GHAEA Voice

    As shortages in the field of education continue to increase, the Agency would like to identify potential vacancies as early as possible so we have the opportunity to interview the brightest and best applicants to fill those vacancies. Therefore, at the recent October 2018 GHAEA Board meeting, the Board adopted an early notification resolution for certified staff.     The resolution authorizes a $1,500 payment to certified staff members who submit an original, signed retirement or resignation letter no later than January 11, 2019, effective for the end of the 2018-19 contract year. Disbursement of the payment will happen with the June 28, 2019 payroll, and will be subject to applicable payroll taxes, but is not IPERS eligible. Any questions can be directed to Lori Kinyon , Director of HR.

Dr. Haws and the Admin team have begun their "ride alongs" with various groups of staff. The ride alongs provide the admin team an overview of a day in the life of each of the various roles of our staff. See Glenwood Regional Administrator, Linda Spencer, below on a few of her ride alongs. Lisa Magneson, Special Ed Consultant - South Page Jessica O'Dell, Speech-Language Pathologist - Kreft Elementary Kari Olson, Special Ed Consultant - Titan Hill

Have you noticed a colleague that has been striving to have a positive impact on someone's life, someone who truly demonstrates what it takes to "be the one" or someone who is dedicated to serving the whole child? Tell us about them HERE ! Nominations will be featured in the next edition of the Voice.

Reminder that this year's United Way campaign will be wrapping up shortly. We are currently only at 16% of our goal... But don't worry, there's still time! Our goal this year is $1,500. We currently have raised $250  If you would like to help us reach our goal, please contact Devin Laughlin for a form. The campaign closes on November 9th!

This past week there has been some cement work being done at the Halverson center. As part of previous tradition, Dr. Haws left her initials in the cement among former Chief Administrators.

The 2018-19 Getting to Know You publication has been added to the Staff Portal under the Communications/Media/Logo tab. Access this year's Getting to Know You HERE ! * Note that staff highlighted in yellow are new staff (not in last year's edition)

Each of our Regional Offices has a video conferencing tool called Meeting Owl. This device has multiple mics, speakers and cameras capable of covering the entire room. It is best used whenever a group of people are around a table setting connecting with remote locations via zoom or hangouts. To use Meeting Owl all you need to do is to plug it in to the power source and plug in the USB cable  from the Meeting Owl to the computer used for video conferencing. Hint: you may need to select the Meeting Owl Mic/Sound/Camera sources within your zoom or hangouts app. Folks in the remote locations will be able to see a panoramic view of the room on the top with the most active speakers below. If people inside the room where the Meeting Owl is, need to see the remote sides, the person controlling the video conferencing session (zoom, hangouts) can project the image using our Google Cast devices. Below is the list of Meeting Owl locations and who controls them or who to conta

  Iowa's AEAs Chief Administrators recently addressed the topic of increased collaboration around print services. In reviewing the current data collected along with data collected from previous studies, there was consensus around the notion of moving forward. What does “moving forward” look like? Developing a common catalog of products and services that all LEAs have access to Developing a common pricing structure for products and services Pilot partnerships are being explored to begin working through the challenges of collaboration The development of a steering committee comprised of representatives from the Chief Administrators, Media Directors, and Chief Financial Officers. What won’t happen as we move forward? Moving ahead does not mean the abandonment of individual AEA print shops. The model that seems to make the most sense relies on a print shop in each AEA offering a base level of services.  An abrupt disruption of equipment contracts, staffing or operations in

Remember that all Green Hills AEA offices will close at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, November 21st.  Offices will remain closed on Thursday, November 22nd and Friday, November 23rd. They will open at regular time on Monday, November 26th.

All nine of Iowa's AEAs have adopted the following policy regarding registering and/or withdrawing from an Agency-wide sponsored course for credit. Please read through this policy  so that you are aware of any changes.

An online depository  titled " We Want to Hear From You " resides in the staff portal for any comments, concerns, questions or suggestions staff may have. All submissions will be brought to cabinet for discussion and then communicated out via the Voice newsletter. There was one submission last week. Click here to view

Green Hills AEA employee badges are out and about! If you have not received your new badge, please contact Jamie Reid . If you have not updated your staff photo, please contact Devin Laughlin . A topic brought up in several staff chats was low community awareness of Green Hills AEA. The vibrant green lanyards are just one way we can help increase awareness by being visible and identifiable while serving in homes, schools and offices. The lanyards also help to ensure security and safety to all employees, visitors and those we serve. Green Hills AEA staff are encouraged to wear their new green lanyards and badges, however it is understood that there are certain situations where that may not be conducive. To the best of your ability, please help Green Hills AEA get its face out there to help ensure all children, families and educators are aware that we are here to support every child in southwest Iowa in achieving a successful future.

