Fine Arts/Iowa Core Professional Development

The statewide Fine Arts/Iowa Core professional development sponsored by the Iowa Department of Education is being announced this week.  

Participants will register through the participating AEA for the date they wish to participate.  The day is designed to be presented at no cost to the participant. The day includes a fine arts/Iowa Core overview, history, and supportive research in the a.m. and participatory breakouts by discipline in the p.m.  The afternoon includes lessons, assessments and experience with the fine arts and universal constructs of Iowa Core.

Presenters include Rosanne Malek, Iowa Department of Education, Leon Kuehner, Fine Arts/Iowa Core Professional Development and Materials Developer and member of the IAAE exec board, and writing team members representing the disciplines of general music, vocal/instrumental music, visual art, and drama/theatre.

Wednesday, May 29 – Great Prairie AEA– Ottumwa

Thursday, May 30 – Green Hills AEA – Red Oak

Thursday, June 6  - AEA 267 – Cedar Falls

Friday, June 7 – Great Prairie AEA - Burlington

Monday, June 17 – Keystone AEA - Elkader

Tuesday, June 18 – Prairie Lakes AEA– Fort Dodge – Iowa Central Community College

Friday, June 21 – Mississippi Bend AEA 9 - Bettendorf

Monday, June 24 – Prairie Lakes AEA – Emmetsburg – Iowa Lakes Community College

Thursday, June 27 – Northwest AEA – Sioux City

At the Capitol This Week

There was a lot of floor activity in both chambers this week. The Senate had all of it's members present this week and they were able to pass a number of bills over to the House. One of those passed was their priority on income tax credit. The education committee held hearings on the three Governor appointments to the Board of Regents. These have been controversial and their confirmation by the full Senate is questionable. All appointments, by law must be confirmed or rejected by April 15.
The House also passed a number of bills including three of the seven major appropriation bills. These have not been agreed to by the Senate, so there will be negotiating between the leaders for resolution, or they could end up in a conference committee. The education appropriations bill did include the House version of allowable growth for K-12 in it.
The Senate is still working on it's version of the education reform bill and the House Ways & Means committee passed out their version of the commercial/industrial property tax reform bill. This was a compilation of their original bill and the Governor's bill. It appears that a lot of these issues are moving and that the stage is starting to get set for the compromises and resolution to the differences being made. I think this will begin in earnest right after Easter.

Cal Hultman