw completely, click the refresh button on your browser.)


Here are a few comments about the new system:

  • A lot of the work is behind the scenes to make things faster and more consistent. Hopefully you'll notice the speed and not something odd.
  • The look and feel has been standardized, and some things have been moved around.
  • The lists are sortable in both directions. Click the column header to sort one way, click again to sort the other way. You can also download lists if needed.
  • User setup should be similar to what you are used to.
  • Class setup is changed fairly dramatically and we still look for ways to simplify and improve it. If any of you set up classes in the current system, your feedback would be appreciated.
  • The management control panel has had a complete makeover to reduce confusion; there are some new features and some redeveloped ones.
  • The cleanup interface has also been upgraded. You can try it out, but be aware that any work done will not be permanent as we are still in the development stages of the server. Upgraded features include the status column that helps spot new records that need attention, duplicate State ID search and sorting/cleanup enhancements.
  • Additional data error search tools have been added. They are intended to help find and clean up some of the common errors in student records.
  • Individual student reports should behave much like they always have.
  • All the graphs have been recreated using newer graphing technology. One new feature is the return of a high-resolution graph version (made possible by making the graph shrinkable as needed) without the need for the GraphViewer application.
  • Flexibility has been added to view data that are collected more than once a year (MAP, DIBELS, etc.). The default option will behave as you are used to in the current version of HEART.
  • There are more options in the growth chart with one new feature that allows the selection of the student data to display in average and percentile ranks (names of these options might be reworked later). The average rank display shows the average for the selected group. The percentile rank display adds two lines which are calculated from the selected data based on the percentile ranks of the comparison lines. (For example, if 25-50-75 is selected, the 25th percentile, 50th percentile and 75th percentile for the selected group will be calculated and displayed along with the growth lines.
  • Student scores now have a format selector. One can view scores by tests administered in a building and scores by students currently in a building.
  • Behavior entry and analysis work a lot like they always have.
  • Most other displays should work and appear familiar, but with slight tweaks to the layout and functioning.

Invitation to the Administrator Connection

If you are interested in having the Administrator Connection sent to other personnel in your district in addition to the superintendent, principal and curriculum coordinator, please contact the Heartland Communications Department at comms@aea11.k12.ia.us. Please include the name, title (assistant principal, curriculum director, etc.), email and building that each person serves.