   A $213,464 research grant was awarded from the Institute of Education Sciences which will allow funding for the research Iowa's Early ACCESS and The Communication and Early Childhood Research to Practice Center have been exploring.    This study allows the project’s Co-Principal Investigator with the Iowa Department of Education, to evaluate the impact of the internal coaches on their peers’ use of Family-guided Routines Based Intervention (FGRBI). “We are excited by this study, because learning more about how states can invest in professional development for EIs is important to all Part C programs who serve infants and toddlers.” Principal Investigator, Mollie Romano, explains, “The findings from this study will give us information about whether the dosage and content of the internal coaching intervention was enough to support EIs change in practice, and also whether families and children learned new skills from their EI’s use of FGRBI. This kind of field-based research is re

It was decided in cabinet that the employee phone directories will no longer be printed. This informaiton may be obtained on our website by selecting "Staff Listing" under the "Contact" tab.

Judy Griffin kicked off this year's Lunch and Learn series with a presentaion on Digital Learning and the Iowa Authentic Learning Network (ALN). Don't miss out these learning opportunities! If you can't attend live, you can watch the recorded session on the staff portal . Mark you calendars for the next Lunch and Learn on October 24th with presenter, Amy Liddell speaking about the Family and Educator Partnership!

Have a comment, question, suggestion or concern? Please submit them HERE ! No email addresses will be collected to allow for anonymity. Topics shared through this electronic depository will be brought to Cabinet for discussion regularly.

Every fall, Green Hills AEA holds a United Way campaign. Today marks the start of our campaign! Last year we were able to raise $1,200. Help us reach this year's goal of $1,500 before November 9th! You can donate: Through Payroll Deduct (ask Devin Laughlin for a form) One Time Donation Check your email for more information coming soon!

10/1      Leslie McCaslin 10/3      Pat Perkins    10/5      Cynthia Juhl 10/7      Jonathan Skarin 10/11    Kim Madsen 10/13    Cheryl Case 10/14    Donna Dannar 10/17    Michelle Hicks 10/19    Angie Bramman 10/22    Roxanne Matzen 10/22    Eunice Bohanan 10/22    Darek Madejski 10/24    Donal Welch 10/25    Billie Jo Clausen

Listening posts are being hosted at locations across Iowa on behalf of the Children’s System State Board established by Gov. Kim Reynolds in April. The board will review the information gathered from these listening posts as part of its charge to review existing resources and develop a strategic plan with specific recommendations to implement a better approach to help children with mental health issues. This report is due to the legislature on Nov. 15. Green Hills AEA's listening post will take place at the Green Hills AEA Creston Regional Office, 257 Swan St., Creston on  Oct 10 from 5:30-7:00 pm An additional opportunity has been created for parents/children unable to attend: A survey is available for those unable to attend a listening post at  https://goo.gl/GM8S8y  The deadline is Oct. 12 For more information, contact Jeff Herzberg at 515-570-2601.

As election season nears, please keep in mind the Green Hills AEA  internet policy  when posting on your social media accounts. As a rule of thumb, please avoid posting on work time, on an Agency device or through an account associated with your Agency email.

Here are the scheduled days and times that Visiting Nurse Services will be giving  flu   shots  in each of our offices. These are provided at no cost to anyone covered with agency insurance, and may also be free for other family members with other insurance and/or medicare. Please be sure to bring insurance cards with you, and complete this consent form .  If these dates don't work, you can also get the vaccine at other locations with our insurance, but may incur a small co-pay. 10/10/18 Creston AEA: 7:30-8:00am 10/12/18 Red Oak AEA: 3:45-4:15pm 10/17/18 Osceola AEA: 7:30-8:00am 10/17/18 Council Bluffs/HCE: 3:00-4:00pm 10/18/18 Glenwood AEA at the Glenwood CSD: NE elementary 7:00am-8:30am,                 Glenwood HS: 3:00-4:00pm 10/19/18 Missouri Valley AEA: 3:30-4:00pm 10/22/18 Avoca AEA: 3:30-4:15pm

10/1      Leslie Dickinson 10/2      Jenna Hucka 10/4      Jesica Williar 10/7      Jessica O'Dell 10/9      Kristi Kelly 10/11    Rebecca Hamilton 10/12    Andrew Prine 10/13    Michala Pedersen 10/13    Patsy Schimmel 10/13    Amy Whipp 10/15    Cheryl Case 10/18    Danelle Glidden 10/22    Kendra Peitz 10/23    Jeri Fyock 10/23    Jasmine Zeitner 10/24    Sandra Schmitz 10/27    Hannah Walsh