Department of Education Personnel Switch From Landline to Cell Phone, Check Directories for Current Contact Information

Last fall, several Iowa Department of Education personnel shifted from using a landline and a cellphone to relying solely on a cell phone. For the past six months, callers who used the landline number were provided with the corresponding cell phone number of the staff member they were trying to reach. However, this message service has now expired, and any calls made to DE staff using the landline will not be answered or receive a message. For the most up-to-date contact information of Department of Education staff, refer to the DE’s customer service guide or the alphabetical listing.

Special Edition Superintendent’s Notes Now Available

A special June 2022 edition of the DE Superintendent’s Notes is now available. In this issue:

• Guidance for Nondiscrimination Notices
• myIGDIs
• 2022 Iowa Teacher of the Year
• Spring Student Reporting in Iowa
• 2022 Iowa BEST Summit
• Voluntary Lead Testing of Drinking Water Program
• Secondary Career and Technical Reporting Application
• ACHIEVE Special Education Data System
• June and July Notices and Due Dates

Support for Students with Significant Intellectual Disabilities & Iowa Alternate Assessment

The Iowa Department of Education (DE) has sent out information about the 2021-22 Alternate Assessment Requirements and timelines. To be added to the DE emails and Google Site of resources, contact Jennifer Denne. A summary of timelines, some additional resources for teachers, and 2021-22 Professional Development opportunities through Heartland AEA are available here.

DE Releases FAQ About Safe Classroom Learning Environments

The Iowa Department of Education has released Frequently Asked Questions and additional guidance related to Senate File 2360: Safe Classroom Learning Environments. This resource answers common questions from educators regarding Senate File 2360 and state guidance. The DE anticipates this document will expand as it works through the rules writing process, the Therapeutic Classroom Grant, and development of standards and guidelines for response to classroom behavior. This represents the most current official position of the Department related to these questions and supersedes previous Department guidance on this topic. The Department will continue to review previous and new FAQs to include here and to ensure complete alignment with these responses. If your question is not answered in this resource, please email your question to barb.anderson@iowa.gov and the DE will update this list regularly.

Updated DE Return-to-Learn Guidance on Recovery Services

Two new documents to address COVID Recovery Services were released on Oct. 13, 2020 at the AEA System Special Education Network Webinar.

COVID-19 Recovery Services for Learners Receiving IDEA Services Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): The previous Recovery Services FAQ was updated on Oct. 13, 2020. It has also been updated on the Return to Learn Special Education Compendium.

Considerations for Recovery Services: This document is a flowchart to support IEP teams through the process of considering when COVID Recovery Services are warranted for an individual student with a disability.

DE Releases New Preschool Programming Guidance

The Iowa Department of Education has released new preschool programming guidance. The guidance addresses frequently asked questions regarding attendance, programming and services, and the use of different Return-to-Learn educational delivery models for Statewide Voluntary Preschool Programs, Early Childhood Special Education and Shared Visions Preschool Programs.

The DE will continue to keep you informed of any new updates. All current guidance is included on the COVID-19 Guidance and Information page on their website. In addition, recordings of the previous Zoom sessions can be found on their YouTube channel or COVID-19 Webinar Recordings for PK-12 School Administrators in Iowa webpage (along with PowerPoint slides as applicable).

New DE/AEA Return-to-Learn Special Education Documents

Additional documents and guidance related to special education were released this week on the DE/AEA Return-to-Learn Compendium of Resources for Districts, Schools and IEP Teams.

• New 8-11-20 R2L Collaboration Considerations: Roles, Infrastructure, Technology, Teaching, and Learning Skills - This document provides considerations for the following audiences: administrators, special educators, general educators, families/caregivers, paraprofessionals, and learners.
• New 8-11-20 R2L Considerations for Collaboration: Paraprofessionals - This document provides considerations around paraprofessionals and their role in virtual and hybrid environments.
• New 8-11-20 Tech Resources for Access and Instruction - This document provides technology resources around the following areas: Teacher Management, Self Regulation/Monitoring, Student Work Flow, Student Collaboration, Accessible Educational Materials, Mindfulness, Website/Digital Resource Evaluation Tools, and Tips and Tricks.
• New 8-11-20 R2L Support for Secondary Transition - This document provides ideas, supports, and resources for providing secondary transition services during typical and continuous/hybrid learning models during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is intended to be a resource, not only for special education teachers, but also for support staff members and non-certified staff who provide transition services to students (such as contracted staff with Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services or IVRS).
• New 8-11-20 R2L Considerations for Collaborating - Overview - This document provides resources applicable for all students, but they are focused here for students receiving special education. These resources are grouped around the following areas: Pre-Planning (Independently), Collaborative Planning, Instruction and Access, and Post-Planning.
• New 8-11-20 The “Sweet Spot” of Building Positive Student Behavior and Engaging Climates for Learning - This document is broken up into three core classroom pillars that can provide the "sweet spot" of optimizing engagement and learning for students, which will give teachers and paraprofessionals ideas and examples of how to meet the ever changing needs of the students in their classroom.
• Updated 8-11-20 Return-to-Learn Compendium of Resources - This document organizes available resources and will be revised on an ongoing basis. The resources provided here are to address the standard of IDEA under the current pandemic situation.

