Grant Wood AEA

The AEAs were created to provide services to the schools - especially services related to special education. Nearly 80 percent of all dollars the AEA receives goes to services provided for special education; and over 70 percent of all dollars the AEA receives from tax funding goes to the salaries of staff members and over 70 percent of all staff at the AEA work in the schools in various roles. Programs and services the Iowa legislature has assigned AEAs to provide include:

Diverse Learning (This is primarily special education, but also includes students who are English language learners and all students, regardless of race/ethnicity)
Specialized services for children and students birth to age 21 with diverse learning needs, including gifted students and students with disabilities.

Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
Support and expertise on best practices in both content and skill areas for children birth to age 5 and K-12 students.

Instructional Media
Instructional materials to support K-12 classroom instruction and support for school improvement. (This includes on-line resources for teachers to use in their classrooms at no charge.) Grant Wood AEA maintains a huge collection of videos, which teachers may check out for use in their classes. The agency also provides hands-on science kits which are used by almost all of the districts in the AEA's service area.

Multicultural, Gender-Fair
Services that assist schools and school districts to ensure supportive learning environments for all students. (Anti-bullying programs are promoted by the agency.)

Professional Development
Implement the Iowa Professional Development Model; coordinate workshops, courses, and materials and provide ongoing consultation for area educators and support staff.

School-Community Planning
Support for school improvement processes and communication with families and communities.

School Leadership
Leadership services that assist with the recruitment, induction, retention, and professional development of educational leaders.

School Management
Support and interim management of school administrative functions.

School Technology
Assistance with technology planning and integration, training, cooperative purchasing, networking, duplication, and distance
learning.