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 June 2025
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Inside this issue:
Department of Education Resources
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Upcoming Deadlines
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Due Date
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What's Due
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June 16
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Nonpublic Transportation Claim Due
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June 30
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Last Day to Pay Postsecondary Enrollment Options (PSEO) Tuition Due to Eligible Postsecondary Institutions
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June 30
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Deadline to Submit Notification of Intent to Implement Community Eligibility Provision (CEP)
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July 1
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Emergency Operations Plan Due
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July 1
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Joint Employment Whole Grade Sharing Applications Due
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July 1
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Vehicle Information System (VIS) Updates Due
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July 15
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Last Day to Bill for Second Semester Regular and Special Education Tuition
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July 17
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Last Day to Submit Foster Care Transportation Claim
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August 1
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Foster Care Claim Certification Deadline (certification required for acceptance of funds)
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August 1
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Special Education Claims Due - Foster Care, District Court Placed, Nonpublic, High Cost
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August 1
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Juvenile Home Program Claim Due (AEAs only)
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August 4
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GSSB Training
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Staff Contact Information
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House File (HF) 782 established Iowa Code section 279.87 Limitation on the use of personal electronic devices and requires schools to adopt a board policy regarding student use of personal electronic devices during school hours that restrict student use of such devices during classroom time. The policy, titled “Model Policy Implementing House File 782: Personal Electronic Devices in Schools”, is available on the Department’s Legislative Information page, under section Guidance & Updates on Legislation.
Section 3 of the bill requires school districts to update their emergency operations plans so that the plans are consistent with the provisions of Iowa Code 279.87. Please remember to send updated plans to local law enforcement and the Governor’s School Safety Bureau (GSSB) at SchoolSafety@dps.state.ia.us. Questions regarding the update to the plan can be sent to GSSB at SchoolSafety@dps.state.ia.us.
The Department and GSSB hosted a statewide webinar of expert panelists on June 17 to provide support and guidance to schools. The webinar recording is available on the Department’s Legislative Information page, under section Guidance & Updates on Legislation.
Senate File (SF) 660 appropriates $14 million to the Department of Education to eligible districts in 2025-2026 to use for Educational Support Personnel Salary Supplement payments, similar to the funding provided in 2024-2025.
The funds are required to be used in 2025-2026 to provide additional salary to hourly employees. Districts may determine the methodology to award the amounts to all staff or certain classes of staff on a regular basis throughout the year or as a one-time payment.
Eligibility: Districts eligible to receive the funds are those who complete the reporting requirements through the simplified form by June 27 as communicated in the June 17 email sent to superintendents from Jay Pennington. Questions regarding the completion of the form can be sent to Shelly Wolterman at shelly.neese@iowa.gov. Questions regarding the use of funds can be sent to Kassandra Cline at kassandra.cline@iowa.gov.
SF659 Section 6 establishes Iowa Code subsection 19B of 257.35 regarding media and educational services funding generated by students attending nonpublic schools. Beginning July 1, 2025, the funds will be paid directly to the Area Education Agencies (AEAs) in which the nonpublic schools are located. AEAs will provide the services directly to students at the nonpublic schools.
SF171 modifies Iowa Code section 275.24 and 275.55 which define effective dates of certain votes for propositions to enlarge, reorganize, or change the boundary lines of a school district.
- A voter-approved proposition approved by voters pursuant to Iowa Code section 275.18 (reorganization) prior to January 1, 2025 is effective on July 1 following the date of the election.
- A voter-approved proposition approved by voters pursuant to Iowa Code section 275.55 (dissolution) after January 1, 2025 is effective on July 1 in the calendar year following the vote.
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The Bureau of School Business Operations will be offering virtual office hours during the upcoming FY25 application submission period for the Certified Annual Report (CAR), Special Education Supplement (SES), and the Annual Transportation Report (ATR). Members of the Department’s team as well as other School Business Officials will be available to answer questions related to the applications. Mark your calendars and bring any questions related to the CAR, SES, or ATR. The schedule and topic information below is also available on the Department’s Certified Annual Report web page.
