(Radio Iowa) – A federal report finds a vast majority of colleges and universities mislead prospective students about the true cost of an education, a report Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley calls “alarming.” Grassley says the report from the Government Accountability Office studied financial aid offer letters from dozens of institutions, letters students use to compare prices and to determine where they might go to college. Grassley says, “In these letters, 91% of the colleges understated true costs, 65% left out important details about financial aid packages, and almost a third listed loans as grants.”

Grassley says the G-A-O report highlights the “deceptive practices” being used by so many colleges, demonstrating Congress needs to act. The Iowa Republican is co-sponsoring a bill called Understanding the True Cost of College Act. “The bill would require colleges to follow well-documented best practices for information contained in all financial aid offer letters,” Grassley says. “It would create a universal financial aid offer letter, so students can easily compare financial aid packages between schools.”

He says the need for an apples-to-apples comparison is critical. Grassley did not know which, if any, Iowa institutions were studied. The G-A-O report compared the financial aid offers from 176 colleges and assessed them against ten best practices from the Department of Education and a commission comprised of 22 federal agencies. None of the colleges followed all ten recommendations.

Click to access gao-23-104708.pdf

(Atlantic, Iowa) – A program entering its 10th year in Atlantic, serves to benefit the Atlantic Food Pantry, and reward children in the Atlantic School District. In the past, the Atlantic Police Department has offered trips to the zoo and other rewards, but COVID and staffing issues made that difficult. Atlantic Police Chief Devin Hogue said this year, the kids’ effort to raise the most items to stock the Pantry in the contest, could win them a pizza party. Hogue said the kids are all-in for the win.

The Chief said canned goods and other non-perishables are worth points. Last year, nearly 40-thousand items were collected. Hogue says they hope to eclipse that amount in this year’s food drive. He says the program has the support of parents, who might just happen to see some items missing from their cabinets or the home pantry.

Aside from the goal of winning a pizza party for their efforts, the kids, he says come away with a sense of giving and helping others less fortunate. Hogue says his officers are all about helping others.

Items for the Atlantic Food Pantry are being accepted through December 12th.

[7:05-a.m. News ](Creston, Iowa) –  Police in Creston, Monday afternoon, arrested a man for Failure to Appear (in court), on an original charge of Indecent Exposure, a Serious Misdemeanor. 58-year-old James Chandler Sash, of Creston, was arrested at his residence. Sash was transported to the Union County Jail, where he was being held without bond.

(Audubon, Iowa) – The Audubon County Conference Board has voted to appoint Janell Bluml as Assessor, in Audubon County. Bluml has served as Deputy Assessor for many years and is certified for the job. She succeeds Deb Umland, who retired at the end of November. Bluml officially took over the post on December 1st.
It’s expected an additional employee will be hired, which will make the Assessor’s Office fully staffed.

Janell Bluml

[Updated 12/6/22] (Corning, Iowa) – A plane that took-off from the Corning Municipal Airport in Corning, Monday afternoon, struck a power line, and crashed. The accident happened at around 12:38-p.m., according to the Iowa State Patrol. The pilot, and only occupant of the aircraft, died at the scene. Their name was not immediately released.

The aircraft was said to be a fixed, single-wing ERCOUPE 415-C, manufactured in 1946, registered to a man from Corning. The plane clipped powerlines and impacted the terrain during the takeoff sequence (initial climb).

The incident was under investigation by the Iowa State Patrol, the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board.  Additional information is currently not available.