The Administrative Newsletter February 2021 Edition

February 2021 Vol. 46, No. 7

The

Administrator Newsletter

The monthly publication of the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators

Executive Viewpoint: Page 1

Preparing for Legislative Session

The Power of Professional Friendships President’s Perspective: Page President’s Perspective: Page 22

Page 5

Spotlight

In

Page 5

Pharis Smith, Ed.S. Elementary School Principal Jackson County School District

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Issue

Executive Viewpoint - Dr. Mike Hernandez

1

President’s Perspective - Debbie Atkinson

2

Superintendent Symposium Highlights

3

Compliance Connection

4

Administrator Spotlight - Pharis Smith Ed.S.

5

Benefits Corner

8

Asked and Answered

9

CoSN Update

9

Award Winners

13

Administrator Job Openings

14

219 South Victory, Little Rock, AR 72201 501.372.1691 www.theaaea.org

2020-2021 AAEA Board of Directors Debbie Atkinson, AAEA President Principal, Bergman

Dr. Stephanie Nehus, President-Elect Superintendent, Hot Springs

Brian Kirkendoll, AAEA Secretary/Treasurer Principal, Alma

Scott Spainhour, AAEA Past President Superintendent, Greenbrier

Robert Poole, AASA President Superintendent, Prescott

Jon Collins, AASA President-Elect Superintendent, West Memphis

Stacy DeFoor, AAESP President Principal, Conway

Mark Lewis, AAESP President-Elect Principal, Conway

David Maxwell, AASSP President Principal, Mena

Scott Smith, AASSP President-Elect Principal, Western Yell County

Chad Jordan, AASSP Past President Principal, Greene County Tech

Fred Lilly, ArkASPA President Superintendent, Camden Fairview

Dr. Lee Smith, AACTEA President Assistant Superintendent of Development, Mena

Shantele Raper, AAFC Cristy Dunnahoe, AASBO President President Director of Federal Programs, Business Manager, Star City Osceola

Charles Warren, AASBO Past President Chief Financial Officer, Fort Smith School District

Sherry Stewart, AASEA President Director of Special Services, Rogers

Aaron Randolph, AAGEA President Director of Gifted Programs/ Federal Programs, Cabot

Aliza Jones, ASPMA President (begin October) Facilities Consortium Coordinator, Lavaca

Bill Tietz, ASPMA President (until October) Assistant Superintendent, Watson Chapel

Dr. Mike Hernandez, AAEA Executive Director

AAEA Sta Dr. Mike Hernandez, Executive Director m.hernandez@theaaea.org

Kelli Golden, Chief Financial Officer k.golden@theaaea.org

Mike Mertens, Assistant Executive Director m.mertens@theaaea.org

Marty Smith, Member Relations Manager m.smith@theaaea.org

Lenett Thrasher, Director of Learning Services & Operations l.thrasher@theaaea.org

Karen Dean, Certification Program Manager k.dean@theaaea.org

Robyn Keene, Director of Financial Services r.keene@theaaea.org

Madison Greene, Administrative Specialist m.greene@theaaea.org

Please contact us if we may provide assistance to you in any way.

The AAEA Administrator is a monthly publication of the Arkansas Association of Educational Administrators (AAEA) for members of the AAEA.

2020-2021 AAEA Corporate Sponsors Prestigious

Platinum

American Fidelity Assurance Co.

AAMSCO C.R. Crawford Construction, LLC Entegrity Energy Partners, LLC Legacy Construction Management Lexia Learning Nabholz Northwest Evaluation Association - NWEA Polk Stanley Wilcox Architects Schneider Electric Silverback Learning TRANE US, Inc.

Curriculum Associates, LLC. Educational Benefits, Inc. Lifetouch, Inc. NIET Pro Benefits Group, Inc. Renaissance Learning, Inc. Scholastic Education Solution Tree

Distinguished Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Imagine Learning

Diamond Apple Apptegy ClassWallet Edgenuity Energy Systems Group ESS First Security Beardsley Forecast5 Analytics Middleton, Inc. PowerSchool Stephens, Inc. Strategos Winsor Learning - Sonday Systems

Compliance Connection: Page 4

You Have Extra Money in your Flexible Spending Account. Now What?