Virtual office hours dates and times:
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Date
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Time
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Tuesday, August 26
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1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
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Wednesday, August 27
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9:30 am - 11:00 am
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Wednesday, September 3
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1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
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Friday, September 5
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9:30 am - 11:00 am
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Monday, September 8
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9:30 am - 11:00 am
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Thursday, September 11
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1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
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Join the webinar:
https://IDOE.zoom.us/j/92631407487?pwd=pLb6PIaKZ2QYsYnM3yXity2X7ikfZa.1
Meeting ID: 926 3140 7487
Passcode: 545958
The Department continues to receive questions regarding allowable uses of special education funds, including costs allowable to the special education program as well as the 10% of special education support services funding that will be retained by districts beginning in FY26.
The Department will host a webinar to review allowable uses of special education funding on Wednesday, August 13 at 10:00 am. Additional information will be shared in the July SBA, including how to earn SBO renewal credit for attending.
The FY25 annual compilation of School Business Alert articles is now available on the Department's School Business Alerts web page.
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Question: How do Local Education Agencies (LEAs) view first semester billings in the Special Education Billing (SEB) application?
Answer: In order to gain access to the “Forms” drop-down menu and view first semester billing, the LEA must enter required contact information and upload a .csv billing file. At least one contact should be identified in the following categories: Special Education Supplement, Claim Forms, and Special Education Billing. Please note that this action will not impact the first semester billing.
Questions regarding the Special Education Billing application can be sent to specialeducationfinance@iowa.gov.
Questions: How do districts account for repair and replacement costs of items or properties damaged from natural disasters (e.g., tornado)? How are insurance proceeds and deductibles recorded?
Answer: Districts will account for repair or replacement costs due to natural disasters in the fund that is most appropriate for the type of expenditure. Examples are provided below.
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Damaged Item
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General Fund
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PPEL
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SAVE
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Nutrition
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Bus
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Yes
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Yes
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Yes, if revenue purpose statement (RPS) allows
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No
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Roof
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No
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Yes
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Yes, if RPS allows
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No
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Tree removal
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No
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Yes
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Yes, if RPS allows
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No
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Food for school meal program
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No
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No
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No
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Yes
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Textbooks
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Yes
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Yes, if over $500
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Yes, if RPS allows
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No
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Computer
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Yes
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Replacement: Yes, if over $500 or bundled
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Replacement: Yes, if RPS allows
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No
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Insurance Proceeds:
Districts that receive insurance proceeds for the repair or replacement claim will deposit the revenue into the fund that incurred the cost of the repair or replacement with Source 5311 (for significant losses, use Source 6410).
Deductible:
The deductible portion of an eligible insurance claim may be transferred from the Management Fund to the fund that incurred the cost of the repair or replacement.
Transfer journal entry for the deductible portion of the claim:
Management Fund
Debit Fund 22, Function 62XX, Object 910
Credit Fund 22, Account 10X
Fund that incurred the cost of the repair or replacement
Debit Fund XX, Account 10X
Credit Fund XX, Source 5222
Further questions may be directed to Jina Brincks at jina.brincks@iowa.gov or 515-313-5942 or Song Luong at song.luong1@iowa.gov or 515-205-0259.
Question: Can the costs of professional development for special education teachers be charged to the special education program (i.e., weighted funding)? Does that include costs for instructional coaching?
Answer: Yes, the cost of purchased professional development services for special education teachers is allowable if it is exclusively related to special education, appropriate to the employee’s job duties, and purchased from an entity other than an AEA or LEA (e.g., district). If the services are provided by the employee’s LEA, another LEA, or the AEA, the costs are not allowable to the special education program. The costs for instructional coaches who are employed by the district and provide instructional coaching to employees cannot be charged to the special education program. The June 2024 SBA article titled, “Special Education Allowable Use: Instructional Coaches” did not specify costs for instructional coaching are only an allowable use of special education funds if the services are purchased from a non-AEA or non-LEA entity.
Tips:
- Districts are encouraged to review all special education expenditures as part of the year-end process to ensure only allowable costs were charged to the special education program.
- Districts are encouraged to review bills as they are created and received to ensure only allowable costs are charged.
Appropriate uses of special education funding are available in the Chart of Allowable Special Education Costs available on the Department’s Special Education Finance web page.
