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As districts are preparing for the upcoming Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP) testing window, please be sure that you have discussed the testing protocols and security guidance provided by the publisher. This discussion should include not only building level administrators and staff who will be included in the assessment process, but also staff who may be working with home school families to complete the assessment. Please remember the ISASP is not to be sent home for completion by students outside of the school building, area education agency (AEA), or other location designated for testing and is to be supervised by district or AEA personnel who have completed the required training modules for those administering the assessment.
Individuals or districts with questions are welcome to contact Buffy Campbell, the Department of Education's Home Schooling (Private Instruction) contact, at buffy.campbell@iowa.gov or 515-954-8651. Depending on the nature of the inquiry, you will be referred to the best possible resource to assist you.
School districts and AEAs may purchase goods and services through master agreements negotiated by the Iowa Department of Administrative Services (DAS). A wide variety of goods and services are available at rates that are already negotiated. Items range from copy paper to automobiles. Purchases from master agreements do not require a competitive bid process. The link to the DAS procurement website can be found here.
AEA Purchasing is an initiative of the Iowa Association of Area Education Agencies (IAAEA) with the mission of combining the purchasing power of Iowa schools to offer competitive pricing on materials, goods and services through a formal bid process. Serving as a local purchasing cooperative for education for over 20 years, AEA Purchasing has partnered with vendors from across the US – including Iowa and the Midwest – to supply schools with the products needed to operate their programs equitably, efficiently and effectively. From desks to groceries and everything in between, when a school makes a purchase using an AEA Purchasing contract, it is supporting all schools in Iowa by bringing purchase volumes up which, in turn, keeps prices low, enabling a sustainable investment to better serve Iowa students and communities. During the 2021-2022 school year, AEA Purchasing contracts saved Iowa schools an estimated $9 million.
To learn more about the program's offerings and the advantages of cooperative purchasing, please contact Joni Puffett at joni@aeapurchasing.org or visit http://www.aeapurchasing.org.
The Iowa School Business Management Academy will hold its Spring Academy May 8-10, 2023 at the Memorial Union, Iowa State University, 2229 Lincoln Way, Ames, IA. Sessions for Levels I-IV are May 8-10, 2023, and graduate-level sessions are May 9-10, 2023.
Online registration will be available at 7 a.m. on Monday, February 27, 2023.
All current information regarding Educational Savings Accounts can be found here.
The Iowa Department of Education has received numerous questions and comments regarding the provision of textbooks for concurrent enrollment courses. If the school district is responsible for providing textbooks for a concurrent enrollment course, the expectation is that textbooks are provided to students enrolled in the concurrent enrollment course consistent with the district's established textbook policy and in the same manner as the district provides textbooks for all students of the district (Iowa Code chapter 301).
If the district charges an annual textbook rental fee to all students, that established fee covers all textbooks for all courses (high school credit only and concurrent enrollment). If the district charges no fee for textbooks, then no fee may be charged to students for concurrent enrollment textbooks. Only if a district’s policy is to charge on a book-by-book basis to all students, for all courses can a district charge a textbook fee for each concurrent enrollment course.
It would not be permissible for a district to establish a separate textbook policy specific to concurrent enrollment courses which may require a student to purchase textbooks for their concurrent enrollment courses; doing so would set additional restrictions on participation in the course (281 IAC 22.4(1)(h)) as well as equate to charging tuition (281 IAC 22.11(6)), both of which are expressly prohibited in state law.
Please note the following:
- This applies to all instructional delivery methods (e.g., in the high school, online, on-campus, through a career academy).
- There would be nothing preventing the student from purchasing the textbook for the concurrent enrollment course if they want to keep it, but requiring the student to purchase the book would equate to charging, which is not permissible.
Refer to additional information on page 27 of the Senior Year Plus guide.
For questions or comments, contact Jen Rathje, Senior Year Plus, at jennifer.rathje@iowa.gov or 515-326-5389, or Scott Dryer, School Finance, at scott.dryer@iowa.gov or 515-402-8700.
A new Google calendar is available on the Annual Notices and Deadlines for Public and Nonpublic Schools webpage. This page displays important state and federal notices and deadlines for all public and nonpublic schools just as it did before. Now with the addition of the new feature, users can subscribe to the calendar in order to add the important deadlines to their own Google, Outlook and Apple calendars. The calendar information also includes the state/federal law citation and the appropriate contacts at the Department.
The subscription feature is something school administrators and business officials have asked the Department to provide, and we are excited to offer this additional functionality for schools. Users can subscribe to the entire calendar for all deadlines or select a specific deadline (Google calendar only) if they only want to copy a selected deadline to their calendar.
More information, including calendar links and subscription directions for the different technology options, is also provided on the webpage.
The Iowa Department of Education is accepting applications for the U.S. Department of Education’s 2023 Green Ribbon Schools Award. The Green Ribbon Schools Award is a public engagement initiative structured as a federal recognition award for school sustainability. Recipients of the award are invited to a ceremony in Washington, D.C., where they receive a plaque and have their efforts celebrated. Other schools, in turn, learn from their practices.
Applicants must show combined progress in each of the award pillars described below.
- Pillar I: Reduce environmental impact and costs
- Pillar II: Improve the health and wellness of schools, students, and staff
- Pillar III: Provide effective environmental and sustainability education
Early learning centers, schools, districts, and postsecondary institutions demonstrating progress in every area will receive the highest scores in the nomination process. Quality and timely applications will be considered for nomination. Nominees (up to five early learning, schools, or districts, and up to one postsecondary institution) will be contacted directly for further documentation and acceptance of the nomination. Additional resources for each Pillar is available on the Green Strides School Sustainability Resource Hub.
Applications are due Friday, February 10. Direct questions and the final submission to Scott Dryer at scott.dryer@iowa.gov or 515-402-8700.
Have you heard about the $4.5 million Energy CLASS Prize that is now open for submissions?
Similar to Renew America’s Schools grant, The Energy Champions Leading the Advancement of Sustainable Schools (CLASS) Prize was launched by The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) State and Community Energy Program Office (SCEP). The CLASS Prize will provide training and cash prizes to school districts working to make energy management a sustainable feature of their communities.
The CLASS Prize is designed to position Local Education Agencies (LEAs) to make meaningful infrastructure improvements that will reduce utility costs, improve indoor air quality, and improve learning environments long-term.
A total of $4.5 million in awards is available, including $3.75 million in cash prizes for selected LEAs to fund energy management professionals-in-training, and an additional $750,000 in technical assistance from Energy CLASS Training Network partners. Experts in the Energy CLASS Training Network will provide professional development and support to Energy CLASS participants throughout the program.
- Check out the CLASS Prize FAQs or watch the Energy CLASS Prize Informational Webinar for further information.
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Follow the Energy CLASS Prize on HeroX to stay up-to-date on all prize-related news.
- Note: Phase 1 submissions are due on February 28, 2023, by 4 p.m.
For more information about the CLASS Prize, or if you need additional support, please reach out to energyclassprize@nrel.gov.
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