Gold Crow Construction Kinco Constructors, LLC TIPS

Silver Architecture Plus, Inc. Correll, Inc. French Architects, PA Got Zoom Hight-Jackson Associates, PA SEAS

How Dental and Vision Coverage can be Critically Important

Benefits Corner: Page 6 ii

Executive I just want to start by saying how much I appreciate you and your staff ’s hard work during the pandemic. You are heroes to the students and patrons of your c o m m u n i t y. T h e holiday season is officially over and we are in the beginning Dr. Mike Hernandez stages of a very AAEA Executive Director different legislative session. There are some changes that have been made to the legislative process due to the pandemic. Limitations to attendees in the capitol and other committee locations are in place for protection of the legislature, staff and patrons. A full list of the protocols can be found here. At AAEA we began in September with preparation for the 93rd General Assembly through convening our legislative committees to ensure that we were prepared to hit the ground running during this session.

Our committees are Finance/Facilities, Governance/ Retirement and Curriculum. Each committee has approximately 20 AAEA members on it most of which were nominated by their individual cooperatives. Our meetings started via Zoom back in September, but we have allowed some onsite meetings for each committee based on ADH guidelines. We now meet every Wednesday at 9am to review legislation and recommend a position they will present to AAEA administrators at our general session. The general session begins each Wednesday at 10:30am and is open to all AAEA members to express their thoughts on a bill as well as to vote on a position. These meetings include committee members, AAEA Board members, education service cooperatives, and others that request the zoom link. If you would like the zoom link please contact m.smith@theaaea.org. I know that it would be preferable to have people onsite to discuss the issues, but that is not feasible at this time. After the vote is taken at our general session, the recommendation is taken to our

Viewpoint

AAEA board to take the official position. Our position is posted on our bill tracker, and we then go to work contacting our legislators to address items that need clarification or we need to try to stop from becoming law. As another way to hear the information, we post a recording the next day to our members explaining the bills reviewed by the committees and the position taken on those various bills. You can watch these recordings here. I hope that you are able to engage in this process during the legislative session. I also encourage you to watch some House/Senate Education Committee meetings. It helps to better understand the process and see the positions of our legislature. These legislative committee meetings are open to the public, but are slightly different on how you sign up to speak on a bill.

The committee meetings can be viewed on-line and each meeting schedule is posted on the 93rd General Assembly website. A link to view the committee meetings will be provided on each meeting agenda.

We know that as bills get filed, every person will have a different reaction to what is being proposed. I would encourage you to reach out to us at AAEA or your AAEA Legislative Committee members to ask questions or give your opinions on these pieces of legislation to ensure we are on the same page as we approach legislators. We have a very hard working legislature who really want to do right by kids and our schools.

Sometime we may vehemently disagree with their methods of doing so, but that is what makes Arkansas a great state to live in. There are many things that go into the decision making process of a legislature like state needs, constituent needs, and budgetary needs. We certainly appreciate their hard work. I hope that you will get involved at the state and local levels to help shape educational policy. AAEA is here to advocate for you in this process and your involvement is crucial. Legislators listen to their constituents, the people who elected them. You can make a difference! Please reach out to us at AAEA if you have questions about any legislation or about the whole process. We are here to help you.

1

President’s

Perspective Debbie Atkinson AAEA Board President Elementary Principal

The Power of Professional Friendships It is no secret that meaningful friendships are key to our personal well-being.

Our basic human need for friendship provides us the sense of belonging, purpose, confidence, and satisfaction that we need. Often, we try to separate our professional world and our personal world, and we tend to try to keep our friendships in the personal category. The problem with this mentality is that our core needs do not change when we leave home and head to work. As you remember, Maslow reminds us that after our basic physiological and safety needs are met, we have those innate psychological needs, including friendship and relationships. The work week of all educators continues to expand, especially with the added responsibilities during this pandemic. Therefore, professional friendships are more critical than ever.

creatively solve mutual problems. Friends that challenge me. Friends that have become professional partners.