Questions regarding allowable uses of special education funds can be sent to SpecialEducationFinance@iowa.gov.
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SF583 (Iowa Acts 2025) provides the framework for school safety assessment teams, often referred to as behavioral threat assessment management. The United States Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center defines behavioral threat assessment as a behavior-based approach to proactively prevent incidents of targeted violence. A required element of these assessment teams is open lines of communication and a collaborative approach between multidisciplinary team members. This nationally recognized approach is a best practice for the prevention of school violence.
- The Governor’s School Safety Bureau (GSSB) is taking steps toward the development of a statewide school safety assessment team and protocols. These statewide professionals will serve in this capacity as a collaborative body providing guidance, recommendations, and services to school districts who have unique or special circumstances requiring additional professional assistance.
- School districts may also develop their own teams and protocols independent of the statewide protocols.
- Team members may include juvenile court services, mental health professionals, social services, school representatives, and law enforcement.
- The Department of Education will collaborate with the GSSB of the Department of Public Safety, who is the lead team and agency to implement this important work.
Questions regarding the safety assessment teams can be directed to GSSB at SchoolSafety@dps.state.ia.us.
The Governor’s School Safety Bureau (GSSB) has partnered with the “i love you guys” foundation to host a free day-long Train-the-Trainer Workshop for an advanced introduction for the Standard Response Protocol and the Standard Reunification Method. These training protocols are used by more than 50,000 schools, districts, departments, agencies, organizations, and communities around the world.
Additional information, including a link to register, is available on the GSSB web page.
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The FY26 indirect cost rates for federal programs are available on the Department’s Indirect Cost Rate web page.
Districts in a whole grade sharing arrangement seeking to apply for joint employment must submit the School Information Update application by July 1, 2025 which shall include whole grade sharing details and the confirmation supplementary weighting is being requested. Pursuant to 281 IAC 97.2(4), the minimum requirements for joint employment are provided below.
- Joint teacher evaluation process and instruments
- Joint teacher professional development plan
- Single salary schedule
Examples of additional evidence of partner districts may include the items below.
- Same student information system
- Same financial software
- Identical calendars
- One website for both districts
Further questions can be directed to Ted Bauer at ted.bauer@iowa.gov or 515-979-5468.
All districts receive Teacher Leadership and Compensation (TLC) supplement through monthly state aid payments. The TLC per pupil state aid amount for FY26 is $385.29.
Questions regarding the TLC program can be directed to Stephanie Langstraat at stephanie.langstraat@iowa.gov or 515‑402-8700.
Questions regarding account coding can be directed to Song Luong at song.luong1@iowa.gov or 515‑205-0259.
Pursuant to Iowa Code section 257.31(14), the School Budget Review Committee (SBRC) certified the FY24 special education balances of all school districts to the Department of Management (DOM) following the January 8, 2025 SBRC hearing.
For any school district with a positive special education certified balance:
- DOM will subtract the amount of the positive balance exceeding 10 percent of the additional funds generated for special education, not to include any previous carryover, from the amount of state aid remaining to be paid to the district during the FY25 budget year. See the LEA Monthly Payment Summaries starting in March on the Department’s State Payment Information FY25 web page.
- DOM will determine the amount of the positive balance exceeding 10 percent that came from local property tax revenues and increase the district’s total state aid for the subsequent budget year by the amount determined. DOM will also reduce the district’s tax levy computed under section 257.4 for the subsequent budget year by the amount necessary to compensate for the increased state aid.
For any school district with a negative special education certified balance:
- As directed by the SBRC, DOM will make the supplemental aid for FY24 special education deficit payments to school districts that were granted the modified supplemental amounts requested during the SBRC January 8, 2025 hearing.
- Payments will be disbursed this month and should be coded to Source/Project 3113. Use program code between 211 and 219. This revenue source does not require matching expenditures.
Questions regarding this calculation can be directed to John Parker at john.parker@iowa.gov or 515-281-8485.
Questions regarding account coding can be directed to Jina Brincks at jina.brincks@iowa.gov or 515-313-5942 or Song Luong at song.luong1@iowa.gov or 515-205-0259.
