GHAEA Voice

The Iowa Family & Educator Partnership (FEP) is gathering information that will them understand the needs of AEA staff as they expand the Universal Tier supports within the AEA. The survey has been distributed to SER’s, EA, EC, OT, PT, SLP,s and Adminstrators and will be available until April 30th. Here is the link:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/DX8ZZMJ

As an agency, we cover a large geographical area. We often rely on meetings via zoom or Hangout to keep us connected. Lately, we have received some questions regarding best practices for video conference meetings. Whether you're meeting from home or your office, here's a list of do's and don'ts that we recommend using to ensure quality, professional meetings. A good rule of thumb is to treat a video conference meeting just like you would a face to face meeting. Do: Test your microphone before your video conference meeting. Nothing is worse than trying to share something critical and not being able to communicate clearly due to poor audio quality or volume.  Do: Mute your microphone whenever you’re not speaking. Background noise can often be a distraction and interrupt a meeting’s flow. Be sure to unmute before speaking.  Do: Be aware of your video’s settings. Test your camera before the meeting and make sure it is on during the meeting.  Do: Make sure your room is w

Gavin Sickels , son of Sandi and Thad Sickels, is graduating from Creston High School. His future plans are to attend South Dakota State University in Brookings, SD and major in Mechanical Engineering. Joni Laughlin , sister to Devin Laughlin, will be graduating from Iowa Western Community College on May 12th with her Associates of Arts Degree. Nathaniel Laughlin , brother to Devin Laughlin, will graduate from Fremont-Mills High School and plans to study Agribusiness Technology at Iowa Western Community College. Dustin Finck , son of Gary and Joanie Finck, will graduate from Nodaway Valley High School. He participated in band, vocal music, cross country and basketball for all 4 years, while maintaining perfect attendance. He was also a member of the 3-time State Championship Cross-Country team. Dustin plans to study Diesel Technology at Iowa Central Community College. McKenna Johnson , daughter of Kristen (Math Consultant) and

As many of you may already know, the agency is making some changes to our health insurance plans for the new fiscal year which starts on July 1, 2018. We anticipate there may be questions about how this change may affect your personal situation, so we are bringing in Cathy Allen, our ISEBA agent, for a zoom informational meeting today, April 20, at 12:30. She will be on-site in the Creston office or you may join the meeting via Zoom. Here is the link for that zoom session:  https://ghaea.zoom.us/j/3994042340 We will also be recording the zoom session and posting it on our website if you can't join us at the scheduled time.

Our Green Hills AEA goals have recently been updated. They can be found at anytime on our web page . The three new goals include: Every Iowa child in the area served by GHAEA will be proficient in reading and mathematics by the end of third grade. (As measured by the state assessment.) The percentage of students on IEPs showing "ambitious rate of progress" in the areas of mathematics and literacy will increase by 10% each year. Through collaboration with Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and in partnership with students, families, businesses, community agencies, and the Iowa Department of Education, Green Hills Area Education Agency (GHAEA) will ensure every student graduates from high school “Future Ready." Take a look at the video below as Connie Terry, Math Consultant, Lynn Hockenberry, Literacy Consultant and Jason Plourde, Regional Administrator, dive into how these goals closely align with our belief system and larger state board goals, how they will influenc

Laura Williams and husband, Brennan, are expecting the arrival of their first child. She is due on May 14th, but they are currently scheduled for delivery on May 7th. (Disclaimer - She really could come at anytime!) We are so excited to meet baby Elaina Williams!

5/1      Casey Abler 5/9      Tim Perrin 5/13    Marsha Guttau 5/15    Lori Kinyon 5/15    Vicki McGlade 5/19    Cindy Wohlenhaus 5/28    Sondy Laughlin

5/1      Roy Medina 5/2      Dana Driscoll 5/8      Martin Mulligan 5/16    Lora Hight 5/18    Lois Hartje 5/20    Cortney Brummond 5/24    Mollie Frazier 5/25    Molly Masat 5/30    Gloria Hansen 5/30    Dan Merriam

 Just a reminder that there is still time to donate items to the Drive for Healthy Families. Green Hills is a Boys Town sponsor on the BLUE team for this year's drive. We are collecting the donated items in a blue barrel in the lounge area outside of the Grant Hunter Room at the Halverson Center. See a list of items needed here . We will be accepting donations throughout the month of April.

Our  In Touch  newsletter , shared among AEA and LEA staff is now live on Blogger! This new platform allows for a more efficient means of communication with live updates throughout the month, as well as an easy access location on the website scroll bar! The  In Touch  will also serve as a one stop shop for program and service information. Links to your favorite agency newsletters are included as well. Monthly updates will continue to be communicated through email. If you would like to add your program/service newsletter to the  In Touch , please contact  Devin Laughlin .

Green Hills AEA employees can receive discounted tickets for Adventureland in Altoona, IA this summer with the 2018 Fun Card! Click this link and choose the "Individual Use Coupon" to download to your phone or computer. You may use the coupon on your phone or print a copy to show at the ticket window.

Green Hills AEA has a certified Early Childhood Consultant position open for next year, assigned to the East region. If you are interested in this transfer, please contact Lori Kinyon  by April 12, 2018.

During the month of April, the Council Bluffs Police Department (team blue) and Fire Department (team red) will compete to see who can collect the most items for the Boys Town Iowa families they serve. Boys Town Iowa serves nearly 600 families and 1,200 children every year. Many of these families are living in poverty, often forced to choose between food or rent, medicine or transportation. By providing household and personal care items, we help these families focus on healing and providing for their children. This year, Green Hills AEA will participate as a sponsor for TEAM BLUE. A blue barrel has been placed in the lounge area outside of Grant Hunter at Halverson. If you would like to donate, you may drop off your items at that location. Please see this flyer for a list of items that are needed. Below are the following Education Partners participating in the Drive this year: Crescent Kirn Wilson Carter Lake ESC TJ Green Hills AEA Lewis Central MS College View Hoover Lewis a

Faith Bessire of the Missouri Valley celebrated the arrival of her granddaughter on March 22nd. Elena Grace is 8 lbs., 13.5 oz., 20.5 inches. Congratulations, Faith!

Graduation season is quickly approaching! If one of your loved ones will be celebrating this year, feel free to share in our Google form and it will be included in an upcoming Voice. Don't forget about several other reasons to celebrate: engagements, marriages, births, awards, conference presentations, and many more!