(Anita, Iowa) – The CAM School Board, Monday evening, acted on approving a resignation and several contracts. Superintendent Paul Croghan told KJAN, the Board approved the resignation of CAM Head Baseball Coach, Dan Daugherty.

Croghan said contracts were approved for several paraeducators.

A few of the other contracts include Derrick Nicely as Boys Wrestling Coach, Matt Lundquist as Assistant Girls Wrestling Coach, and Alan Beaty as Junior High Girls Wrestling Coach, 10 volunteer wrestling coaches were also approved, and a volunteer Cheer Coach. Croghan said they wanted to get all those coaches and volunteers in-place before the start of the Wrestling season, especially girls wrestling.

He said also the CAM School Board approved a request for movement on the pay scale for two employees.

And, they approved a technology purchase, but tabled action on adding cameras, at this time.

ESSR (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) Funds were used to pay for the new technology. The Board also approved two out-of-state field trips, and the Homecoming Highway Relay.

In other business, the CAM School Board approved an Education Service Contract with Southwestern Community College (SWCC). Mr. Croghan reminds residents it’s harvest time, so be safe while harvesting and bringing in the crop. Watch out slow-moving vehicles, and be extra cautious when dealing with clogged combine or bin augers.

(Radio Iowa) – A whistleblower and the former senior data security official at Twitter is testifying today (Tuesday) before the U-S Senate Judiciary Committee. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, who sits on the panel, says the whistleblower has revealed that the social media platform isn’t doing an adequate job of protecting users’ personal information, which Grassley says raises serious privacy concerns as well as national security issues. “According to the whistleblower, Twitter employees are able to easily access user information collected by the platform,” Grassley says. “The company has hired foreign employees who allegedly also worked on behalf of foreign governments.”

For years, members of Congress have been holding hearings about security issues as they relate to social media giants, stretching back to alleged Russian tampering with the U-S elections in 2016, but no specific bills have been passed to bring about change. “Maybe the solution to this isn’t passing some legislation,” Grassley says. “The solution to this may be to wake up the leadership of Twitter to take care of this problem themselves. They’ve got the capability of doing it.”

Grassley, a Republican, says he uses Twitter frequently to keep his constituents in Iowa informed on everything from public policy to his run-ins with deer. The 88-year-old was asked if he’s concerned about the security of his Twitter account. “No, I’m not going to stop using it,” Grassley says. “I’m going to continue to use it. Whatever personal information they get about me, I’m not going to succumb to all these things that they sell the data so you’ll buy certain products and all that. I don’t think I’ve been guilty of that at all.”

Grassley says the whistleblower says Twitter officials were aware of the security vulnerabilities but did nothing, choosing to put profits ahead of user privacy.

(Creston, Iowa) – Police in Creston, late Monday morning, arrested 20-year-old Myles James Koontz, of Creston. Koontz was arrested following a traffic stop, on a charge of Driving While Barred. He was later released from the Union County Jail, after posting bond.

(8-a.m. News)

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Workforce Development launched a new Business Engagement Division Monday. I-W-D director, Beth Townsend, says they’re hoping it will make it easier for employers to access state resources. “The idea is that we want to provide a one stop shop for Iowa’s employers to help meet all of their workforce needs,” she says. Townsend says the workforce system can be a little complex, and it is scattered over several different areas.

“We’ve never had anything like this in Iowa….workforce programs are scattered across a number of different agencies, and we’re trying to bring some of those to the workforce, and then the others will just help you navigate the system. But we’ve never had a business engagement team in the agency that was focused entirely upon helping businesses,” she says. She says they have had business marketing specialists in the past who have met with employers and worked with them. Townsend says they hope this is a more strategic and more concentrated effort as they head out across the state to meet with business owners.

“To introduce ourselves, if we don’t already know you, to remind you of the resources we have available to help with employers’ workforce needs, to help them navigate the workforce system in Iowa, because it can be a little complex,” according to Townsend. She says the new division will be led by administrator Tim Goodwin and deputy administrator Kathy Anderson. Both have previous business experience and come from outside the agency.

“If you’re not in the system and you’re looking at it from the outside, sometimes you have a better view of things that we could be doing to improve services,” Townsend says. “And they certainly brought that to the table.” Townsend says they will listen and adapt as they visit more businesses. “We plan to every, you know, two or three weeks in this period of time, where we’re going out meeting with employers getting back together and, and digesting the feedback that we’re getting,” she says. Townsend says they have a new customer service number for employers to call. That number is 1-833-469-2967.