Open Enrollment and Concurrent Enrollment Supplementary Weighting
Districts offering concurrent enrollment courses and eligible Project Lead the Way (PLTW) courses may bill resident districts for the supplementary weighting generated on open-enrolled students enrolled in the contracted courses. Bills for the supplementary weighting can be generated using the information provided in the Student Reporting in Iowa (SRI) application. Before paying a bill for supplementary weighting, the resident district can verify the information by reviewing the Supplementary Weighting (Non-Fall) application in the Iowa Education Portal. The student’s resident district cost per pupil of the year in which the course was taken is used to calculate supplementary weighting. Directions for generating and verifying the bills are posted on the Department’s Certified Enrollment Supplementary Weighting web page.
Whole Grade Sharing and Concurrent Enrollment Supplementary Weighting
For districts in a whole grade sharing arrangement, supplementary weighting generated on resident students remains with the resident district unless some other arrangement has been articulated in the whole grade sharing agreement. While options for distributing the concurrent enrollment supplementary weighting exist, such as having the community college contract directly with the sharing partner for the sharing partner’s resident students or negotiating a higher per pupil rate for whole grade shared students in grades 9-12, addressing the issue of distributing the concurrent enrollment supplementary weighting in the whole grade sharing agreement may be the best alternative.
Shared Teacher and Supplementary Weighting
The contract for a shared teacher is held by one district. The district purchasing a portion of the contract may generate supplementary weighting on their resident students enrolled in courses taught by the shared teacher. Eligibility for supplementary weighting is dependent on the purchasing district not having a licensed and endorsed teacher available within the school district to teach the course(s) being provided by the shared teacher (281 IAC 97.2(3)). The supplementary weighting incentive is for the non-contract holding district. The district holding the contract benefits by being able to retain a teacher and also have a portion of the contract paid by another district.
Other Billing Situations
- Whole grade sharing billing for the second semester is based on the count of resident students from the sending district on the second Friday in January (Iowa Code § 282.12(4)). In the 2024-2025 school year, second semester count for whole grade sharing occurred on January 10, 2025.
- If a sharing district elects not to enter into a whole grade sharing agreement when sharing “all or a substantial portion of the students in any grade” with another school district for “all or a substantial portion of a school day, then no students in that grade level are eligible for supplementary weighting except as authorized by 281 IAC 97.4 pursuant to the supplementary weighting plan for whole-grade sharing (281 IAC 97.2(8))." An exception to the “no students are eligible for supplementary weighting” is concurrent enrollment supplementary weighting. High school students attending another district, either through a whole grade sharing agreement or a tuition agreement because of the discontinuation of grades, are eligible to generate supplementary weighting when enrolled in eligible concurrent enrollment courses.
- There is no billing of costs incurred for students taking high school, concurrent enrollment, or postsecondary enrollment options (PSEO) courses who are enrolled in the public district as: competent private instruction (CPI) dual enrolled (Iowa Code §§ 257.6(3) and (7)), open enrolled CPI dual enrolled (Iowa Code § 257.6(3) and (7)), independent private instruction (IPI) for concurrent enrollment only (Iowa Code 261E.8(2)), nonpublic shared time (Iowa Code §§ 257.6(3) and (7)), and Junior/Senior rule (Iowa Code § 257.6(4)).
For the situations listed, the serving district generates funding directly through certified enrollment.
- No parent or student shall be billed for costs incurred from concurrent enrollment courses, even if the cost to the district exceeds the billable amount.
- Districts cannot bill students or parents for failed concurrent enrollment courses.
- A district can bill a parent (or student if 18 years of age) for the tuition cost of a failed PSEO course, the cost of equipment that becomes the property of the student, and the cost of a school-owned textbook that is not returned (Iowa Code § 261E.7(2)).
- A serving district can only bill the resident district of an open enrolled student for tuition, supplementary weighting generated from concurrent enrollment courses, PLTW courses, English learner (EL) supplementary weighting, the teacher leadership state cost per pupil, the professional development state cost per pupil, and the early intervention state cost per pupil (Iowa Code § 282.18(7).
Questions regarding supplementary weighting can be directed to Ted Bauer at ted.bauer@iowa.gov or 515-979-5468.