Thank you for that!

We all need people to share our lives with, but friendships are not just about enjoying good times together.

Building meaningful friendships is critical to our overall well-being.

I challenge you to consider your own relationships. Stop and be grateful for those you have and work hard at being that friend for others. May your friendships support you well during this spring semester.

“Work friendships make us feel safe, but they also help us perform at a higher level. Donald Clifton, the former educational psychologist who founded Gallup, found that these relationships are one of the strongest predictors of productivity. Gallup research has found that those who have strong work relationships are more engaged, produce higher-quality work, and have a higher state of well-being.” (Dan Schawbel with Future Workplace) I am more aware now, than ever before, of the blessings that I have in my own friendships, both personally and professionally. My involvement in AAEA has gifted me with some of the best professional friends. Friends that encourage and teach me. Friends that collaboratively and

2

Superintendent Symposium 2021 The Superintendent Symposium was held on January 13-14, at the DoubleTree in Little Rock. This was the first AAEA in-person conference held during the 2020-2021 school year. Attendees were given the option of participating onsite or virtually. Janel Keating opened the day speaking to new superintendents and mentors. Governor Asa Hutchinson, Secretary Johnny Key, Dr. Ivy Pfeffer, Ms. Stacy Smith, and Dr. Charles Welch spoke to the audience about current topics and the upcoming legislative session.

Representatives Bruce Cozart, Reginald Murdock, DeAnn Vaught, Brian Evans, and David Tollett along with Senators Jane English, Joyce Elliott, Missy Irvin, and James Sturch provided information on proposed bills and answered questions from the attendees. Mr. Mike Poore was honored as the Superintendent of the Year and presented a monetary gift by Mr. Shane Pennington with Educational Benefits, Inc.

3

Compliance

You have extra money in your Flexible Spending Account. Now what?

Connection

Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) are a great way to help reduce your taxable income while paying for eligible medical and dependent care expenses. But if you’ve experienced a decrease in those expenses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may be wondering what will happen to the funds in your account.

Use or Lose Healthcare Flexible Spending Accounts (Healthcare FSAs) are "use or lose" accounts. This means, if you don’t use all the money in the account at the end of the plan year, it is lost. In response to COVID-19, recent legislation has offered some relief for Healthcare FSA participants, including the opportunity to make mid-year election changes and take advantage of extended expense and claims periods. These new rules provide some relief from the “use or lose” rules. Some employer plans have chosen to elect a “grace period” or “rollover provision” as part of their plan.

To find out how your specific plan works, contact your employer or Health FSA provider.

Medical Supplies With an increased focus on social distancing, many people have delayed elective medical procedures or care. If you have decreased your medical spending this year, there may be extra funds collecting in your Healthcare FSA. One way to spend excess funds is by purchasing eligible medical supplies you need. Examples of eligible expenses include thermometers, sunscreen (SPF 15 or higher), first aid cream, and bandages. Plus, as a result of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, participants may now use their Healthcare FSA dollars to purchase over-the-counter drugs without a prescription.

View a full list of eligible expenses here And, remember to keep your receipts to submit for reimbursement on all eligible medical expenses.

While many of these products may be purchased in stores, you don’t have to leave the house to find what you need.

Visit FSAStore.com for a convenient way to spend Healthcare FSA dollars online.

For more common questions about HSAs, visit https://americanfidelity.com/blog/reimburse/common-hsa-questions/ Column Provided by: Tom Sledge, Arkansas State Manager, American Fidelity Assurance Co.

Marty Smith Receives ASPMA Blue Ribbon Award Marty Smith, AAEA's Membership Coordinator, was presented the President’s Blue Ribbon Award at an ASPMA board meeting in December. Presenting the award to Marty is Ed Vestal from Dardanelle, the 2019-20 Blue Ribbon Award winner. This annual award is given to someone who has contributed their talents, efforts, and abilities for the betterment of Arkansas school facilities. Marty has worked with ASPMA since they affiliated with AAEA in 2012. She assists with board meetings and events during the year and makes sure members who are working on Certified Facility Director certification are aware of upcoming classes and are given credit for classes taken. She also makes sure that ASPMA members are on track to complete their certification and recertification in a timely manner. As with all AAEA constituents groups, Marty is happy to assist members with any and all membership questions they may have. Congratulations to Marty on a recognition well deserved!

