April 30, 2019 Volume 2, Issue 3

On April 10th, the DOT2Go arrived at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women in Mitch-

ellville, with staff eager to assist women preparing for release. DOT staff answered questions about

driving records, eligibility, alternative modes of transportation and mobility, and issued driver’s licenses

and identification cards. Over 100 women were assisted with updating their information and 25 of those

women were issued an Iowa credential.

Developing partnerships with the Department of Corrections will assist in breaking down barriers and

filling gaps for women being released and re-entering society.

Multiple correctional staff and women shared their appreciation and gratitude to Iowa DOT staff for such

a positive experience. The best compliment and justification for continuing to grow these efforts is

summed up by the women we assisted that day, “This opportunity is one of the best things the prison

has done in preparing us for release.”

A special thank you to all who were involved to make this event possible.

DOT2Go

2

Smart Start—Driver Education Instructor’s Conference 2019

Our Annual Driver Education Conference was held on

Saturday, April 13, 2019 at the Iowa State Center Scheman

Building in Ames and as always, we are happy to announce it

was another huge success! We had over 200 Driver Educa-

tion Behind the Wheel and Classroom Instructors take part in

our fun-filled event.

Darcy Doty, our Iowa DOT Director of Driver and Identification

Services, kicked us off with some exciting updates, touching

on information regarding our REAL ID’s, the Skip the Trip Pro-

gram, our Parent Supervised Driving Program and the future of Electronic ID’s.

Dr. Timothy Brown, with the National Advanced Driving Simulator, from the University of Iowa, shared his

wealth of knowledge with us in his presentation on Drugged Driving: Insights for Novice Driver Education

from Current Research. Dr. Brown has been researching the effects of drugs on driving for more than two dec-

ades and is currently continuing research on the effects of cannabis on driving performance.

Dr. Molly Wuebker and Dr. Kelsee Hove, both with the Drake University Occupational Therapy Program, gave

an engaging overview of Strategies for Behavioral and Learning Disabilities on the Road.

We were determined to utilize

every moment of our at-

tendees’ day, so to ensure we

were equipping our Driver

Education Behind the Wheel

and Classroom Instructors

with applicable information

and useful resources we orga-

nized three different break-

out sessions. Steering Teens

Safe: Increasing Parent-Teen

Communication About Driving

session was covered by three

speakers: Dr. Cara Hamann a

Faculty Associate in Epidemi-

ology and the Injury Preven-

tion Research Center at Uni-

versity of Iowa, Dr. Kari Har-

land an Associate Research Scientist and Director of Research Operation with the Department of Emergency

Medicine and the Injury Prevention Research Center at the University of Iowa, and our Iowa DOT Office of

Driver and Identifications Services, Operational Analyst, Kathleen Meredith-Eyers. Iowa DOT Motor Vehicle

Enforcement Officer, Kurt Miene, captivated his audience in our Driving Behaviors Through Crash Scenes, Con-

struction Zones, and other Traffic Incidents session. Lastly, Andrea Henry, Director of Strategic Communica-

tions and Policy here at the Iowa DOT, seized everyone’s attention with her session on Using Virtual Reality

Simulations in Driver Education.

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Smart Start—Driver Education Instructor’s Conference 2019 Cont’d

Lunch was enjoyed

while listening to our

Iowa DOT Director,

Mark Lowe, explain the

reasoning behind Mo-

bile Driver’s Licenses

(mDL) and the many

benefits it can provide

us with in our ever-

evolving high tech fu-

ture.

Chris Poole, Iowa

DOT’s Safety Program

Engineer, educated us

on his Safety Engineer-

ing on Iowa’s Road-

ways presentation. Chis has been with Iowa DOT for 16 years and we were so happy to have him share his

expertise in this area.

We closed out our fun-filled day with a highly skilled and well-informed panel, that was available for ques-

tions and answers. The panel consisted of Debra Carney, Iowa DOT Driver Fitness Program Manager, Andy

Nelson, Owner of Safer Driver Solutions/The Driving Coach, Lance Beresford, UnityPoint Health Des Moines

Occupational Therapy Assistant, Dr. Molly Weubker, Drake Occupational Therapist, and Dr. Timothy Brown,

Director of Drugged Driving Research at National Advanced Driving Simulator.

Big thank you to our

driver education plan-

ning workgroup, our

speakers, the many vol-

unteers, and all others

who were involved. We

could not have done it

without you! Looking

forward to next confer-

ence in 2020.

4

Foreign National Issuance Reminder

This communication serves as a reminder of our internal process for verifying foreign national cus-

tomers in application for issuance of a driver’s license or identification card.

DEFERRED ENFORCED DEPARTURE. On March 28, 2019, President Trump issued a memorandum ex-

tending the wind-down period for Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for an additional 12 months,

through March 30, 2020, for certain eligible Liberians. Additionally, a Notice was published in the

Federal register for a six-month automatic extension, through September 27, 2019, of employment

authorization documents (EADs) currently held by eligible Liberians. More information can be found

here.

This is a reminder to everyone that temporary and permanent status and document requirements will

vary, so it is important to follow the process we outlined in the policy memos linked below. (Please

note: there is a County memo and a DIS memo, please be sure to click the correct link to access.)