Questions regarding data in the SRI application can be directed to Rachel Kruse at rachel.kruse@iowa.gov or 515-281-4153.
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The Iowa Chart of Account Coding, found on the Department's Uniform Financial Accounting web page, is regularly updated to reflect changes necessary to meet fiscal reporting needs.
May 2025
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Account Code
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Description
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Source/Project 4362
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Clean School Bus Grant Program (EPA) (FAL/CFDA 66.045) (May25)
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Source/Project 3423
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Iowa STEM's Business & Community Partners Programming Support through the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines (May25)
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Source/Project 3417
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Empowering Youth Service-Learning (HHS-Volunteer Iowa) (May25)
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Please be sure revenue accounted for in the Student Activity Fund is correctly identified. Below are some frequently used source codes.
- 151X – Interest on deposits and investments
- 171X – Admissions (gate receipts for school-sponsored activity)
- 173X – Student organization membership dues and fees
- 174X – Fees (this would include entry fees for other districts to participate in a meet the district is holding, 1748 if using details)
- 179X – Other activity income (this would include fundraisers such as concessions or sales of clothing or other items to those that are not students, 1791 if using details)
- 192X (not 1921 or 1922) – Contribution and donation from private sources (a district assigned project code (8001-9999) may be used)
- 1958 – Other sales of service/miscellaneous revenues from other Iowa LEAs/AEAs (from sharing activity programs with other LEAs/AEAs)
- 1991 – Sale of materials or supplies (sale of t-shirts to students at cost)
- 5311 – Compensation for loss of capital assets (payments received from students for loss of uniform)
Further questions can be directed to Jina Brincks at jina.brincks@iowa.gov or 515-313-5942 or Song Luong at song.luong1@iowa.gov or 515-205-0259.
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Thank you for the timely completion of the School Information Update review for the 2025-2026 school year. If the district experiences a superintendent or principal change over the summer, please remember to log into the portal and update the administrator information as soon as a replacement has been named.
Questions can be directed to Jennifer Thomas at jennifer.thomas@iowa.gov or 515-725-2252.
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SF2368 (Iowa Acts 2024) added a reporting requirement for school districts and defined a hierarchy of accepting bids for sale of district property.
Reporting requirement
This legislation established Iowa Code section 297.23 which requires each school district to post the following information on the district’s internet site beginning on July 1, 2024:
- The square footage of each school building owned by the school district.
- The enrollment capacity of each attendance center owned by the district.
- How each school building owned by the district is currently utilized.
- School buildings owned by the district that are vacant.
Hierarchy of accepting bids for sale of district property
The legislation established Iowa Code section 297.24, which prohibits school districts from entering into an agreement that prohibits the sale of real property to an educational institution. If the district offers to sell real property that includes a building or structure and an educational institution submits the highest bid for the property, then the district is required to sell the property to the highest bidder. Educational institutions in this context are defined as a school district, nonpublic school, charter school, community college, state training school, and an accredited private postsecondary institution.
Districts that are part of a Perkins consortium or Regional Planning Partnership (RPP) should expect to receive journal entries from the fiscal agent to record in the district’s records, including transactions completed by the fiscal agent on behalf of the consortium or partnership. The following are accounting resources available for use.
Questions regarding Perkins can be directed to Amy Vybiral at amy.vybiral@iowa.gov or (515) 339-4520.
Questions regarding RPPs can be directed to Heather Meissen at heather.meissen@iowa.gov or 515‑326‑5378.
Questions regarding account coding can be directed to Jina Brincks at jina.brincks@iowa.gov or 515‑313‑5942.
SF167 increases the supplementary weighting eligible to be generated through operational function sharing from 21 Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs) to 25 FTEs effective for budget years beginning July 1, 2025. Iowa Code section 257.11 provides that any supplementary weighting generated for a college and career transition counselor or coordinator will not count toward the maximum 25 FTEs. If a district has an eligible sharing arrangement for a college and career transition counselor or coordinator, supplementary weighting may generate up to 27 FTEs.
Reminder: Sharing arrangements that qualify to generate supplementary weighting for operational function sharing are limited to the position codes below in Fall BEDS Staff. A district may generate weighting for one in each category.
