February Edition of "Each and Every Child"

Click here to find a link to the February 2013 edition of "Each and Every Child" brought to you by the Iowa Department of Education’s Bureau of Student and Family Support Services. This issue includes a feature of a Des Moines middle school which was struggling with student proficiency in reading. Last fall’s testing showed that only 33 percent of students were considered proficient. A few months later during winter tests, however, 49 percent are now proficient. Read about what the education team, including Sue Severson from Heartland AEA, did to bolster students’ reading comprehension.

The e-newsletter is designed to enhance communication between parents and teachers. Please forward it to your parents in your district and use the stories as opportunities for discussion.

Green Hills AEA to Host Google Summit

Green Hills AEA, in close collaboration with Glenwood Schools, is hosting a Southwest Iowa Google Summit. Alan November will be the keynote speaker for day one of the two-day summit. The dates of the summit are July 15 and 16, 2013. The registration fee is $75. Click here for a brochure with more information. If you would like to present at the summit, go to the following link to submit a presentation idea.
http://goo.gl/Nh8iA 

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

Your Life Iowa: Iowa’s Bullying and Suicide Prevention Hotline

Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behavior that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. Now there’s a new, statewide “go-to” resource where youth, parents and educational professionals can find the answers they need about bullying.

The Your Life Iowa Hotline offers advice and guidance 24/7 from trained counselors who are just a phone call or text away. Call (855) 581-8111 or test “TALK” to 85511 or visit yourlifeiowa.org.

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

Superintendents: February 5 HAA Meeting

Download a PDF or Word Doc of the February Heartland Administrators Association meeting agenda. The meeting will be held from 9:00-11:50 a.m. on Tuesday, February 5 at the Heartland AEA Johnston Regional Education Center (6500 Corporate Drive) in Room 13A and B. All handouts will be available on the Google Site at bit.ly/HAA2012.

Assigning an Incomplete Grade in Professional Development Courses

A situation has recently come to our attention. Many of our course instructors are assigning "Incomplete" grades to people who have no intention of finishing the course. Some of these are due to illness or personal situations requiring them to miss part of the class. If this is the case, please have the individual contact professional development to withdraw from the course or transfer to another course.

By our guidelines, we cannot have an "Incomplete" grade listed on the books for longer than one semester after the completion of the course. For example, John takes a course this spring, but doesn't get his assignment in by the due date because of some personal situations. The instructor agrees to give John an "Incomplete." The course work MUST be completed by the end of the summer semester, otherwise, our policy states the grade will convert to an "F".

Once we convert the grades to an "F", bookkeeping is affected (especially if it is for Drake credit) and sometimes, this comes as a shock to the participants. We understand that sometimes an "Incomplete" is in order, but make sure there is a realistic expectation that the course will be finished. Otherwise, they should be given an "F" or transferred to another course.

If you put comments in the comment section of the grading page, please do not assume that professional development will see this comment. These comments are for your purposes as an instructor, they are not part of the official course information.

If you have any questions about this policy or procedure, please contact Sue Schirmer, License Renewal Coordinator at sschirmer@aea11.k12.ia.us, (515) 270-0405 or (800) 255-0405 ext. 14379.

Standards Based Grading Conference at Grant Wood AEA

Click here for a flyer for an upcoming Standards-Based Grading Conference that will be held on April 24, 2013 at Grant Wood AEA. The conference is designed to help educators learn how to effectively implement a standards-based grading (SBG) system. Educators from Solon, Clear Creek Amana, and Van Meter Schools are hosting the event for secondary educators, administrators and others interested in learning more about SBG. 

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

Eating Disorder Awareness 2013 Events

The Eating Disorder Coalition of Iowa is hosting a learning event I Am Enough on March 2, 2013 at Waukee High school. The event is in conjunction with Body Image and Eating Disorders Awareness Week (EDAW) and will help participants increase their understanding of eating disorders and explore body acceptance. The event is open to teachers, administrators, students and families, and CEU credits are available fore interested educators. The following links are resources that can be passed on to educators, students and families that may be interested in attending.

I Am Enough Brochure
I Am Enough Poster
ISU's Body Image and EDAW Calendar of Events

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

Save the Date: Urbandale Schools to host Langford Four-Day Quality Learning Seminar

The Urbandale Community School District is hosting the Four Day Quality Learning Seminar, facilitated by David Langford on August 5-8, 2013. More information will be shared at a later time. 

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

Stay Connected With Social Media

Many administrators are using social media to communicate and collaborate in new and exciting ways. For example, every Sunday night from 8:00-9:00 p.m. Iowa educators lead a discussion on Twitter using the hashtag #iaedchat. This hour is a great way to engage in conversation with other educators and network.

Have you joined the conversation? Click here for a list compiled by SAI of Iowa education administrators who are on Twitter.

Remember you can stay up-to-date with news and information when ‘Follow’ Heartland AEA on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HeartlandAEA and ‘Like’ us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/heartlandaea. Do it today and pass on the word!