New DE Guidance: Open Enrollment, Early Literacy Implementation, Proficiency for Senior Year Plus Program

Open Enrollment: The Iowa Department of Education is releasing new open enrollment guidance and an application form in accordance to Senate File 2310. This law extends the open enrollment deadline for the 2020-21 school year to July 15 for parents, guardians and caregivers to apply to open enroll a student at an approved online public school in certain circumstances where the student, or a person who resides with the student, has a significant health condition that may increase the risk of COVID-19. This guidance and form are only for use during the 2020-21 school year.

Early Literacy: The Iowa Department of Education is releasing new guidance on early literacy implementation. This guidance revises and extends the fall, winter and spring screening windows for 2020-21 and addresses remote assessment considerations, staff training, screening and progress monitoring recommendations, and interpretation of assessment results. It also introduces a new data collection in CASA for schools and districts to indicate their 2020-21 default literacy assessments. This data collection is due July 31.

Proficiency for Senior Year Plus Program: The Iowa Department of Education is releasing new guidance addressing the determination of proficiency for Senior Year Plus Programs. This guidance outlines alternatives for determining proficiency for purposes of accessing Senior Year Plus programming since performance results from the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) are not available for the 2019-20 school year. The requirement to administer federally required assessments, including the ISASP, was waived for the 2019-20 school year in light of COVID-19-related school closures. This guidance document will be added to the COVID-19 Guidance and Information page and on the DE’s Senior Year Plus page on their website. All current guidance from the Iowa Department of Education can be found on the COVID-19 page. 

The DE will continue to keep you informed of any new updates. All current guidance is included on the COVID-19 Guidance and Information page on their website and all tools, supports and resources to assist in the development of Return-to-Learn plans can be found on their Return-to-Learn Google site. In addition, recordings of the previous Zoom sessions can be found on their YouTube channel or on their COVID-19 Webinar Recordings for PK-12 School Administrators in Iowa webpage (along with PowerPoint slides as applicable).

DE Guidance: District Responsibilities to English Learners During COVID-19, Reopening Districts and School Activities July 1

District Responsibilities to English Learners During COVID-19

The Iowa Department of Education is releasing two new documents related to state and district responsibilities to English learners (ELs) during the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as a parent notice template. The details of each of the documents are described below.

Providing Services to English Learners (ELs) During the COVID-19 Outbreak Fact Sheet - Builds on the U.S. Department of Education’s May 18, 2020 fact sheet regarding the roles of states and districts in providing services to ELs during COVID-19-related school closures.

Home Language Survey Follow-Up Interview for Provisional Identification of ELs - Provides a protocol for provisionally identifying students as ELs during the COVID-19-related school closures.

2019-20 EL Program Provisional Identification and Placement Parental Notification Template - Provides a customizable template for districts to use when notifying parents and/or legal guardians about provisional placement decisions and related instructional services and supports.

Reopening Districts and School Activities July 1

New reopening guidance has been created in partnership between the Iowa Department of Education and the Iowa Department of Public Health as a resource for administrators to safely open districts and nonpublic schools and resume all school activities starting July 1. The guidance outlines health and safety requirements, illness reporting procedures and school district closure authority if the Governor proclaims a public health disaster. In addition, new Return-to-Learn supports are available on the Return-to-Learn Google site. You can find new items under special education, data, health and safety, and preschool.


The DE will continue to keep you informed of any new updates. All current guidance is included on the COVID-19 Guidance and Information page on their website with translated versions of documents available on the Translated COVID-19 Guidance and Information Documents page. In addition, recordings of the previous Zoom sessions can be found on their YouTube channel or on their COVID-19 Webinar Recordings for PK-12 School Administrators in Iowa webpage (along with PowerPoint slides as applicable). 

