Iowa Senator Charles Grassley has announced he will hold several town hall-style meetings around the listening area during the month of August. The meetings will take place in Atlantic, Villisca, Bedford, Clarinda, Percival, Glenwood, Logan, Harlan, Audubon and Carroll. Iowa’s senior Senator says the meetings are an opportunity for him to meet with the public and hear their comments, as well as respond to their questions. He’s held similar meetings with Iowans in each of the state’s 99 counties since he was first elected to serve in the U-S Senate, in 1980.

Grassley’s schedule is as follows:

Aug. 20th (unless otherwise noted, these are Town Hall meetings)…

Atlantic, from 8:15-to 9:15-a.m., at the Cass County Community Center

Villisca High School, to speak with students from 10:15-to 11-15-a.m., in the High School Library.

Taylor County Farm Bureau meeting room in Bedford, from 2-to3-pm.

Page County Courthouse meeting room, 3rd floor, 3:45-to 4:45-pm.

Tue., Aug. 21st...

Sapp Brothers Travel Center/Apple Barrel Restaurant in Percival, 7:30-to8:30-a.m.

Glenwood Senior Center, 10:15-to11:15-a.m.

Logan Community Center, 2-to 3-pm.

Harlan Community Library, 4-to 5-p.m.

Audubon County Economic Development meeting room, 5:45-to 6:45-pm

Wed., Aug. 22nd…

Carroll County Courthouse, meeting room, 7:45-to8:45-a.m.

An Atlantic man was sentenced Friday to serve a little more than 6 1/2 years in prison for conspiring to distribute Methamphetamine in and around Cass County. The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says Chief District Court Judge James E. Gritzner ordered 29-year old  Christopher Michael Jespersen to serve a four-year term of supervised release following incarceration.

On March 8th, 2012, Jespersen pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, a controlled substance. The conviction was the result of a lengthy investigation into methamphetamine trafficking in and around Atlantic. At the time of his guilty plea,
Jespersen admitted that from May 2010, until July 2010, he agreed to distribute methamphetamine obtained from an Omaha, Nebraska, source to customers in the Atlantic area.

The investigation was conducted by the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, Cass County Attorney’s Office and the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

The Cass County Sheriff’s Office reports a Lewis man was arrested last Thursday (July 26th), on a charge of Simple Assault. 24-year old Jesse Cavin Meier was taken to the Cass County Jail where he pled guilty and was released later that day.

The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) today announced the first confirmed human case of West Nile virus disease in Iowa of 2012. The case is a female older adult (61 to 80 years of age) from Lyon County, who is recovering. “The extreme drought conditions in Iowa have dramatically reduced the mosquito population here,” said IDPH Medical Director, Dr. Patricia Quinlisk. “This West Nile case, however, is a reminder that the virus is still out there and Iowans should take precautions.”

West Nile virus is transmitted through mosquitoes. The best way to prevent the virus is to eliminate mosquito breeding areas and to use insect repellent when outdoors. Iowans should take the following steps to reduce the risk of exposure to West Nile virus:

• Use insect repellent with DEET, picaridin, IR3535, or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Always read the repellent label and consult with a health care provider if you have questions when using these types of products for children. For example, DEET should not be used on infants less than 2 months old and oil of lemon eucalyptus should not be used on children under 3 years old.
• Avoid outdoor activities at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active.
• Wear long-sleeved shirts, pants, shoes, and socks whenever possible outdoors.
• Eliminate standing water around the home because that’s where mosquitoes lay eggs. Empty water from buckets, cans, pool covers and pet water dishes. Change water in bird baths every three to four days.

Approximately 20 percent of people infected with West Nile virus will have mild to moderate symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches and vomiting. Less than one percent of people infected become seriously ill and rarely someone dies.

Since West Nile first appeared in Iowa in 2002, it has been found in every county in Iowa, either in humans, horses, or birds. In 2011, there were nine human cases of West Nile virus and two deaths. 

For more information about West Nile virus, visit www.idph.state.ia.us/Cade/DiseaseIndex.aspx?disease=West Nile Virus.

Iowa teachers might have to accept larger class sizes if they expect increased salaries, under one model presented to a state task force on teacher pay. The task force heard Friday from officials at a Colorado school district where teachers get paid based on their evaluations and student performance, and for taking on new leadership rolls. The officials report a small increase in class size as master teachers leave the classroom to mentor other teachers. Iowa Department of Education Director Jason Glass agrees that lower class sizes do lead to student achievement: “But the question is, are we willing to invest the hundreds of millions of dollars necessary to get the class size low enough that it has an impact, and what do we give up in exchange for that large expenditure. Everything’s a tradeoff,” according to Glass. 

Glass says high performing schools around the world have accepted larger classes in order to pay teachers more. “ I think we have to have that conversation. The United States is among the top spenders around the world and we have some of the lowest class sizes in the world, but our results are mediocre, “ Glass said. Task force member , Tammy Wawro is president of the Iowa State Education Association,-the state’s largest teacher’s union. She is skeptical about the idea of increasing class sizes.“ Class size does matter and class size tradeoff does concern me,” Wawro said. The Colorado officials say student performance has improved But they admit there was strong opposition at first and many teachers left. The Iowa task force will make its recommendations for changing Iowa’s teacher compensation system later this fall.

(Radio Iowa)