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR US? This should not change our current policy and process for verifying

foreign nationals in application for a credential. Many, if not most, of our customers from Liberia will

present expired documentation in application for renewal of their identification card or driver’s li-

cense. They may also just have the Federal Register Notice with them or nothing at all. As general

policy, we should be asking each and every customer (temporary or permanent resident status) to

provide us with their most recent USCIS document but please do not turn customers away if they do

not have paperwork or their renewed EAD when we ask for it. Always attempt to verify via VLS with

their presented expired document or the most current USCIS document on file in ERMS. Institute ad-

ditional verification if VLS does not return a response and follow-up with the customer accordingly.

Refer to PM 18-01 links below and the verification flow chart on the next page as we created proce-

dures to recognize variances in USCIS document procedures and to ensure we are appropriately as-

sisting every customer. If you have questions, ask for help.

CUSTOMER ISSUES. When we turn customers away without following the outlined process and proce-

dures, this can cause a chain reaction of negative outcomes. For many, their employment is contin-

gent upon having a driver’s license, and when we unnecessarily turn them away we are putting them

at risk of losing their job(s). This impacts not only them and their families, their employer, but also

our communities as they face social and economic hardships. The work that we do extends beyond a

plastic card. A driver’s license or identification card is someone’s identity and access to mobility. It is

important to recognize how our services and products are essential for the livelihood and mobility of

our customers.

IF YOU’RE CONFUSED OR UNSURE, ASK SOMEONE FOR HELP. Before turning a customer away, ask for

help from an identified team lead, supervisor, AA2, or hearing officer. We’re here to help.

DIS Policy Memo 18-01

County Policy Memo 18-01

5

REAL ID update!

34% of Iowans hold a REAL ID card. Many non-real ID holders won’t be up for renewal until after the October 2020 deadline. We

need your help to continue to spread the word!

To avoid a rush of customers running to our service centers in the fall of 2020, we’re increasing our

marketing focus to raise REAL ID public awareness now. Every customer you assist in getting a REAL ID

will help get us closer to reaching our

goal! KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!

How about you? Does your license fly?

Do you have a gold star on your ID?

I encourage you to take the time to

get your REAL ID today!

6

#MVDnews

Yammer post — Steve Stonehocker

Praised Reanna Adams. “I had a recent out of state

customer that was having troubles trying to under-

stand our system and what they needed to do to be

able to get back on the road again. After a couple of

frustrating, not so pleasant experiences....he reached

Reeanna Adams. He then called to leave me a message

so I would know how patient, helpful and professional

that Reeanna was while working with him to help him solve his problems. GREAT JOB REEANNA!!!"

Yammer post —

Darcy Doty

“DIS did it again! Lisa Miller earned the

Performance Development Solutions (PDS)

Professional Development Certificate.

Congratulations Lisa! Thank you for your

dedication to learning.”

Comment Card —

Carrie Tietz This comment card was from March 22, in the morn-

ing on a renewal of a license. “Thank you to Nicole

Duffey for continuing to be professional, friendly and

patient with the customers. Your customer service

skills make the department have less of a stigmatism

that we are not so nice to work with.”

Morgan Isaac

Morgan Isaac was hired in March 2019 with the Bureau of Investigation & Identity Protection to

serve as an Administrative Assistant II. Morgan worked for the Bureau previously as an Administra-

tive Intern for approximately 1 1/2 years while she attended Iowa State University. During her ten-

ure as an intern, she assisted with the facial recognition program and the upcoming Multi-State

Program, the Salvage Theft Examination program, as well as, assisted investigators out in the field

with intelligence gathering.

Morgan graduated Magna Cum Laude from Iowa State University in December 2017 with a double

major in Criminal Justice and Sociology with a minor in Child, Adult, and Family Services. Shortly

after graduation, she took a position with the Polk County Treasurers as a Universal Cashier. It is a

great honor to have her back and working alongside the Bureau team.

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8

New Project to Enhance DL Connectivity – Heading your Way!

Last month a project document crossed my desk that made me declare “finally!” out

loud. We have a project team being led by Denise Said that includes several contacts

throughout the Motor Vehicle Division and the Motor Vehicle Support Team (IT) who have

come together to work on network changes for county treasurers that issue driver’s licens-

es and IDs. The purpose of the project is to allow all county issuers to access online re-

sources (via Internet connection) on their DL machines. This will include vital resources

such as the DOT’s Learning Management System called DOT-U, CSTIMS (Commercial Skills

Testing Information Management System for counties who administer CDL tests), and ac-

cess to the Internet for other web resources that become necessary during interactions

with customers. Opening up this access will improve the experience for both county staff

and our customers.

This project’s success will directly address the long-standing issue of county DL issuers be-

ing unable to access business related online resources and training which is a huge step in

the right direction. This project has begun and is estimated to be complete this fall.

Additionally, there is a separate project request in the works that will improve access with-

in the ARTS system for county DL issuers, allowing county staff to view driving record and

compliance requirement information. Both of these enhancements are overdue and will

improve business functionality for our county and DOT teams. More information about the

details will come from Denise!