2008 NEA Midwest Regional Leadership Conference Held in Minneapolis Over the Weekend

One hundred members of Team ISEA braved the frigid wintery Midwest weather to participate in the 2008 Midwest Regional Leadership Conference on January 18-20 in Minneapolis, MN. This year's conference theme was "One Message, Many Voices...Advocate for Great Public Schools in 2008: We Elect to Impact Our World".

Friday evening was kicked off with a keynote address from NEA Vice President Dennis Van Roekel (at right). Dennis was born and raised in Iowa! His first teaching assignment was in Muscatine, IA. The evening was topped off with a wonderful dessert reception hosted by NEA Member Benefits and it partner companies.

Participants from the nine state Midwest Regional had the opportunity to select from numerous breakout sessions to build their skills as local leaders.

Team NEA President Reg Weaver (pictured at left) addressed the conference on Saturday following lunch. Reg gave a rousing speech that inspired all gathered.

Nearly all of Team ISEA members gathered for our "Iowa Night Out" at The News Room restaurant just one block from our hotel. We were most grateful of the proximity because by Saturday evening the temperatures dipped to a minus 35 degrees windchill!






















































Team ISEA's Leadership Team is most proud of the generosity of all participants in contributing to the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education. We had 100% participation with an Iowa average contribution of $46.58. Thanks, Team ISEA for your contributions to the NEA Fund for Children and Public Education!

On Sunday morning a special guest made an appearance before the regional leadership conference, Cat in the Hat! Here (on the right) Team ISEA Treasurer Paula Logan and I are pictured with Cat in the Hat! Team NEA provided all participants with a packet to take home and get started on making plans for Read Across America celebrations in communities all across America!

To send off all Team NEA members gathered on a high note, NEA Secretary-Treasurer Lily Eskelsen shared an inspiring message to carry us all home.

I had the chance to visit with many of our Iowa team as they headed towards their homes and all shared how excited they were to take home the new knowledge to continue to build their local association. Thanks to all for making this a memorable experience for your colleagues of Team ISEA!

U.S. Senator Tom Harkin's Staff Reaches Out to Hear from Iowa Special Ed Teachers on Impact of NCLB

On Tuesday afternoon, January 15th two representatives from U.S. Senator Tom Harkin's staff met with five Iowa Special Education teachers from Des Moines metro schools to hear from them on the impact of the No Child Left Behind law on their students.










Rob Barron (left) is Senator Harkin's education policy person in Washington, D.C. and Bev Schroeder (on the right) worked for Senator Harkin for eleven years in Washington, D.C. as the Senator's education policy person, now working here out of his Des Moines office requested this meeting to have a conversation with those working on the front lines every day.

Melinda Aeschliman (on the left) Saydel Middle School Special Education teacher shared how up to 25% of their school population is identified with an IEP (Individualized Education Plan).

Hillary Faber (below, on left) and Peg Stockdale (on the right), both West Des Moines Valley High School Special Education teachers were a part of our conversation.










Joining us from the Waukee Community School District was Kris Powell (at right). Kris teaches K-3 Special Education at Brookview Elementary and is a fifth year teacher. Kris previously has taught in Indianola and Norwalk.


Another Waukee Community School District Special Education teacher to join us was Jenny Madsen. Jenny currently teaches in the Waukee Middle School with previous experience at Harding Middle School in Des Moines.

Rob started the conversation by saying not everyone has the chance to go to Washington, D.C. to meet with policy makers so on behalf of U.S. Senator Harkin, Rob brought the opportunity to us!

The first issues in our conversation centered around co-teaching. All felt that general education teachers had the student's best interest at heart, but not all were given professional development opportunities to grow and learn in this area.

Other areas of discussion included: Least Restrictive Environment (LRE); Assessments; Alternative Assessments; Services provided by the Area Education Agencies; and Negative and (Positive) Reinforcement for meeting Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).

It was a powerful conversation! Having the opportunity to hear from professionals that are passionate about providing the greatest opportunities for students in their classrooms was a moving experience! We are grateful to have a United States Senator who reaches out to those in the classroom that work directly with students! Thanks, Rob and Bev for providing the opportunity!