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Contents
As part of our continued effort to support K-5 teachers and administrators across the state with LETRS, we are making a few minor changes to our registration process to address the need for more flexibility of access to the training dates.
To support the needs of our educators, buildings/districts can fill out the Building / District registration form at any time and choose to start in March or August of 2024. There will be an additional question on the form to indicate the preference for the course start date.
We are still working to fill our training cohorts with 40-43 participants. To help smaller buildings and districts find others to form these cohorts, buildings/districts can submit their educator participant count and training preference information on this form. As soon as a building or district, combined with others, has a cohort of 40-43 participants, one school or district can email the IALETRS@iowa.gov address to share the information. The DE Literacy Team will connect the contact person with Lexia to continue planning.
We will continue to use the Iowa INDIVIDUAL LETRS Professional Learning Registration Form for all individual registrations. One additional question on the form provides individuals the option to start the training in March or August of 2024.
Please note that this is still a first-come, first-served professional learning opportunity. Even though registrants choose to start in August, filling out the form before all of the licenses are assigned will still be necessary.
The Iowa Department of Education has issued Requests for Proposals (RFP) for high-quality curriculum and instructional materials for:
- K-5 ELA
- 6-12 ELA
- K-5 Math
- 6-12 Math
The RFPs close at the end of February. Teams of content experts will review the proposals and make recommendations for multiple state contracts in each subject area and grade span. The negotiated pricing for the high-quality curriculum and instructional materials will be available to schools in Iowa, and any school or school district may purchase from these state agreements without further competition.
The intent of the RFPs is to provide Iowa schools with statewide access to high-quality instructional materials that have been reviewed by experts across the state and at the Iowa Department of Education. The RFPs are for core instructional materials and supplemental materials are not requested in the RFPs.
Additional details will be provided at the conclusion of the RFP review process.
The Iowa Department of Education is offering two regional professional development workshops with a focus on increasing background knowledge through time devoted to science and social studies to help improve literacy skills. Natalie Wexler, author of The Knowledge Gap, will be zooming to answer questions from participants at the first event, which will be recorded and shared during the second workshop. The primary audience is elementary principals and elementary instructional coaches from any district in Iowa. The first workshop will take place on Thursday, February 29, 2024, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at Kirkendall Library, 1250 SW District Dr, Ankeny, IA. The second workshop is scheduled on Monday, March 4, 2024, from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at Grant Wood AEA, 4401 Sixth Street SW, Cedar Rapids,IA. Here is a flyer for the event with a link to the registration form.
The Iowa Department of Education is pleased to announce that a $1.7 million grant opportunity is being made available to local education agencies delivering eligible accredited secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs that align with industry-recognized credentials (IRCs). Districts can use this funding to support the costs associated with students earning IRCs, which better enhance readiness to attain substantial and consistent employment.
School districts may access the application within the Iowa Grants System beginning January 10, 2024 through February 16, 2024 at 11:59 pm. The funding period for this grant expires September 30, 2024.
Information about the IRC grant and other pertinent information can be found on the Department website at Industry-Recognized Credentials | Department of Education (iowa.gov)
Questions regarding the grant can be directed to the CTE Team at cte@iowa.gov.
The Iowa Governor's STEM Advisory Council has been busy recruiting workplace host sites for the summer 2024 STEM Teacher Externships Program. Currently, 50 workplace hosts have committed to providing externship experiences for STEM educators. Focus will now turn to recruiting secondary STEM educators for these opportunities. The location of the current workplace host locations can be found at: http://tinyurl.com/48bwc7pd. Last summer 82 STEM educators from across the state participated.
The Iowa STEM Teacher Externships Program aims to build bridges between Iowa’s workplaces and STEM educators across the state by equipping these educators to work at local businesses, organizations and other workplaces alongside knowledgeable and skilled professionals during the summer. The teacher externs are mentored to help connect the STEM Externship experience directly to classroom content and 21st Century Skills. Since the program launched in 2009, 727 STEM teacher externs (859 experiences) and 254 Iowa workplaces have built long-lasting school-business partnerships across Iowa that provide educators with the ability to improve student STEM experiences and career knowledge. Both STEM teachers and workplace host partners can apply at www.IowaSTEM.org/Externships.
The Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council at the Iowa Department of Education announced the opportunity for Iowa educators to apply to expand and launch world-class STEM Scale-Up programs for the 2024-25 academic year.
The application period for the STEM Scale-Up Program closes on Feb. 28, at 4:59 p.m.. Awardees will be announced in April.
Through STEM Scale-Up, the following 14 evidence-based programs will be offered to pre-K-12 educators across Iowa for the 2024-2025 academic year:
- All About Balance
- Artificial Intelligence for K-12 Educators
- Blackbird Code
- Derivita Math Program
- Exploring and Connecting to Iowa’s Agriculture
- FUSE Studio
- Investigating Everyday Phenomena
- Making Innovative STEM Connections (MISC)
- Positive Physics, Chemistry, Physical Science, Biology, Environmental Science & Engineering
- Robo Wunderkind STEM Program
- Spatial Vis: The First Stepin Design for Engineering and Technology
- Storytime STEM-backs
- Teachley Math
- Turing Tumble
These 14 programs were selected from over 80 proposals from across the country based on the STEM Council’s strategic priorities that are aligned to workforce needs: agricultural science, computational thinking, early learning, ecology and energy education, mathematics, STEM and arts integration, STEM careers, integration into existing curriculum and transdisciplinary learning. A team of expert reviewers also considered evidence of effect, scalability, diversity impact, cost-benefit ratio, sustainability and alignment with Iowa’s academic standards when selecting final programs.