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Spotlight

Pharis Smith, Tuckerman Elementary Principal, says, “I hope to be remembered as someone who cared about his students and faculty and always put family first.”

Pharis Smith comes from a family of educators who, together, have currently invested 140 years of service in education. His brother coached and served as athletic director for 39 years. One of his sisters taught, served as a building principal and then moved into the superintendency before retiring after 42 years in education. His other sister has been in education for 33 years and currently works at the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education. Mr. Smith knew in high school that he wanted to follow in the steps of his siblings as he watched them teach and coach. Even if he was not in his current position, he feels he would most likely be coaching basketball.

Pharis Smith started his career teaching fourth grade science and elementary physical education in the Black Rock School District. After two years in elementary Mr. Smith switched to high school physical science and coaching senior girls’ basketball. After three years he moved to Swifton High School where he coached senior boys’ basketball and taught physical education and geography. He became an elementary school principal at Tuckerman four years later and has been in the Jackson County School District for the last seventeen years. Mr. Smith has spent 26 years in education and says he still looks forward to his job every day.

“Interacting with the students each day and watching them grow and reach their potential is my favorite part of this job,” Mr. Smith stated. He also enjoys working with his faculty and helping promote an atmosphere that helps students as well as teachers succeed. In fact, his advice to those who are considering entering into the field of education is to make sure they have a love for kids and an intrinsic motivation to make sure students and teachers are successful.

This year has been a great challenge to everyone but Pharis said the greatest challenge remains the same every year - ensuring that he and his staff are teaching every student, both in person and virtually, to the best of their abilities. He adds, “As we continue to progress, I am confident we will meet the educational goals of our students.”

When asked how his co-workers would describe him Mr. Smith stated, “They would describe me as energetic, hard-working, diligent, and caring.” He said the greatest advice he has ever received is “don’t make a permanent decision for your temporary emotion.” Great advice for anyone.

5

What Are Your Goals? “Just working each day to support my teachers and students so they can achieve success. That is what I strive for daily. We all have short term goals, but my main effort is to provide stability for my building.”

Pharis Smith, Ed.S. Mr. Smith said one of the major changes he has seen in education during his career is in the area of testing. He has experienced his students taking the benchmark assessment and now ACT Aspire with students testing completely on computers. Another great change is occurring this year as he is learning to run a building during a pandemic while also learning to deliver instruction to students in a virtual setting. Even though this has been a challenge, Mr. Smith also feels that the ability of his staff to adapt during this pandemic, to continue the learning process and intentionally put students first, has been truly amazing.

When asked what he is most proud of Mr. Smith said it would be the adoption of his daughter from Guatemala and receiving his superintendent’s certification during a pandemic. He aspires to be a superintendent in the near future. Mr. Smith was elected President of the Arkansas Association of Elementary School Principals in 2017-2018 and continues to serve on the board. He also serves as a mentor for a great group of beginning administrators.

On a personal note, Pharis enjoys going to the lake and vacationing and hopes to someday fulfill a goal on his “bucket list” by visiting Mt. Rushmore and the Grand Canyon. The most daring thing he has ever done is to go parasailing. When people look back on his life Mr. Smith hopes to be remembered as someone who cared about his students and faculty and always put family first.

What might other administrators be surprised to know about you?

I eat absolutely no fruits and only corn for vegetables…yes, I am extremely picky.

What do you see as the biggest benefit of AAEA membership?

The benefits of having an AAEA membership is that you have an unbelievable network of administrators that can help you when new policies or guidelines are released that can help you make the transition more easily.