DE Revised Guidance: Summer Sports, Learning & Activities, Use of School Facilities; IDPH Guidance on Summer Sports

The Iowa Department of Education is releasing revised guidance on summer sports, summer learning and activities, and use of school facilities. The Department believes the revisions are warranted following new proclamations from Governor Reynolds, feedback from the field about the initial guidance, and our desire to allow school leaders to best respond to the strengths and needs of their local communities. The changes are summarized below.

The revised Summer Sports Guidance adds a statement that refers people to the Use of School Facilities Guidance for information on the use of school facilities for activities other than baseball and softball.

The revised Summer Learning and Activities Guidance adds a statement that any school district, nonpublic school, or governing association may begin offering summer activities in consultation with public health and local law enforcement. This includes extracurricular activities and co-curricular activities, but no sports other than those expressly permitted by Department guidance or a proclamation of the governor.

The revised Use of School Facilities Guidance adds a statement that the Department defers to local districts, public health, the IHSAA, IGHSAU, and other associations that support school activities to determine when and how activities will resume. The Department continues to exercise general supervision over and provide guidance about the use of school facilities in accordance with Iowa Code and the governor’s proclamations.

The Iowa Department of Public Health has also released new guidance today regarding potential COVID-19 exposures on baseball and softball teams. This guidance supplements our summer sports guidance.

Please know that the DE will continue to keep you informed of any new updates. All current guidance is included on the COVID-19 Guidance and Information page on their website. In addition, recordings of previous Zoom sessions can be found on their YouTube channel or on their COVID-19 Webinar Recordings for PK-12 School Administrators in Iowa webpage (along with PowerPoint slides as applicable). Return-to-Learn supports can be found on the Return-to-Learn Google Site.

DE Guidance: Continuous Improvement, PD, Mitigation Survey

The Iowa Department of Education is releasing guidance on new Return-to-Learn resources addressing continuous improvement processes (Leadership B1), professional development (Infrastructure C1-C2), the mitigation survey and student/family connection log. All Return-to-Learn supports can be found on their Return-to-Learn Google site. The Department established a partnership with UnboundEd to provide educators with standards-based professional learning opportunities that align with the Return-to-Learn support document (overview document).

DE Guidance on Counting Students Attending Virtually in the Fall

The Iowa Department of Education has been asked the question that if a parent decides to not send their child to school in the fall because of perceived safety issues, but wishes to take advantage of the district’s ability to provide learning virtually, does the district count that student as a resident, full-time student. The DE has responded that the student would be counted if they otherwise meet the definition of resident and are in attendance on count date. The decision about whether the child's absences are excused or not is a local decision. The parent always has the option to homeschool and dual enroll.

Iowa Return to Learn Support Resources Available on New Site

Last week the Iowa Department of Education announced the release of new resources to support districts and schools as they work on their Return-to-Learn Plans. These resources have been developed jointly by the Department with Iowa’s AEAs and can be found on a new Iowa Return to Learn Support site. Use the headings at the top of the home page to navigate to the area you want to explore.


New Releases:

Required Continuous Learning

• R2L Tech Integration Framework for Online Instruction

Iowa Academic Standards

• Unit Acceleration Planning Activity
• Planning Protocol for Accelerated Learning

Social-Emotional-Behavioral Health (SEBH)

• SEBH R2L toolkit
• SEBH R2L action planning tool (to be used with toolkit)

Health & Safety

• AEA Learning Online Module R2L: Health and Safety - District Leadership Teams

These resources are provided for your convenience and are not required. The Department will continue to provide new resources on the site multiple times each week, so check back frequently.

CARES Act Guidance: Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Funds Distribution and ESEA Waivers

The Iowa Department of Education is providing new guidance regarding the distribution process of emergency relief funding in the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund within the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act.

COVID-19 Guidance: Family School Engagement Resources, Best Practices and Considerations

The Iowa Department of Education COVID-19 Guidance: Family School Engagement Resources, Best Practices, and Considerations provides educators with ideas and resources for positively and proactively engaging students and their families/caregivers during times of prolonged school closure due to a large-scale emergency, such as the current coronavirus pandemic. These situations can put additional pressure on already-vulnerable children, youth and families, making meaningful connections with others all the more important. All current guidance and past PowerPoint presentations from the Department of Education are included on their COVID-19 Guidance and Information webpage. In addition, recordings of previous Zoom sessions can be found on their YouTube channel.

