Meet the New Heartland Area Superintendents

Before the first Heartland Administrator Association Meeting next Tuesday, September 6, we thought that we would introduce you to some new faces. Below are the new superintendents starting this year in Heartland AEA's area who have submitted self-profiles at this time.

Peter Ansingh, West Des Moines
Education
BA in Chemistry from Pacific Lutheran University, 1976
MST in Chemistry from University of Wyoming, 1979
EdD in Ed Leadership from Seattle University, 1986

Past work experience
Superintendent – West Valley School District (Yakima, WA), 1991-2011
Superintendent – Methow Valley School District (Twisp, WA), 1985-1991
Superintendent – Boistfort School District (Curtis, WA), 1981-1985
Teacher/Head Teacher – Boistfort School District (Curtis, WA), 1979-1981

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
After 30 years as a superintendent in Washington State and with our kids successfully launched (for the moment), Pam and I are ready for an adventure. Through my network of colleagues, West Des Moines was recommended as a district to which I should apply. It was identified as a district that supports education and its schools in a state that also supports education and its schools.

What is your vision for your district?
Through the interview process, the one challenge that was identified for me is the changing demographics of the district. The opportunity I see will be to continue to ensure that students/families experience a high level of success, even as they come to school not speaking English for example. Having been in Iowa a brief time, I have also been presented with potential reform strategies being discussed by the State.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy spending free time walking, riding my bicycle, playing tennis and reading. Once Pam is able to join me, I look forward to finding a home that will require a significant amount of yard work, my favorite form of therapy.

Lindsey Beecher, Gilbert
Education
BA in Secondary Education, Social Science major, Math minor from University of Northern Iowa
MA Masters in Administration, Specialist Degree from University of Northern Iowa

Past Work Experience
Galva-Holstein, Jr. High Math and Social Studies
Independence High School, H.S. Math, Jr. High Social Studies
West Bend-Mallard, H.S. Principal, A.D., Superintendent
Dike-New Hartford, Superintendent

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
I knew of Gilbert’s reputation for excellence in academics combined with the fact that it was a growing district, made it a very attractive position. Gilbert’s location in central Iowa and near so many opportunities also made it appealing.

What is your vision for your district?
We are going to have to work very hard to manage the growth of this district while maintaining fiscal responsibility and academic strength. It will be an important part of my job to communicate with and bring together all of the stakeholders in the district.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy spending any free time I have with my family which now includes a six-month-old grandson.

Brad Buck, Saydel
Education
The University of Northern Iowa - BA Biology
Iowa State University - M.Ed. and Ph.D.

Past work experience
Associate Superintendent for School Improvement - Waukee CSD
Principal - Prairieview School and Waukee Middle School - Waukee CSD
Principal - Hudson Middle School - Hudson CSD
Principal - North Mahaska Jr./Sr. High - North Mahaska CSD
Teacher - 7th Grade Life Science - Ankeny CSD

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
Saydel has made significant improvements in the last few years across a number of dimensions. We have also been heavily involved in conversations about increasing student access to technology in the learning environment. Specifically, we will begin a 1:1 laptop initiative in grades 7 & 8 this school year that will expand to grades 7-12 in 2012-13. I wanted to be a part of this move to being a hub for innovation in the metro area of Des Moines.

What is your vision for your district?
To support a learning environment for every student that will allow him/her the experiences necessary to leave high school ready for post-secondary education and/or a high skills job in the workplace. This will include engaging staff members, families, businesses and the community in the learning process.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy watching sports, reading and most importantly, spending time with my wife and six children.

Greg Ebeling, Pella
Education
Advanced Studies Certificate – University of Northern Iowa (2001)
M.A. – Drake University (1996)
B.A. Gustavus Adolphus College (1991)

Past work experience
2004-2011 -Spencer Community School Superintendent
2001-2004 - Maquoketa Valley Community School Superintendent
1999-2001 - Maquoketa Valley High School Principal
1997- 1999 - West Central Community School, Maynard, Principal
1991- 1997 -Oskaloosa Community School, Junior High Math Teacher

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
Since my first job was in Oskaloosa, I quickly became familiar with the Pella School District. I still have some strong friendships with people around the Pella/Oskaloosa area. As a teacher and coach, I was envious of the success that Pella has had in both academics and extra-curricular activities. Having a young family, I knew Pella would be a great place to raise my children. Additionally, the value structure of the community is a good match for who I am as a person.