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2020-2021

Calendar

Professional Development Events

2021 February ArkASPA Drive-In Conference — Virtual, February 23rd

March AASBO Digital Conference — March 4, 2021

To see a schedule of more AAEA events, go to theaaea.org and click on “Events.”

April AACTEA Digital Conference — April 16, 2021 CASBO Classes — April 8-9, 2021 ASPMA Zoom Certification Classes — April 13, 2021

May AAFC Spring Conference — May 5-7, 2021, Hot Springs Convention Center

Click here to take a tour of the AAEA App!

ASBA/AAEA Joint Conference — May 4, 2021

June

AASEA Special Education Conference — June 7-8, 2021, Embassy Suites, Rogers

To see conference details for upcoming events go to page 10.

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Corner How Dental and Vision Coverage can be Critically Important Two of the most standard, well known policies you could purchase are dental and vision. Sure, most of us want a presentable smile and we for sure want to be able to see, but is there more to the benefits these policies allow us? Why are those annual or semi-annual preventative or routine checkups so important?

One of the most critical benefits of a dental policy is the ability to receive preventative services. Have you ever wondered why they call them “Preventative”? Easy answer, right? When you or a family member goes in for these visits, the dentist is focused on your teeth but he/she is also assessing for underlying, more critical health issues. They want to prevent them. One of the most common diagnoses in oral care is periodontal disease. It presents itself through loose teeth and receding or bleeding gums. If your dentist doesn’t identify and treat this early enough, it can lead to more serious health issues, especially for those with diabetes, coronary heart disease or those who are pregnant.

Similarly, symptoms of over 100 different illnesses can impact the eyes. Over 100 million people have diabetes or prediabetes today. Bleeding in the eye is a symptom. A doctor can find this bleed during a routine checkup. Shingles will impact 33% of us in a lifetime. Vision providers can spot it around the eyelids. Serious neurological illnesses like stroke and tumors can make the eyes cross. This can also be identified by a vision provider.

When providers don’t identify these illnesses during routine exams, they still play a very critical part in the treatment process as they can identify symptoms and encourage the patient to see a specialist. Again, early detection can be critical and two of our most standard coverages can be the key to the uncovering of a much more critical illness.

Column Provided by: Shane Pennington, Regional Sales Executive, Educational Benefits, Inc.

The

AAEA Team We are here to assist you!

8

I recently received a call from a district regarding an ethics law question.

Their auditor had asked about a district contract for services with an employee's spouse. I referred them to Commissioner's Memo COM-18-059 from February, 2018, that specifically addresses their situation. Here's some language from this Memo.

The Arkansas Department of Education ("ADE") has received many inquiries from school districts regarding whether they need to submit requests seeking the Commissioner's approval under ACA6-24-107 when the district wishes to contract with the spouse or relative of an employee who is not an administrator or Board Member (1599 requests). ADE's practice has been to require requests for approval by the Commissioner when the spouse or relative of an employee of the district contracts with the district. Upon further review, ADE has determined that such requests are not necessary under the law.

Asked

&

Answered

Mike Mertens AAEA Assistant Executive Director If you have questions for Mike, email them to m.mertens@theaaea.org

ACA 6-24-107(a) says that it is "a breach of ethical standards of this chapter for an employee to contract with the public educational entity employing him or her if the employee has knowledge that he or she is directly interested in the contract." The law applies to contracts with the employee, not with the employee's spouse or relative. Because the law does not include contracts with spouses and relatives of employees, districts do not need the Commissioner's approval when contracting with the relative or spouse of a school district employee, even if the contract will benefit the employee's household.

The key to this ethics interpretation is this particular scenario involves a district "employee." The rules are different for administrators and school board members.

CoSN: Support for Technology Administrators CoSN is a great resource for school technology administrators. Check this page monthly for links to articles to assist technology leaders as they navigate through digital learning transformations.

Click here to read this month’s topics: Strategic Technology Planning and Investment: Priorities, Cost and Impacts in Today’s Learning Environments; Strategic Technology Planning and Investment; and the 2021 Annual CoSN Conference - March 2-4.