New Resource from the DE to Help Generate Donations to Schools for Continuous Learning

The Iowa Department of Education is looking to connect individuals and businesses to schools that need technology, materials and supplies in light of COVID-19’s impact on education delivery.

A new resource on the Iowa Department of Education's website makes it easier for school districts in need of technology, materials and supplies to connect with individuals and businesses who want to help. The information and map on the page is regularly updated as more schools report their needs.

As schools across Iowa identify and implement new continuous learning strategies with their students, many have pinpointed areas of need ranging from internet-access hotspots and devices to white boards and printer paper.

Please share this information with individuals, organizations and businesses who want to make a difference by supporting their local schools during this unprecedented crisis.

Student Success Literacy Status Indicators Plus Other News and Updates

The winter screening window has closed and there are new features in Student Success. Please read below for information about Literacy Status calculations in Student Success and other new features.

Literacy Status in Student Success

• The Student Success system is now calculating literacy status. You will now find the following tools that use this information.
• Each student’s current literacy status will be displayed on the student page in the demographic array (gray boxes under the student’s name).
• Literacy Status will be an option under “view by” on the left menu, meaning that you will be able to break down data views by literacy status.
• You will also be able to filter by literacy status on most views. You will be able to make smart groups based on the filters that you can call up any time.
• Color coding is not used for literacy status anywhere in the Student Success system. Red, Yellow and Green are Panorama’s color codes for at benchmark, below, and far below benchmark. Please don't confuse them for literacy status.
• The basic logic for literacy status determinations are as follows:

Student's Literacy Status Designation (previous screening window)	Student's Score for the Current Screening Window	Student's New Literacy Status Designation
Adequately Progressing	At/Above Benchmark	Adequately Progressing
Adequately Progressing	Below Benchmark	At-Risk
Adequately Progressing	No Score	Adequately Progressing
At-Risk	At/Above Benchmark	Adequately Progressing
At-Risk	Below Benchmark	Persistently At-Risk
At-Risk	No Score	At-Risk
Persistently At-Risk	At/Above Benchmark	At-Risk
Persistently At-Risk	Below Benchmark	Persistently At-Risk
Persistently At-Risk	No Score	Persistently At-Risk
Cannot Determine/No Status	At/Above Benchmark	Adequately Progressing
Cannot Determine/No Status	Below Benchmark	At-Risk
Cannot Determine/No Status	No Score	Cannot Determine/No Status

• The system will use any available Spring 2019 to calculate the student’s Fall literacy status.
• For students with no Spring 2019 default assessment data available, the Spring status will be interpreted as “cannot be determined” when calculating the Fall 2019 status.
• There should be very few, if any, cases where these calculations result in a discrepancy from locally determined literacy status for the Winter literacy status. In all cases, err on the side of providing appropriate support to students to help them close the gap.

Early Literacy Implementation

• This is probably a good time to remind people of the ELI requirements (which have not changed). Here’s a very brief version of the big ideas, followed by a link to the full ELI guidance and support documentation
• Students with a literacy status of At Risk are required to have weekly PM. Parent/family communication and intervention during this time are strongly encouraged, but not required by law.
• Students with a literacy status of Persistently At Risk are required to have intervention, progress monitoring and parent/family communications about the child’s needs and school efforts to address those needs.
• We encourage you to read the ELI in the FAST Lane article which can be found in the Iowa section of the FAST knowledge base and a similar article in the Student Success Resource Library for ideas on how to implement ELI in a child-friendly/parent-friendly way.
• Click here to access all of the ELI support documents, guidance and legal requirements:https://educateiowa.gov/pk-12/instruction/literacy/early-literacy-implementation-eli

Healthy Indicator reports

• You may notice a few subtle changes in reports as we continue to refine the way the system interprets enrollment changes and other nuances that may affect counts.
• Please keep in mind that the function of these reports is to provide big picture views of key processes related to MTSS. It is most important to attend to the opportunities to identify system improvements, and less important to be concerned about minor discrepancies and nuances. There are NO accountability actions tied to these indicators. They are not used for ESSA determinations, school report cards, etc. School teams may use them in their own self-study as they develop an understanding of local practices and a search for places to improve those practices.
• Quality MTSS implementation begins with an evidence-based universal tier of instruction that meets the needs of 80% of students without further intervention (HI #3). The system perspective is important because it is difficult to intervene out of a curriculum and instruction problem without also attending to the universal tier.
• Now that the Winter window is closed, HI reports 2 and 5 will initially be blank and slowly “fill” with data week by week. That is not surprising, given the nature of these reports. Expect these summaries to be volatile and less helpful in the beginning, becoming more consistent and meaningful as the year progresses.
• We will soon be posting information in the Student Success resource library about using the healthy indicator reports to support systems improvement.