What is your vision for your district?
The Pella district has a vision that is in direct alignment with my vision for education. I believe in developing students through professional collaboration of educators and a focus on continuous improvement. We need students that are able to think critically, problem solve, work together and have strong character. This only happens with parents, students, educators and community working together to provide experiences that develop the entire child.

Scott Grimes, Dallas Center-Grimes
Education
Ed.S. from University of Northern Iowa, 2010
M.A. in Educational Administration from Iowa State University, 2001
B.S. in Elementary Education, Specialization in Special Ed. from University of Iowa, 1993

Past Work Experience
Superintendent, Louisa-Muscatine Community School District, 2007-2010
Lead Administrator/Principal, Louisa-Muscatine Community School District, 2007-2008
Principal, Louisa-Muscatine Elementary School, 2001-2007
Sixth Grade Teacher, Johnston Middle School, 1994-2001
Special Education Teacher, Johnston Middle School 1993-1994

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
I pursued the DC-G position due to the current state of the district and the future challenges that it will hold. The district is known to be progressive in meeting the needs of the whole child, in the academic and extracurricular arena. This has been done with resource prioritization, strong community support, facility updates and strong leadership. The challenges that will face our district plus others around the state will be to maintain resources for needed programming, continue with the challenges of keeping a small school philosophy with increasing enrollment and moving our teaching paradigm to the 21st century.

What is your vision for your district?
My vision for DC-G is simple. Continue doing the things that make a positive impact on student learning, get rid of what is not and provide the resources, time and environment for optimal learning.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
With four kids in 8th, 6th, 3rd and 1st grade, it is obvious that my time is spent enjoying family events and activities. Some of those activities include: golfing, biking, reading, music and working on cars.

Dave Haggard, Glidden-Ralston
Education
Ph.D. (School Administration) from Iowa State University, 1984
M.S.E. (Secondary School Admin.) from Drake University, 1974
B.S.E. (Business Education) from Drake University, 1971
Past Work Experience
Superintendent, Fort Dodge Community Schools, December 1988 – June 2005
Superintendent, Storm Lake Community Schools, July 1986 – November 1988
Superintendent, North Winneshiek Community School, July 1984 – June 1986
Principal/Athletic Director, Madrid Community Schools, July 1978 – June 1984
Principal/Athletic Director, Graettinger Community Schools, July 1975 – June 1978
Business Ed. Teacher/Coach, Norwalk Community Schools, January 1972 – June 1975

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
I had retired in 2005 and was working as a consultant with G. Tryon and Associates. We were pleased to have the opportunity to do the search in Glidden because this is the “Home Town” for Gaylord, Randy Braden, and me. Some candidates withdrew from the search late, and we were considering what alternatives existed. We reviewed the alternatives with the Glidden-Ralston board. One of the alternatives was to go with an interim. On the way home that evening Gaylord asked if I had ever considered going back to our hometown and doing an interim. From there the rest is history. I have agreed to do a two-year interim assignment and I have had no regrets. I am proud to be a Wildcat again.

What is your vision for your district?
My vision is to help the district identify creative options for expanding the depth and breadth of the curriculum that is available to our students and to continue building on the existing vision of becoming the best small school in Iowa.

What are your hobbies or things that you like to do in your free time?
I love the out-of-doors, and I am an avid water fowler. I have a four legged, well-trained conservation assistant in the form of an 11-year-old Labrador retriever. I am very active in Ducks Unlimited, having served a two-year term as State Chairman and currently as an At-Large National Board Member. My wife (Dee) and I have been empty nesters for years now but have no grandchildren to spoil. We enjoyed traveling until I accepted this current interim.

Marty Lucas, Colfax-Mingo
Education
AA Degree from North Iowa Area Community College
BA Degree from University of Northern Iowa
MS Degree and Certificate of Advanced Study from Iowa State University

Past work experience
5 years as teacher/coach
2 years as secondary principal
4 years as assistant high school principal and athletic director
21 years as superintendent at various districts in Iowa
2 years as a superintendent in Colorado

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
After spending two years in Colorado my wife and I were anxious to return to Iowa to be closer to family and to return to the Midwest. I was impressed with the board’s desire to move forward in a positive direction and their commitment to the district and the communities of Colfax and Mingo. We also enjoy being close to the metro area.

