(Radio Iowa) – Inflation is making the dollar not go as far as it used to and that is a good reason for you to be sure you haven’t left any money unclaimed. State Treasurer, Michael Fitzgerald, says his office may be holding some or your dollars. “The State of Iowa is holding 460 million dollars — we have about a million names. It could be an estate — most of them are individuals — but it could be business, a church a little league,” he says.

The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt seeks to get that money back to those who maybe didn’t even know they had it coming. “Last fiscal year, January to December, we brought in 49 million dollars that belonged to Iowans. And our goal is to return every penny of it — but it just comes in so fast we can’t do it,” Fitzgerald says. Fitzgerald says there are a lot of ways people leave money behind. “People still forget about bank accounts, checking accounts, savings accounts, and lockboxes. People buy stock and they forget about it or they move and for some reason the company can’t find them and send them dividends and it becomes abandoned and they send it to us,” Fitzgerald explains. “Check do get lost in the mail. And in this day and age — and they think it is junk mail.”

Fitzgerald says you can go to the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt website and enter your name to see if there’s anything there that belongs to you. “Put in your whole name like Michael Fitzgerald instead of just Fitzgerald, it will narrow it down. But if you just put in your last name and you might see some of your relatives on there. This is all public information,” Fitzgerald says. “So we ask people after you check your own name peruse it, you might see some of your relatives…check it out you might help somebody else find their money.”

Go to www.greatiowatreasurehunt.gov to see if you have any unclaimed money.

(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Board of Education would be directed to adopt standards for public high school courses on the Bible if a bill that’s cleared initial review in the Senate becomes law. Republican Senator Jeff Taylor of Sioux Center is a co-sponsor of the bill. He says public schools wouldn’t be required to offer a Bible course, but it could become an option as a social studies elective if school boards approve.

“I would welcome more teaching of religion from a religiously neutral point of view in our public schools and this one is saying the Bible,” Taylor says. “And why the Bible? Well, because obviously it has a disproportionate influence in American history and American culture and in western culture in general…For just reasons of cultural literacy, there’s merit to this bill.” William Jeynes is a professor at California State University Long Beach who is an advocate of Bible classes in public schools.

“The goal is to increase academic achievement and help students understand literature and history and clearly the Bible more than other religious books, much more than other religious books, has an impact in that way,” he said. “…I’ve done research on what’s taught in world religion classes and very understandably people are especially interested in the Muslim faith so that tends to be taught the most, by far, and so we do need this course.”

A lobbyist for the Iowa State Education Association says some schools are already offering classes on world religions, including Christianity. Phil Jeneary, a lobbyist for the Iowa Association of School Boards, says the state Board of Education already has a process for reviewing social studies curriculum. “We certainly feel that it should not be at the whims of the legislature,” Jeneary says. “…We don’t want the legislature to say that: ‘You have to learn this,’ and then a few years later a different make-up (of the legislature) comes and says: ‘No, you can’t teach that, but you’re going to now teach this.'”

Senator Herman Quirmbach, a Democrat from Ames who’s a retired Iowa State University professor, says the bill’s narrow focus doesn’t fit an increasingly diverse society. “I think it sends the wrong message from the state of Iowa that we are unwilling to learn from all of the great insights into spirituality and religion and the human condition,” Quirmbach says.

The bill is eligible for a vote in the Senate Education Committee and must clear that committee by Friday to remain eligible for debate in the full Senate.

The UNI women’s basketball team had a tough time finding their shooting rhythm and lost at Missouri State 66-57 on Sunday afternoon.

Sydney Wilson scored 18 points and Abigayle Jackson scored 16 for the Bears. They coupled four players in double figures with their stifling top rated defense to earn the win.

UNI had two players in double figures with guards Karli Rucker and Kam Finley. The two guards both had 14 points in Sunday’s contest, including all but one of the team’s treys. Forwards Grace Boffeli and Bre Gunnels were just behind in scoring with eight and seven points respectively.

UNI is 16-8 overall and 9-4 in the Valley. Next up the Panthers host Drake on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.