Where to go when you need help or have a question:
Sometimes it's hard to know which system to use, but seeking help in the right system will speed assistance. One general guideline is to report the issue in the system where you see the issue. The Early Warning System (EWS) team at the DE provides support for both FAST and Student Success; however, they are products of different companies with separate systems used for documentation and submission of support requests. Support requests in the wrong system causes delays and confusion. EdPortal is supported by a different team, although the EWS team can assist with Student Success permission troubleshooting. See: Support Map for Users for a printable quick-reference guide support for the three systems.

• FAST: Click Knowledge Base (documentation) or Support (ask questions/request help) in the upper left corner of FAST. There is an Iowa specific section in the FAST Knowledge Base under General > Iowa Resources that contains many Iowa-specific supports. If you do not have access to the Iowa section, please let us know via a support ticket.
• Student Success: There are a few different ways to find information or get help but quickest way is to click Need Help? in the lower right corner of Student Success. A supplementary training doc on finding resources and assistance, including animated visuals, is available in this document: Finding help and resources in Student Success.
• EdPortal: Tutorials and support contact information are available on the EdPortal home page.

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~ Connor Hood and Janell Brandhorst, Iowa Department of Education

New, More Robust Special Education Information System Coming This Fall

The Iowa Department of Education and Iowa’s Area Education Agencies are continuing to work to launch a new, more robust system for special education procedures and web-based IEPs. The first phase of this system includes the platform for special education procedural guidance (known as i3) and will go live in Fall 2020. Implementation of the second and final phase includes the web-based IEP system (known as ACHIEVE) and will go live in Fall 2021. 
 

i3 (Iowa IDEA Information): The next evolution of a fully-online and accessible platform for special education procedures, guidance and information. i3 is scheduled for release at the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.  

ACHIEVE: The name of the next iteration of Iowa’s web-based IEP/IFSP system, with enhancements to allow better parent access, expanded progress monitoring tools and improved user experience. Anticipated release is the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year. Read more here... 
 

These two aligned components, when complete, will position Iowa’s educational professionals to continue to provide the highest quality support for students with disabilities well into the future.

Iowa Dept. of Education Releases New Social-Emotional Learning Competencies; Implementation to Begin Next School Year

The Iowa Department of Education (DE) has released Iowa’s Social-Emotional Learning Competencies, which are organized around the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL) 5 Core Competencies:

• Self-awareness
• Self-management
• Social awareness
• Relationship skills
• Responsible decision-making

The release of the competencies is a soft launch, meaning the DE is not currently implementing a comprehensive communication plan, or a roll-out plan--they are simply making the competencies available. The DE will continue to garner feedback throughout this year, developing supports for scaling through C4K (Collaborating for Iowa’s Kids).

The real push from a statewide perspective to support implementation will begin during the 2020-21 school year. For additional resources, you may also visit the DE’s School Climate Transformation Grant webpage.


If you have questions or need additional information, contact Jadie Boens, Director of Special Programs, at ext. 14512.

Proposing Rule Making Related to Corporal Punishment and Providing an Opportunity for Public Comment

The Iowa Department of Education is currently proposing changes to Iowa Administrative Code Chapter 103. Chapter 103 pertains to “Corporal Punishment, Physical Restraint, Seclusion, and other Physical Contact with Students”. This rule impacts all students; both students with and without disabilities. These proposed rule changes could have significant impact on school’s practices with challenging, dangerous and disruptive students. You are encouraged to review the proposed rule changes and make your interests known.

Any interested person may submit written or oral comments concerning this proposed rule-making.

Written or oral comments in response to this rule making must be received by the Department no later than 4:30 p.m. on March 5, 2019. Comments should be directed to:

Nicole Proesch
Department of Education
Grimes State Office Building, Second Floor
Des Moines, Iowa 50319-0416
(515) 281-8661
nicole.proesch@iowa.gov

A public hearing at which persons may present their views orally or in writing will be held as follows:

March 5, 2019
9:00-10:00 a.m.
State Board Room, Second Floor
Grimes State Office Building
East 14th Street and Grand Avenue
Des Moines, Iowa