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 Heartland Administrators’ Association (HAA) will meet April 5 from 9:00 a.m. - Noon at the Heartland AEA Regional Education Center in Johnston. For up-to-date meeting information, please refer to the HAA Google Site.
HAA Meeting
Date: April 5, 2016
Time: 9:00 a.m. - Noon
Location: Heartland AEA Regional Education Center, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston
Agenda
About 20 districts have started the online Request for Transportation Approval process for the 2016-17 year. You may check your district status here. Review the instructions and timelines including the updated video tutorials to complete the process. Districts are asked to begin the process this month and to complete step III by April 30.
Chapter 285.9(3) of the Iowa Code requires the Area Education Agency Board of Directors to approve all bus routes outside the boundaries of the school district operating the buses. This has been interpreted to mean regular routes and regular special education routes, not bussing for field trips or activity trips. The Code requires you to request permission from neighboring district(s) before any bus routes cross district boundaries.
For more information, contact Jenny Ugolini at (515) 270-0405 ext. 14441.
Quality and affordable student planners are available for your school through Heartland AEA’s Creative Services Department. Planners have a plastic front and back cover, coil binding and contain intro pages, planner pages, note pages and numerous reference and resource pages from which to choose. The planners include a full-year calendar to accommodate extended year schedules.
Visit our website to choose your preferred cover design, planner pages and reference pages from our set styles for planners. Optional pages, such as hall passes, can be added for an additional fee. Place your orders by May 1, 2016 so they will be ready for the beginning of the school year.
For more information, contact the Heartland AEA Creative Services Department at (800) 255-0405 ext. 14368 or creativeservices@heartlandaea.org.
The timeline to use the state’s required online assessment for English Language Learners, the English Language Proficiency Assessment for the 21st Century (ELPA21) closes April 15. If any students have moved out of your district and should be removed from the list, contact Colleen Anderson at Colleen.Anderson@iowa.gov before April 15.
Organizers of the 2016 Iowa Culture and Language Conference are calling for presenter proposals for their Nov. 14-16 event in Coralville, IA. Presenter proposal forms are available at iowaclc.com. Deadline for submission is June 10 and those selected for the conference will be notified by July 1. Further information regarding proposals can be found under the Presentation Proposal tab at iowaclc.com.
Art teachers at Clear Creek Amana Community School District are hosting a summer learning opportunity, June 20-21 for their fellow art educators. Visual Arts and Iowa Core explores ways to improve teaching and learning for all students and support students’ opportunities to learn national and Iowa Core Visual Arts Standards. One recertification credit is available for the course. Learn more and register here.
Iowa administrators and teacher leaders are invited to three professional learning events on the components and interconnectedness of Chapter 62/Early Literacy Initiative, Teacher Leadership Compensation, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, Differentiated Accountability, Collaborating for Kids and Standards and Curriculum.
Impacting Literacy Leadership - Making the Connections
This one-day training provides an overview of the components of Multi Tiered Systems of Support while connecting this learning to Early Literacy Implementation and Differentiated Accountability. Members from the Iowa Department of Education and state AEAs will lead collaborative learning around the continuous improvement tools that have been developed through the Collaborating for Iowa's Kids (C4K) and the Teacher Leadership Structure. Action planning for implementation will also be integrated throughout the day so administrators can think about how to leverage their teacher leader resources back in their buildings.
Date: June 20, 2016
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location: Iowa Events Center, 730 Third Street, Des Moines
Cost: $25
Register by June 15
---------------------------------------------
Tools to Support MTSS Implementation
Save the date for this follow-up event to the June training. Administrators AND their teachers/teacher leaders and training cadre are invited.
Date: Aug. 1, 2016
Location: Iowa Events Center, 730 Third Street, Des Moines
--------------------------------------------
Keeping School Improvement Practical, Reasonable, and Doable for PK - 6 Leadership Teams
PreK - 6 Elementary Building Leadership Teams across Heartland AEA will come together to deepen their understanding in:
- Effective leadership team traits
- The interconnectedness of Chapter 62/Early Literacy Initiative, Teacher Leadership Compensation (TLC), Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, Differentiated Accountability, Collaborating for Kids (C4K) and Standards and Curriculum
- Building consensus with staff and constituents and the use of C4K school improvement tools
This opportunity will assist teams in moving forward from the summer TLC-C4K (June 20 and Aug. 1, 2016), however attendance at those leadership sessions is not required for this day.
Date: Sept. 29, 2016
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Location: Heartland AEA Regional Education Center, 6500 Corporate Drive, Johnston
Register here. There is no cost to attend.
The April 2016 issue of Each and Every Child Newsletter is available from the Iowa Department of Education. In this month’s issue, read how two school districts incorporate their teacher-leadership programs in different manners, but both of which focus on special education. And read educator Jane Schmidt’s latest blog entry about Iowa Core.
The Iowa Department of Education will hold a summer institute for teachers on June 15-17, 2016. National experts in science will lead elementary, middle and high school teachers through the standards. The goal is to give educators tools they need to implement the innovations in their practice. This institute assumes that attendees are familiar with the new science standards (attended Module 1 AEA training), as the Institute is not an introduction to the standards. If you are interested in attending and need the introductory Module 1 training, contact your AEA Science Consultant. Registration links are below for this free training.
Elementary - June 15
Middle School - June 16
High School - June 17
The Statewide School Improvement Team has successfully completed a majority of the pilot intensive onsite school visits. The team has received a significant amount of feedback, which has led to several process adjustments and a pool of positive support responses. Based on the status of the pilot and feedback from participants, a statewide rollout has been scheduled, along with a series of Zoom meetings this spring. These sessions will be recorded and posted with all of the complete Differentiated Accountability activities on the DE website.
The April 2016 School Leader Update is available from the Iowa Department of Education. Read Director Ryan Wise’s column in which he highlights some great things going on in Iowa’s schools. Legislative Liaison Shan Seivert gives you a wrap up of the Legislature in its last weeks. And Attorney Nicole Proesch gives important legal reminders to districts.