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REGISTER NOW! 2021 ARKASPA DIGITAL CONFERENCE The ArkASPA Conference will be held virtually on February 23, 2021. The theme of the conference is “Hiring and Best Personnel Practices in a New Era”. The conference will feature sessions led by state and national practitioners who will share the latest information in human capital practices. Click here to register!

Tuesday, February 23 • • • • • • • • •

• • •

8:00 - 8:15 Welcome - Fred Lilly, President, ArkASPA 8:15 - 9:15 Hiring in 2021 and Beyond: Virtual Interviews and TalentEd - Craig Chin, Urban School Human Capital Academy 9:15 - 9:30 Break 9:30 - 10:15 Teacher of the Year-Virtual Education - Joel Lookado, Springdale Public Schools, 2020 Teacher of the Year 10:15 - 11:00 Retention and Recruitment: Why Culture and Climate Matter and What Schools Can Do About It - Mark Gotcher, Superintendent, Russellville School District 11:00 - 11:45 DESE Licensure Updates and Licensure Exceptions - Karli Saracini, Assistant Commissioner of Educator Effectiveness, and Melissa Jacks, Educator Licensure 11:45 - 12:30 Lunch Break 12:30 - 1:15 Minority Recruitment Plans, Oliver Dillingham, Lasonia Johnson, Lance LeVar, Daisy Reyes, DESE Equity Assistance Center 1:15 - 2:30 Selection and Best Practices in Hiring: Equity in the Workplace and Minority Recruitment - Kim Level, Dr. Kim Bloss, Dr. Linda Bean, Vernita O. Bowens, Dr. Charity O. Smith, Dr. Wanda Y. Newell 2:30 - 2:45 Break 2:45 - 3:15 Legislative Updates - Dr. Mike Hernandez, Executive Director, AAEA 3:15 ArkASPA Board of Directors Meeting

Registration Fee $60 for AAEA Members $75 for Non-Members Registration ends February, 19, 2021

Click here for more details and to register now.

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REGISTER NOW! 2021 AASBO DIGITAL CONFERENCE

“Communicating for Results” March 4, 2021 Click here to register.

March 4, 2021 • • • • • • • • • •

8:00 - 10:00 Welcome and CASBO Elective Class SM204 - Communication Lessons Wrapped in Laughter - Todd Hunt 10:00 - 10:30 AASBO Business Session, Recognition of AASBO Administrator of the Year, Certification Recognitions 10:30 - 10:40 Break 10:40 - 11:10 Breakout Session 1: Google Data Studio - Jim Robb, Director of Business Management, West Memphis School District 11:15 - 11:45 Breakout Session 2: Financial Controls - Donna Adkins, DESE Finance Programs Coordinator 11:45 - 12:45 Lunch Break 12:45 - 1:15 Breakout Session 3: Coding - Kathleen Crain, Division Manager, DESE APSCN Financial Applications 1:15 - 1:50 Breakout Session 4: Unemployment 1:50 - 2:15 Closing Remarks 2:15 - 4:15 Optional Post-Conference CASBO Elective Class SF211-Cognos Applications - Jason Goza, APSCN FMS Support Analyst

Registration Fees

Optional Post Conference CASBO Class Fee

$105 for AAEA Members $130 for Non-Members Registration ends February 26, 2021

$30 for AAEA Members $45 for Non-Members

Click here for more details and to register now.

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National Association of Elementary School Principals Serving all elementary and middle-level principals

Click here for more details and to register now.

Scholarships Available A variety of scholarships are now available for high school students and educators who are pursuing advanced degrees. Check out the AAEA Scholarship Page for more information.