- Superintendent (9 FTEs)
- Business Management (4 FTEs)
- 612 - School Business Official (each district can only have one SBO)
- 133 - SBO - Other
- 112 - Board Secretary
- HR Manager (4 FTEs)
- Transportation Director (4 FTEs)
- 167 - Transportation Director
- Operation & Maintenance Director (4 FTEs)
- 168 - Operations Director
- Curriculum Director (2 FTEs)
- 633 - Director/Coordinator/Department Head
- Counselor (2 FTEs)
- Social Worker (2 FTEs)
- 624 - Social Worker
- 198 - Social Worker (Non-BoEE licensed)
- Special Education Director (2 FTEs)
- 515 - Special Education Director
- Workplace Learning Coordinator (2 FTEs)
- 633 - Director/Coordinator/Department Head, assignment 50040
- Mental Health Professional with Statement of Professional Recognition (SPR) from BoEE (2 FTEs)
- 621 - Mental Health Professional
- School Resource Officer (2 FTEs)
- College and Career Counselor or Coordinator (2 FTEs)*
- 720 - College and Career Transition Counselor (licensed)
- 199 - College and Career Transition Coordinator (non-licensed)
*Does not count toward the supplementary weighting limit of 25 FTE.
For new sharing arrangements with other governmental entities that are not another Iowa public school district or AEA, please submit a copy of the sharing contract and job description to ted.bauer@iowa.gov.
Questions regarding Fall BEDS or Fall BEDS Staff can be directed to Shelly Wolterman at shelly.neese@iowa.gov or 515-336-3859. Additional information regarding reporting of shared positions in Fall BEDS Staff can be found on the Fall BEDS Staff Documentation section of the Fall BEDS web page.
Further questions regarding operational sharing can be directed to Ted Bauer at ted.bauer@iowa.gov or 515-979-5468.
Below are some tips to help ensure the integrity of positions engaged in operational function sharing and provide transparency.
- Ensure the agreement is in place, approved, and commencing on the normal start date for the position based on the length of the contract for a returning employee in that position.
- The entity holding the contract may not give away a portion of their employee’s contract. The purchasing entity must pay for the portion of the contract that is being purchased (minimum 20% of salary and benefits is required for the sharing to be an eligible sharing arrangement for supplementary weighting).
- Any new contract with a governmental entity that is not another Iowa public school district or AEA must include the responsibilities the person will perform for each organization.
- Discuss any questions or concerns about the eligibility for supplementary weighting with the Department prior to the signing of the agreement to allow for modifications to the contract if the sharing is dependent on the generation of supplementary weighting.
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Multiple entities sharing: If five districts enter into an agreement to share a position at 20% each, but the sharing does not start until October 1, the sharing among the five entities would not be an eligible arrangement. For a 12-month position, 25% of the year would have transpired. Only 75% of the remaining contract would be eligible to be shared. Even four districts sharing the remaining 75% would not result in each of the districts receiving 20% of the contract. The same would be true for a 10-month contract running August through May. If the sharing does not begin until October, only 80% of the full-time contract remains. Therefore, only four districts would be eligible to purchase 20% of the remaining portion of the full-time position. To avoid any questions of impropriety, the sharing arrangements should be in place at the beginning of the full-time employee’s contractual year.
- All eligible operational function sharing arrangements must be entered correctly in Fall BEDS Staff each fall. This includes:
- Providing the appropriate position of the individual being shared.
- Identifying the sharing status as either the contract holder or the district purchasing services.
- Reporting salary and benefits to be paid by each district with the contract holder reporting the full amount and the district purchasing the services reporting their portion of the salary and benefits (using the purchased amount field).
- Reporting the type of shared arrangement and identifying the sharing partner(s)
- Reporting the individual’s full-time equivalent (FTE) with the contract holder reporting the full amount and the district purchasing the services reporting their portion of the FTE.
- After all operational sharing reporting is completed by the district in Fall BEDS Staff, review shared arrangements in Operational Sharing. If the data is complete and accurate, certify the Operational Sharing application. If data is missing or inaccurate, contact the shared district/ AEA or edit the district data, which must be done in Fall BEDS Staff.