Visit www.iowastem.org/scale-up-application to apply and to learn more about each of the 2024-25 STEM Scale-Up Programs.
The 2024 Conditions for Learning (CfL) Survey, which all public schools are required to administer to students in grades 3-12, will take place April 1-30. Parent and staff Conditions for Learning surveys are optional for schools to administer and will be available during the same time frame.
Administration procedures for the CfL Survey adheres to the requirements of SF496. The survey itself is federally required, as it is part of the Department’s accountability framework under its approved Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan. Because it is a requirement of this federal law (ESSA), schools are required to give notice, but are not required to acquire active consent. Since the first statewide implementation in 2017-2018, CfL procedures required schools to provide notice to parents, and a copy of survey items (or the option to request a copy), at least two weeks prior to survey administration. Therefore CfL survey administration procedures already adhere to SF496, which states:
“Each school district shall give written notice to a student's parent or guardian of an examination or survey of the student required by state or federal law that is designed to assess the student's mental, emotional, or physical health not less than seven days prior to the examination or survey. The notice shall include a copy of the examination or survey or a link to an internet site where the parent or guardian may access the examination or survey.”
To support this year’s CfL survey administration, the Department, in partnership with Panorama Education, will host an informational webinar on March 26, 2024 at 3:30 PM. The webinar will be recorded and posted on the Department’s website. A survey administration packet, with detailed steps and timeline for survey administration, will be emailed to superintendents and building principals on March 1, 2024.
If you have any questions, please contact Barb Anderson.
Iowa Code 279.10 provides districts with the ability to use up to five days or 30 hours of virtual instruction to meet the minimum requirement. The Department of Education relies on districts and schools to ensure they meet 180 days/1080 hours each school year.
For questions, please contact your Department School Improvement Consultant.
A school or school district may, by board policy, excuse graduating seniors up to five days or 30 hours of instruction after school or school district requirements for graduation have been met. If additional days are added to the regular school calendar because of inclement weather, a graduating senior who has met the school district’s requirements for graduation may be excused from attendance during the extended school calendar.
For questions, please contact your Department School Improvement Consultant.
As a reminder to those districts discussing the change to a four day school week, reimbursable meals served through the USDA National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) can only be offered on instructional days. The nutrition fund cannot be used to pay for food or labor used to produce meals on non-instructional days, and any expenses associated with partnering with other community based organizations to offer meals on non-instructional days must be funded from other sources. If you have additional questions, contact your assigned regional school nutrition consultant.
Annual professional development is required for all staff implementing the USDA National School Lunch Program. Continued training – particularly for the School Nutrition Director – is essential for running an efficient school nutrition operation, ensuring your school meals meet regulations and providing student meals that are great-tasting, nutritious and safe. School nutrition programs are complex, which is the reason that professional standards and training are required by the USDA. Additionally, we anticipate that USDA will release a new pattern for reimbursable meals later this spring for use in SY 2024-25. Support from administration for nutrition staff to participate in annual professional development is essential.
The Iowa Department of Education Bureau of Nutrition and Health Services offers a variety of in-person, webinar and online training opportunities throughout the year:
- Monthly News-to-Know Webinars are offered at 2 pm on the fourth Monday of each month. School Nutrition Directors find these are a convenient way to keep informed through reminders, updates and special topics.
- In-person nutrition training is offered during the summer. Our lineup for Summer 2024 will be promoted to School Food Authorities (SFAs) soon. Attending in-person training is encouraged for learning and the benefit of networking with other directors.
- A collection of recorded webinars, web-based tutorials and staff training webcasts can be found on the new Iowa School Nutrition Resource site. Encourage your School Nutrition Director to check out this unique and helpful resource.
Did you know there are hiring standards for School Nutrition Directors? If your school district will be hiring a new Nutrition Director, please review hiring and annual training requirements. You will also find a sample job posting.
Questions? Your school district has an assigned regional school nutrition consultant. Please reach out if you have questions, we are happy to make recommendations for training.
Visit and subscribe to the Annual Notices and Deadlines Calendar for a list of state and federal notices and deadlines for all public and nonpublic schools.
It is the policy of the Iowa Department of Education not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, sex, disability, religion, age, political party affiliation, or actual or potential parental, family or marital status in its programs, activities, or employment practices as required by the Iowa Code sections 216.9 and 256.10(2), Titles VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. § 2000d2000e), the Equal Pay Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. § 206, et seq.), Title IX (Educational Amendments, 20 U.S.C.§§ 1681 – 1688), Section 504 (Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. § 12101, et seq.). If you have questions or complaints related to compliance with this policy by the Iowa Department of Education, please contact the legal counsel for the Iowa Department of Education, Grimes State Office Building, 400 E. 14th Street, Des Moines, IA 50319-0146, telephone number: 515-281-5295, or the Director of the Office for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, John C. Kluczynski Federal Building, 230 S. Dearborn Street, 37th Floor, Chicago, IL 60604-7204, telephone number: 312-730-1560, FAX number: 312-730-1576, TDD number: 800-877-8339, email: OCR.Chicago@ed.gov
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