AAGEA * AASBO ANITA MURPHREE * AASBO MEMORIAL * AAFC * AAMLA AASEA MEMORIAL * AASEA LEGACY * AACTEA * ASPMA * C.B. GARRISON * NSPMA DR. KELLAR NOGGLE ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIP * GARY L. KEES MEMORIAL

Click here for more information 12

Award Winners Jerrod Burns, Above and Beyond Jerrod Burns, Principal of Ozark Junior High School in the Ozark School District, was selected by the Arkansas Association of Elementary School Principals (AAESP) as the recipient of the 2021 Award for Service Above and Beyond. Dr. Richard Abernathy, AAEA Executive Director, and Mr. Jim Ford, Ozark School District Superintendent, presented Mr. Burns with the award in his district on December 8, 2020. On December 14, 2012, Newtown, Connecticut Elementary School principal, Dawn Hochsprung, gave her life in service to her school community. In her honor, each year AAESP selects a Pk-12th grade Arkansas principal who has made a personal contribution or sacrifice that has resulted in a significant impact on his or her school community. Mr. Burns has served as a special education teacher, coach, and administrator for the Ozark School District but his love for his students reaches beyond the confines of the classroom and ball field as he works to ensure all students have their needs met.

Kyria Wilson, AAMLA Assistant Principal of the Year Kyria Wilson, Assistant Principal of the Hot Springs Junior Academy in the Hot Springs School District, was recently named the Arkansas Association of Middle Level Administrator (AAMLA) Assistant Principal of the Year. Dr. Mike Hernandez, AAEA Executive Director, and Mr. J.D. Keeling, AAMLA President, along with Dr. Stephanie Nehus, Superintendent of the Hot Springs School District, presented Ms. Wilson with the award during a school board meeting on December 15, 2020.

This award is given each year to an Arkansas middle level assistant principal who has succeeded in contributing to a positive and motivating environment for others and has been recognized as exhibiting exceptional leadership skills in the school community. Ms. Wilson is in her fourth year as assistant principal in the Hot Springs School District. Ms. Wilson plays a key role in creating a Professional Learning Community in which staff members work together to build a collaborative environment focused on student learning.

Chelsea Jennings, AASSP Assistant Principal of the Year Chelsea Jennings, Assistant Principal of Lakeside Junior High School in the Springdale School District, was recently named the Arkansas Association of Secondary School Principals (AASSP) Assistant Principal of the Year. Dr. Mike Hernandez, AAEA Executive Director, Dr. Jared Cleveland, Superintendent of the Springdale School District, and Dr. Michael Shepherd, Principal, presented Ms. Jennings with the award at her school on December 1, 2020. This award is given each year to an Arkansas secondary level assistant principal who has succeeded in providing high-quality learning opportunities for students, and has been acknowledged by peers for exemplary contribution to the profession. Chelsea has served as a district leader in curriculum development and supported movement to standards based grading in her school. Social-emotional learning is a focus area for her as she strives to support her staff and students regardless of their needs. Chelsea is dedicated to the education of Arkansas students and very deserving of this award.

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Job Site Subscription Service

Tools to Help You Hire the Best!

The AAEA Job Board is a calendar-year subscription that assists districts with the ever-increasing challenge of recruiting quality staff. It is a significant resource for educators, both in-state and out-of-state, seeking employment in Arkansas schools.

Over 165 school districts are participating in the program, which has been extremely helpful to schools and educators over the years. The site is used year-round and is accessed extensively during the second semester. It is not unusual to see over 400 jobs posted on the Job Board at one time. With an account, school districts may post unlimited job vacancies throughout the year. Subscription renewals will be sent to superintendents this fall regarding 2020 renewal.

To subscribe (by district) or to post job openings, contact Marty Smith, Member Relations Manager, at m.smith@theaaea.org or at 501-372-1691.

Openings Arch Ford ESC

Special Education Supervisor

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Southside School District

Assistant Superintendent

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Elkins School District

Middle School Principal

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West Side School District

Superintendent

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Sheridan School District

K-12 Assistant Principal

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Watson Chapel School District

Superintendent

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Midland School District

High School Principal (7-12)

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Barton-Lexa School District

Superintendent

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Conway School District

Director of Special Education

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Little Rock School District

Web Applications ManagerInformation Services Dept

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Searcy School District

Superintendent

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Pulaski County Special School District

Coordinator of Maintenance

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North Little Rock School District

Secondary Assistant Principal

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Ozark School District

Assistant Superintendent/Athletic Director

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Siloam Springs School District

District Director of Athletics

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