What is your vision for your district?
All district’s are facing difficult times and we are no different than many other district. The challenge is balancing financial issues with providing high quality educational opportunities for our students. My hope is that, as a community, we can develop a long-range plan that will lead to quality decision making to help the district move forward toward providing the highest quality educational system possible.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy spending as much time as possible with family. My other passion is golf.

Craig Menozzi, Southeast Polk
Education
B.A. degree from Gustavus Adolphus College
MED from the University of Minnesota
EDS and Superintendent’s license from St. Thomas University

Past Work Experience
Superintendent, Independent School District (New Prague, MN)
Principal, McGuire Middle School, Independent School District (New Prague, MN)
Assistant Principal, Black Hawk Middle School, Independent School District (New Prague, MN)
Assistant Principal, Rosemount Middle School (Rosemount, MN)
Teacher/Coach, Rosemount High School (Rosemount, MN)

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
I decided to pursue the position with SEP Schools as I was impressed with how they have done such a wonderful in bringing together the various communities represented within the district.

What is your vision for your district?
My vision for the SEP school district is to become a premier district that models excellence and embraces the challenges of the 21st century.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy reading, golf, fishing and spending time with my family.

Bob Miller, Pleasantville
Education
BA from Yankton College in Yankton, SD, 1975, Majored in Physical Education with a minor in General Science
MA from Drake University in Des Moines, 1990, Degree is in Educational Administration
CAS from Iowa State University in Ames, 2004, Degree is in Educational Administration

Past Work Experience
Superintendent of the Okoboji Community Schools in Milford, IA - 2004-2011
HS Principal at Forest City High School in Forest City, IA - 1995-2004
HS Associate Principal/Activities Director at Forest City HS in Forest City, IA - 1990-1995
HS Science teacher and coach at Clarion-Goldfield HS in Clarion, IA - 1982-1990
HS Science teacher and coach at Bishop Heelan HS in Sioux City, IA - 1977-1982
Volunteer Assistant Football Coach – The University of Iowa - 1976
HS Science teacher and coach at Plainfield HS in Plainfield, IA - 1975-1976

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
Pleasantville Schools are on the cusp of something big and innovative. Certainly becoming another one of the schools within the state who are participating in a 1:1 program doesn’t make it unique but with the innovative calendar and the four day work week for the months of January, February, and March coupled with the 1:1 certainly makes it intriguing. The proximity to the greater Des Moines area made it interesting for my family as well. The people of Pleasantville are truly warm and welcoming and we have a tradition of high achievement and innovation, which I hope to continue.

What is your vision for your district?
My vision for Pleasantville would be like that of many superintendents around the state, to prepare our students for their next step in life. We certainly want our students to take some form of additional schooling after high school, whether that be 1, 2, 4 or 6 years of college or training. We want them to understand that we all have to be life long learners and that change will take place in their lives and they must be prepared for it. We want our students to be able to create, collaborate and communicate with character, not only in school but also in life in general.

What are your hobbies or things you lie to do in your free time?
I enjoy traveling on long weekend get-a-ways with family and friends as well as golfing. I also enjoy boating with family and just being with them.

Matt Patton, Baxter
Education
Iowa State University B.S. in History University of Iowa M.A. in Educational Administration University of Northern Iowa C.A.S. in Superintendency

Past Work Experience
Administrative Experience:
Pella Middle School Principal, 2007-2011
Mount Ayr 7-12 Principal, 2005-2007
Southern Cal (Lake City) 7-12 Principal, 2002-2005

Classroom Experience:
Fairfield MS & HS Social Studies Teacher, 1996-2002

Why did you decide to pursue the superintendent position at your district?
Baxter is a community that has a strong tradition of supporting education and its schools. Baxter has an experienced and dedicated school board that is committed to our mission of "Teaching for today and tomorrow, one student at a time." The district is filled with quality professionals who are committed to providing an outstanding educational experience for students. The district's size (400 students) provides us the opportunity to meet the individual needs of students and their families.

What is your vision for your district?
To provide a world-class educational experience that prepares students for the challenges of the future.

What are your hobbies or things you like to do in your free time?
I enjoy spending time with my family, training for and competing in triathlons, hunting, and being involved in church.

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.