Further questions regarding operational function sharing eligibility can be directed to Ted Bauer at ted.bauer@iowa.gov or 515-979-5468.
Questions regarding reporting positions part of an operational sharing agreement in Fall BEDS Staff can be directed to Shelly Wolterman at shelly.neese@iowa.gov or 515-336-3859.
Information regarding Iowa’s Students First Education Savings Account (ESA) program can be found on the Department's Students First Education Savings Accounts web page.
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For School-Based Medicaid policy questions, contact Tashina Hornaday, Medical Policy Program Manager at Iowa Health and Human Services, at tashina.hornaday@hhs.iowa.gov or 515-201-3553.
For Medicaid procedure questions, contact Melissa Walker, Administrative Consultant of School Health at the Department of Education, at melissa.walker@iowa.gov or 515-864-6701.
The Accounting for School-Based Medicaid resource document is intended to assist districts through the School-Based Medicaid accounting process, from accessing the invoice to reclassifying the related Medicaid expenditures.
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Districts may submit claims for partial reimbursement of transportation services provided to children in foster care between the school of origin and the foster care placement. The school of origin is defined as the school where a student was enrolled before entering foster care or the school the student attended prior to changing foster care placements, if applicable.
The Department distributes Title IV-E funds for eligible transportation arrangements as listed below.
- Yellow bus transportation
- Public transportation
- Contracted transportation in a van or car
- Transportation provided by a care provider or family member
Information about how to submit for reimbursement can be found on the Department’s Education of Students in Foster Care web page. Use the ESSA Foster Care Transportation Reimbursement Form to file one claim per household – usually an individual child, but sometimes a sibling group if the siblings are all attending the same building and are placed together. Districts may submit multiple claims as separate line items in the same form, or send claims separately. All district level Foster Care Points of Contact have received a copy of the form. The information below is needed to complete the form.
- County of the HHS case manager responsible for placement
- School of origin (SOO) name
- Receiving school district name (aka district of foster care placement)
- Distance in miles between the SOO and the foster care placement
- Number of days the student was transported
- Date HHS was notified of the transportation plan
- Date transportation began
- Date transportation ended (if applicable)
- If transportation is ongoing, this field can be left blank
- Student’s State ID number
- Transportation classification
- Contiguous (district of origin and the placement district border each other)
- Non-Contiguous (district of origin and the placement district do not directly border each other)
- Out of State (student is placed out of state, within a reasonable distance from the Iowa border)
- Means of transportation
- Total number of trips taken by staff to transport the student during the quarter
- Generally, there are four trips per day:
- One trip to pick the student up
- One trip to transport the student to school
- One trip to take the student home from school
- One trip to return from that trip
- One-way trip mileage driven to transport the student
- Trip staff time, rounded to the nearest quarter hour
- Hourly staff cost, for both salaries and benefits
- Number of eligible students transported
- Only students in foster care can be claimed
- Generally there is one student per claim, but sometimes a sibling group is transported to the same location
- Student first and last name
- Student date of birth
Because this form collects confidential information, please send this form to elisa.koler@iowa.gov using the State of Iowa’s encrypted email solution gSecureMail. This form may be submitted any time during the school year, and claims are paid quarterly. At the end of every fiscal year, Quarter 4 claims must be submitted by July 17th in order to be paid from the previous fiscal year’s budget.
Questions or requests for assistance in supporting students in foster care can be directed to Elisa Koler at elisa.koler@iowa.gov or 515-669-4052.
New School Bus Driver Training
New Driver - Online Portion: Beginning July 1, 2025, the online portion of the new driver School Transportation Operator’s Program (S.T.O.P.) Training will be available through AEA Learning Online.
The training content was updated with multiple priorities in mind:
- The AEA Online interface is more user friendly and already familiar to drivers for other required training.
- The updated content does not overlap with ELDT training requirements.
- The updated content is much shorter than the previous 14-hour online portion.
Additional information will be made available to transportation directors closer to the July 1 launch date.
New Driver - Face-to-Face Portion: The 3-hour face-to-face portion of the new driver training will still be available through the community colleges and Mississippi Bend AEA.
Returning School Bus Driver Annual Training
The annual 3-hour face-to-face class for current drivers is updated annually and will continue to be available through the community colleges and Mississippi Bend AEA.
Accessing AEA Online
All districts/schools that opt in to AEA Online already have a verification code. This includes many public and nonpublic schools. Bus drivers that need to establish new accounts must include the related verification code in their profile>employment info. Once affiliated, each driver will be able to access the training at no cost to them or the school. Review the step-by-step tutorial for setting up a new account.
Tip for nonpublic schools and contractors: Step 7 specifically addresses how to affiliate an account with a district.
Questions related to driver training should be directed to Tom Simpson at tom.simpson@iowa.gov or 515-336-3965.
Summer brings warmer weather and, typically, reduced demand for student transportation. This combination provides an excellent opportunity for school districts, nonpublic schools, and contractors to perform routine maintenance and required chassis inspections.
Iowa Administrative Code r. 281-43.18 requires the chassis of all vehicles used for student transportation, whether publicly or privately owned, to be inspected annually and all necessary repairs made before the vehicle is put into service. This inspection is to be recorded on a form, known as the chassis card or TR-F27A, prescribed by the Department. The form can be found on the Department’s Transportation Forms web page. All repairs related to the inspection should also be documented on the inspection form.
This annual inspection may be completed by a qualified school mechanic, contractor personnel, or by an outside vendor. The completed form is to be signed and dated by the mechanic performing the inspection.
Please remember, the completed form, or a copy, must be carried in the vehicle.
Questions relating to the required annual chassis inspection and/or the TR-F27A form can be directed to Tom Simpson at tom.simpson@iowa.gov or 515-336-3965 or to the district’s school bus inspector listed below.
Joe Funk (Southeast Region) at joe.funk@iowa.gov or 515-669-4987
Chris Errthum (Northeast Region) at chris.errthum@iowa.gov or 515-669-4994
Codie Kellen (West Region) at codie.kellen@iowa.gov or 515-326-1022
Four documents are required to be in every vehicle used for student transportation, and two of these documents are often replaced during this time of year. It is important documents are dept current and placed in a secure and dry location in the vehicle where a driver can quickly and easily find these documents when needed, such as in case of a crash, if requested by law enforcement, or during inspections performed by the Department.
- Vehicle Registration - Most vehicles used for student transportation will use official license plates which are registered to the school district and not a specific vehicle. These registrations do not expire. Vehicles not using official license plates will have license plates registered to the specific vehicle and these registrations do expire. If the vehicle is not using official license plates, care must be taken to be sure the registration is current.
- Insurance Card - All vehicles must have a current insurance card.
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TR-F-27A Chassis Inspection Card - This form is used to document the chassis inspection performed either by school district personnel or an outside vendor. This inspection is required to be performed at least once per year and a current, completed card (or copy) that is signed and dated within the previous 12 months must be in the vehicle.
- Inspection Summary - The previous Department inspection summary must be in the vehicle and it must document any corrections made to deficiencies from the previous inspection. New vehicles that have been put into service following a pre-use inspection must have a completed TR-F-27B Pre-Use Inspection Form (or copy) in the vehicle until Department inspectors perform a regular inspection. The TR-F-27B can then be replaced by an inspection summary.
The Iowa Pupil Transportation Association (IPTA) provides professional development opportunities available for school transportation directors.
The 61st annual IPTA Annual Conference will be held July 14-16 at the Airport Holiday Inn in Des Moines. The conference will once again include the valued “New Directors Workshop” where the Department’s transportation team will provide new transportation directors with useful and relevant information, explain applicable laws and rules, and share best practices for safe and efficient student transportation.
In addition to the workshop, the conference will feature local and national presenters, including Department representatives, who will provide relevant transportation-related information and discuss regulations and best practices.
Additional information, including registration details, can be found on the IPTA web page or by contacting David Johnson, IPTA Executive Director, at david@4ipta.org or 712-830-3242.
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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. § 2000d and 2000e), 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, Citigroup Center, 500 W. Madison Street, Suite 1475, Chicago, IL 60661-4544, telephone number: 312-730-1560, FAX number: 312-730-1576, TDD number: 877-521-2172, email: OCR.Chicago@ed.gov.
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